Loins of Punjab Presents

First it all, do not read this movie as Lions, there are not jungle lions, it is Loins of Punjab presents! It is like any other ABCD (American Born Confused Desi) movie and perfectly blends in this category.

What I loved in the movie is as to how people are dying to participate and create a name for themselves and to what extent they would go to win, but in the end, the purest of all hearts wins the prestigious award.

You always want a reaction from the audience as to how they would react, after the movie. This was my first movie, when we had to react as the director asked the whole audience. The background to this is a whole lot of Indians are participating in the singing competition where the prize is $25000. Most of the contestants are Indians, except one, he participates to impress his Indian girlfriend. He had practices only one song, and didn't know that he would make to the next round, in the next round he sings in Indian National Anthem, Jana Gana Mana... and the director informs us to stand a little advance as the respect that we do give to the anthem. This was completely mind blowing cause you have never asked to do something in the theatre in most non-personal manner.

The characters in the movie are very very stereotypical that you would see, the objectives, the cunningness, the stupidity all just to win the trophy. To name some of them Shabana Azmi, we though she is a vamp, she done her role pretty well; Ayesha Dharker, she is nice and subtle; Darshan Jariwall as the head of Patel family and the accent that everyone uses - brilliant.

A mockumentary in the spirit of Christopher Guest's 'Best in Show'. This has fewer laughs, but more heart.

A 'Desi Idol' Hindi singing contest is sponsored by a meat company in New Jersey (hence the title). A very odd assortment of contestants, including a young Jewish guy, and a gay Indian rapper vie for the crown as we follow each of their stories.

While clearly done on a tiny budget, the acting is all good, often better than that. And there is such an infectious good will to the piece that I forgave any rough edges.

I didn't laugh a lot, but I smiled almost the whole time I was watching. And any film that can do that is alright by me!

LOINS OF PUNJABS PRESENTS... gives the viewer some nice characters trying their best to realize their dreams in a New Jersey-based "Desi Idol" contest.

The Gujarati family (Patels, naturally) is mined for much hilarity... the writer-director obviously knows the scene well, and most of the laughs come out of their bumpkin hi-jinx. Several other characters (especially Ajay Naidu's) are nicely drawn, while some (including, surprisingly, Shabana Azmi's) fall very flat.

Production values are well below what one would expect from a Tisch/NYU film school product, but obviously funds were at a premium.

That having been said, ensemble comedy movies are among the toughest to pull off, and Manish has redeemed himself well in making the various story lines work. The audience I saw it with in Bombay was definitely appreciative of his efforts.

All in all, nothing great or earthshaking, but a creditable and unassuming first feature which leaves 95% of Bollywood movies with 20 times the budget well in the dust...

And now for something completely different,from India. A film that isn't a Bollywood musical (but does feature music),isn't nearly four hours long,and,is in the English language (with the minor exception of a couple of lines spoken in Hindi,that is subtitled). The film is 'Loins Of Punjab Presents', a comedy about several groups of Indian immigrants,trying to compete for top honours in a talent contest,called 'Desi Idol',an Indian take on (guess what?).Desi,being a Hindi term for a victim of the Indian diaspora. We see several prospectives going through the various processes for being a contestant. Along the way are the usual monkey wrenches in the proverbial cogs:the ones that take up their own self perpetuating political agendas,and change the rules when it suits them (in short,the ones who always manage to screw things up for others,big time),the would be contestants who bomb out,to mention a few. This film seems to want to be shot in the Christopher Guest style "mockumentary" style (at first,but this is eventually dropped as the film's plot line develops). Besides the assortment of oddball characters (a would be Indian American rapper,a half caste singer,who sings in Hindi,although her handle of the language is nearly non existent,a talented teen aged singer,who is just a little too good for one of the other contestants,and my personal favourite,a young Jewish man who is obsessed by Bollywood musicals,as his girlfriend is Indian,herself),there are lots of songs by the various contestants,taken from various Bollywood musicals. Toss in all of the above,stir,and you have yourself a spicy,fun,good time film that will have you walk out the cinema with a smile on your face (as was the audience at the screening that I attended). No MPAA rating,but does contain some raunchy language,as well as some minor adult situations,and an unpleasant racial slur.

It is an awesome movie unlike high budget super flop movies like laaga chunri mein daag, dhol etc. The film has no story as such. But it's a mad comedy, and you don't feel bored even for a moment. All the actors perform well, and you fall in love with their characters after a while. Director Manish Acharya has done a brilliant job on the characters. In less than two hours, you feel as though you know them. Loins Of Punjab Presents is a great way to spend a lazy afternoon. This is the movie worth watching and worth spending your hard earned money.

Loins of Punjab is the name of a company, which organizes a singing reality show called the Desi American Idol in New Jersey. The film takes a closer look at the kind of people who participate in the show, and the politics of it all.