Before Hungama 2, here’s looking back at what worked for Priyadarshan’s Hungama

Before watching Hungama 2, here's revisiting Priyadarshan's 2003 hit Hungama.

It’s been 18 years since Priyadarshan’s Hungama released in theatres and truth be told, not even the biggest fans of the director would have expected him to return with a sequel to this 2003 hit, given he was not even a part of the Hera Pheri sequel Phir Hera Pheri in 2006. The director, who has helmed comedy films like Hulchul, Bhagam Bhag, Bhool Bhulaiyaa, is back with the genre that has been synonymous with his name in the Hindi film industry. It marks his return to Hindi cinema after 2013’s Rangrezz.

While it remains to be seen what Hungama 2 is all about, it is just the right time to revisit Hungama and examine what really worked for the film at the time.

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Hungama, starring Akshaye Khanna, Aftab Shivdasani, Paresh Rawal, Rimi Sen, among others released a couple of years after the director’s classic, Hera Pheri. Hungama was a remake of his own 1984 film Poochakkoru Mookkuthi and the Hindi version was well received by the audience at the time, but became even popular with its repeat telecast on satellite channels. And 18 years later, a film that could have been lost in the umpteen titles of the director’s rather busy filmography is getting a new life.

So what exactly worked for Hungama? Let’s take a look

1. Paresh Rawal

Upon watching the film 18 years later, it is evident that Hungama rests on the shoulders of Paresh Rawal. Playing Radhe Shyam Tiwari, he has the funniest comebacks for his wife Anjali, played by Shoma Anand. Even the little conversations he has with Akshaye Khanna’s Jeetu or Shakti Kapoor’s Teja are laced with humour. With Paresh Rawal being the mainstay of Hungama 2, the film could deliver on the humour quotient.

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2. The crackling dialogues

Late writer-director Neeraj Vora wrote the dialogues for Hungama and it is those dialogues for the large part that make Hungama watchable even today. Of course, there is tonnes of sexism in the name of comedy that is at play here but aside from that, the good comedy bits still get you.

3. The mistaken identity plot

As ardent Hindi cinema viewers, we have been watching the mistaken identity plot for years now. The comedy of errors is supported well by the last act of Hungama where the mess gets even messier.

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4. The electric climax

Hungama ends with the resolution of the love triangle between its three leads but the film reaches its crescendo in the penultimate scene which is the most remembered part of the film. Here, the whole bunch of characters that exist in the film’s universe get linked to one another after they form a chain by getting electrocuted one after another. As Bollywood buffs will tell you, this is the stuff for which you need to leave your brains behind.

Hungama 2 releases on July 23 on Disney+ Hotstar.

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