A One Night Stand (2009)

Thanks for the memories!

Load of rubbish!!

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

The acting in this movie is really good.

The team that gave us some amazing movies like 'Mixed Doubles', 'Mithiya' and 'Dasvidaniya' are now back with a new movie about urban marital relationships. Saurabh Shukla now occupies the director's seat and tells the story of three married couples. What really captured me about Shukla's direction is how he subtly portrays each couple struggling in their marriage. While it is clear that their marriages aren't working, Shukla cleverly peels the layers as he gradually reveals the reason. The subtle comedy is a plus even though the pace is a little slow in the beginning. The film also manages to capture the urban feel. The twist in the end, even though I saw it coming, is well handled.The overall performances are good. However, Rajat Kapoor doesn't exactly nail the part. Vinay Pathak is brilliant, even though this kind of character isn't anything new for him and writing required more depth. Dalip Tahil makes a welcome comeback and so does Navneet Nishan as the irritating chatterbox housewife. Aamir Bashir is adequate. Neha Dhupia is sensational and finally it is Iravati Harshe who delivers the best performance.The execution is pretty good and the soundtrack is terrific. Even if 'Raat Gayi Baat Gayi' isn't among the best of what the team has delivered, it is a nice effort on Shukla's part. He ought to direct more and I'll be looking forward to such ventures.

When you look forward to watch the next outing from the trio namely Rajat, Vinay and Ranvir - the expectations are nothing short of "Bheja Fry" to least to speak. Especially if you give it a topping of Saurabh Shukla helming the affairs, there is absolutely no room for going astray.The good news is the product works and the sad news is only in parts. The narrative is unique and keeps the audience intrigued however there seem to be lapses at various junctures. Performance wise the entire star-cast have delivered a spectacular performance. The beard doesn't deliver the impact of the usual "suave" Rajat look. He seems to be straight out of "Siddharth" sets.Vinay role as a bosom buddy was okay'ish. Required more depth. In addition, he "fit" looks he sported for "Straight" seems to be waning and it shows.Ranvir hardly contributed with his jibes about "Austraaliaa".Neha Dhupia seems to have developed a penchant for the character since "Ek Chaalis Ki Last Local". Ecdysis warranted asap. Dilip Tahil character was over-emphasised. The "Jack out of the box" was as big as a bus.Irawati, Dilip Tahil, Anu Menon, Navneet Nishan - all did a great job there.Verdict: Not a bad watch if aired on telly.

Rajat Kapoor camp has given us some memorable offbeat flicks in the past (remember mithya and mixed double!!). So I had pretty high expectations from RGBG which I feel sorry to say did not meet them fully. The movie is not too disappointing, it has its funny moments and a good ending; but it seriously lacks in the script and screenplay. Though the end is surprising, the first half does not generate much curiosity about "What the hell really happened last night between Rahul and Sophiya?". A few more twists in the tail and a tighter screenplay could have done the job.The movie scores well in most of the other aspects. The actors are at their best, especially Vinay Pathak, Navneet Nishan and Ranvir Shourey (he creates magic even with such few scenes). Neha was amazing as a 'totta' and I am glad she is emerging as a fine actor with movies like Dasvidaniya, Ek Chaalis, Maharathi and RGBG. Iravati is a refreshing entry in Rajat's camp and I hope she stays. The background music is good, could have been better.Overall, it is a nice watch for multiplex crowd, but not the kind of stuff you expect form the ensemble.

After a long gap, comes an impressive and entertaining offbeat flick talking about the extra marital affairs in a comical manner. An intelligent satire on the ever changing relationships of 3 married couples and their reunion; it is not a usual cup of tea for every lover of Hindi Cinema. In fact the movie is strictly for adults and the multiplex viewers who can easily understand the overdose of English conversations included in its narration. And though it revolves around the memory loss of a particular night and its happenings, still it is not a remake or an inspired version of the English Hit "Hangover" as expected.It's a comeback movie of writer-actor-director Saurabh Shukla, which excels with its impressive performances, funny dialogues and realistic take on the High Society culture and its famous parties. The story revolves around a weekend party where all the characters are there interacting with each other. Rajat Kapoor arrives there to attend the party along with his wife Irawati and their kid girl. After a few drinks he gets attracted towards Neha Dhupia, who is also there in the party with her boyfriend. They both start with some casual talks and end up being in a room all alone. Now the next morning when Rajat wakes up, he cannot exactly remember what had happened last night and he is still confused that whether they both did 'it' or not. From here, starts the actual mix-up where everyone starts blaming the other for his undisclosed and awkward position.In actual terms, "Raat Gayi Baat Gayi" is not a loud comedy with over the top sexual sequences as seen in some recent lousy comedies. On the contrary it's a smart and intellectual kind of movie which more or less depends upon the entertaining verbal conversations between its characters. It's indeed a treat to watch the husbands & wives talking bitterly about their spouses and then later repenting upon their own remarks and feeling sorry for it. In simple words, the movie entertains in its first half where everyone is lovingly teasing each other in the party and then remarkably enlightens its viewers in the second half when the characters move on to the path of their self-realisation.The most entertaining scenes include the ones where Rajat Kapoor & Vinay Pathak are discussing the one night stand with each other. Later Dilip Tahil joins in, making it even more hilarious and absorbing. Besides that, Saurabh also softly points out towards many famous social superstitions like Feng- Shui and Tarot Reading through some intelligently written scenes in his script. And the last half an hour of the movie, when all the confusions are being cleared about that particular night, proves as a perfect ending for a well directed movie based on the uncontrolled human relationships.If you loved the artistic kind of movies made in the 70s & 80s, then you will readily appreciate the efforts put in "Raat Gayi Baat Gayi" accompanied by many superlative performances to enjoy. The best act comes from Rajat Kapoor and Vinay Pathak, which gets equally supported by the sizzling beauty, Neha Dhupia who looks too hot in her revealing outfits. Rest of the cast includes, Dalip Tahil, Irawati Harshe, Anu Menon, Navnit Nisshan and Aamir Bashir, who also provide many funny and amusing moments for the viewers. To complete the team lead by Rajat Kapoor there are few special cameos too made by the well known, Ranvir Shorey, Marakand Deshpande and the renowned director Sudhir Mishra.Interestingly both Ranvir and Marakand have the two most hilarious scenes in the script where Ranvir is talking about his innovative "Kukkad" dish and Marakand is showing his palmistry skills to a lady. Musically the film has nothing exceptional to offer with Ankur Tewari's musical score mainly working only as a fine filler. Cinematography is captivating with expressive close-ups, soothing lighting and innovative colour schemes used in the backgrounds.Incidentally, "Raat Gayi Baat Gayi" reminded me of another realistic gem called "Party" (1984), which also revolved around a similar get-together sequence involving several characters from the richer section of the society. The 80s masterpiece was directed by Govind Nihalani and it seems that the movie was somehow there in Saurabh's mind while writing the script of his current venture. The climax was also pretty close to Rajat's own movie on wife swapping with the title "Mixed Doubles" released in 2006.Summing up, 'Raat Gayi Baat Gayi" is a well directed and superbly acted movie which will mostly appeal to the thinking viewers who love the realistic, offbeat and artistic kind of cinema. Go for it if you are a fan of this particular genre.