Tuesdays & Fridays(Netflix)
Introducing Jhatlekha, Anmol Thakeria Dhillon
Directed by Taranveer Singh
Rating: * ½
“Toh paach mein se kitne stars?” the ebullient young writer , played by debutant Anmol Thakeria Dhillon, asks his part-time girlfriend,a lawyer played by Jhatlekha.
The verdict, I am afraid , is not very promising. Tuesdays & Fridays is a limp,listless lazy love story about two young people in London who can’t make up their minds whether to date for more than two days a week.I suggest they get therapy .We have other things to worry about.
Yes, the two newcomers are promising. They both have a long way to go . But given the right vehicle(and this certainly doesn’t qualify as right, just trite) Anmol with his good Hindi diction and a fair command over love-related expressions could grow into a reliable actor. It is hard to tell anyone’s worth in this languorously paced 1 hour 40 minute rom-com which can easily be pruned by 40 minutes.
During the first forty minutes literally nothing happens in the except the Boy meets Girl thing where they exchange repartees which sound borrowed from whatsapp group chats . Dhillon and his co-star try hard to infuse their exchanges with….ummmm…passion. But the lines are stiff and the direction is dithery.
In no time at all the narrative slides from dull to outrageous, with Sia agreeing to meet Varun for two days a week.Siya’s mom(Niki Wallia) has no commitment problems. She is into marriage No 2(with the obliging Parvin Dabas) while daughter Siya explores the shallow waters of the relationship ocean.
Mysteriously, known veteran actors keep popping up for a scene or two perhaps hoping to catch producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s attention . Parmeet Sethi has one scene as Siya’s biological father where he looks clueless about his role.Zoa Morani is Varun’s happily-married friend and confidante giving him love advice . And the very lovely Anooradha Patel is wasted as Varun’s mother. Just like the audiences’ time.
The first kiss between the couple happens after an hour. Thereafter Varun rushes to Siya’s home for more. “Do you have a condom? I will give you ten pounds for it?” Varun desperately seeks salvation from his Sardarji cabbie.
This is is the funniest moment you will find in a film that is depressingly irrelevant and unnecessary. The film which was released in February in movie theatres, is now on Netflix. I wonder what made the producers feel audiences would be prompted to brave the Covid to see this uninspired wan and pale rom-com with no redeeming qualities whatsoever.