Frankly, the trailer of Govinda Naam Mera did not excite me even when I watched it twice at its launch event. The art of cutting a trailer has been lacking novelty, easily for more than a decade. But fortunately, Govinda Naam Mera is way better than what its trailer offered. For starters, it’s a world within the real world. Something that Anurag Basu (Life In a Metro, Ludo, Jagga Jasoos) and Wes Anderson (entire filmography) have mastered consistently. For the main course, there’s a meaty plot that thickens as the film progresses. For dessert, there’s sweet revenge.
The film is written and directed by Shashank Khaitan. He also appears in a cameo. This is his fourth feature as a director. I haven’t watched his first three features. Only watched his forgettable segment in the Netflix anthology Ajeeb Daastaans. But in Govinda Naam Mera, he is in top form. The language used in dialogue is Mumbai Hindi, which has a strong Marathi flavour. Words from both languages make swift transitions into each other without anyone minding it. The dialogue here seems more organic than the forced Bambaiya dialect that we usually see in Bollywood films.
The protagonist Govinda Waghmare (Vicky Kaushal) and his girlfriend Suku (Kiara Advani) are Bollywood background dancers. Khaitan himself has been a dancer and dance teacher. So, the rebuilding of that world in the film looks authentic. Ranbir Kapoor and choreographer Ganesh Acharya make cameos to put the finishing touches to that world. Govinda is married to an abusive woman, Gauri (Bhumi Pednekar), and has an equally domineering domestic worker, Manjiri (Trupti Khamkar), to emasculate him even more.
Abuse of any gender has to be taken seriously, and it’s worrying how domestic abuse of men is viewed as comedy in this film. Govinda Naam Mera flirts dangerously with this in the first hour of the film. Other than that, this is not a film that draws stringent gender lines. Men and women both participate in crimes, deceit and gags in their own way. And most of the actors playing them are in good form.
Vicky Kaushal makes a solid impression in his first out-and-out comic caper. The actor has huge potential for comedy and also lends a certain vulnerability to his character. Kiara Advani is spunky as Suku. She is another underutilised leading actress in the industry. Bhumi Pednekar as the abusive and manipulative Gauri is clearly out of her comfort zone and finds it difficult to adapt to comedy. The strain in her performance is visible.
Govinda Naam Mera has an ensemble supporting cast. All of them get their moment to shine. Sayaji Shinde, although hamming it up big time, fits perfectly in the role of a politician/ businessman. Renuka Shahane is hilarious as Govinda’s mother. Dayanand Shetty aka Daya from CID plays a cop again but is fun as Inspector Javed. Other actors, although appearing for a very short span, are given their space and recognition in the larger scheme of things. We don’t see that often in Hindi cinema. Govinda Naam Mera is inherently filmi, and that’s the best way to watch this film. Just get on the ride and have fun.
The film becomes a big roller coaster in its second hour. The first hour may leave you wondering where this film is headed. But it is in the second hour that you realise that the first hour was reasonably utilised to set up everything because after ‘the plot thickens’, it keeps you glued to the screen. There’s no ‘bechara’ in this film. Every character is a product of their circumstances and decisions.
The best way to enjoy this film is to watch it with a clean slate, without trying to intellectualise everything you see. It’s not a ‘leave your brains at home’ comedy, for sure. (You’ll watch it on OTT, so where will you leave your brains anyway?) Govinda Naam Mera works because it is aware of the world it has created. Every character is more eccentric than the other. Every situation is more bizarre than the other. It’s a mad, mad, mad world with enough twists, turns and laughs to last you the entire runtime.
