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Praan Jaye Par Shaan Na Jaye
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'Praan Jaye Par Shaan Na Jaye'

By ApunKaChoice Bureau
Film critic, ApunKaChoice.Com

Sanjay Jha-directed Praan Jaye Par Shaan Na Jaye is the story of number of middle class families living in the cramped confines of their 100-odd square foot homes in Popatlal Chunilal Garodiya chawl in Mumbai.

The film revolves around their lives, their petty problems and their fight with their new landlord, who is hell bent on vacating the chawl and constructing a huge complex in its place.

The

movie begins with Sushmita Sen playing the sutradhar (narrator) and introducing a viewer to the residents of the chawl.

The habitants of this chawl include Durga (Raveena Tandon), an unhappy housewife who is barren and cannot conceive a child. Moreover, her husband cannot afford to get her treated.

In the same chawl live Suman (Rinke Khanna) and her slightly disoriented father lament. They are bereaving the loss of family’s sole son (Sanjay Narvekar) in a police encounter.

Then there is Dulari and Sheela (Divya Dutta and Shweta Menon) who are in distress because of their good-for-nothing husbands' constant need for sexual gratification.

There is a girl named Soundarya (Dia Mirza) who is traumatised by her supposedly unattractive face.

On the other hand, there is also bombshell Mona (Namrata Shirodkar) whose good looks attract too many admirers outside her window, causing her much grief.

As it turns out, Popatlal (Sachin Khedekar), the chawl's wicked owner, wants to get all the tenants evicted as he wants to build a multi-storeyed apartment block and shopping mall in its place.

Enters the film's hero Aman (Aman Verma) who at the first glance seems the kind-hearted savior who helps the tenants by getting them huge loans. But it turns out he is actually Popatlal's friend who is helping him ensure they are forced out of their homes.

Praan Jaye Par Shaan Na Jaye boasts of a fine cast and a promising story, but loses its way because the director tries too hard to be clever. There are certain instances in the film where humor is forced in the narrative.

The first half of the movie is pleasant in parts but the second half takes an unbelievably silly turn and the film loses its focus.

The script by Mahesh Manjrekar is replete with satirical gags that are going to appeal to those who are tired of seeing Govinda’s crass and slapstick humor.

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