F.A.L.T.U

OK. I passed my schooling, but the problem is with the threshold marks!! 37%, 40% and 42%!! It is for sure that I won't be accepted in any college. So, what needs to be done? F.A.L.T.U. is how Ritesh and gang try to hide their rejection. A Fakirchand And Lakirchand Trust University created overnight, with advertisement in newspapers, a website, admission letters and a different kind of Principal (Ritesh Deshmukh) with the help of Google (Arshad Warsi). OK. Everything done. But soon the trouble starts brewing up when they realize that there are other FALTUs too and that too in the same campus!!

Go for Faltu for a refreshing take in Indian cinema. It's college all the way after 3 Idiots. Although not up to that mark, but still a good treat for the vacations. Music's good. Newcomer Puja Gupta lives to her performance, but still the lagging point is the acting. A good story plot and screenplay simply fail to overshadow poor performances, even by the veterans like Arshad Warsi and Ritesh Deshmukh.

STORY:- Ritesh, Niranjan, Pooja and Vishnu are best friends.Life takes a turn when Vishnu secures a 94% and while the rest just pass the exams. This just pass doesn't get them admission in any college. Vishnu is also sad for them. Ritesh decides to make a fake college called 'Fakirchand And Lakirchand Trust university' in order to escape their parents anger. With the help of Google and Bajirao they make a college but with disastrous and hilarious results.

WRITING:- The story is about the youth of today who the world thinks are just useless. Also there are some parts wherein you think the story is going bizarre,. But apart from all that it entertains and conveys a strong message. (1.5/2.5)

MUSIC:- The music is great and is for the youth of today. Sachin-Jigar have done a great job. (1.5/2.5)

ACTING:- The acting from the cast is quite good especially Jackky, Chandan, Pooja and Angad. Arshad brings a comic environment to the film. Ritesh also does the same. Akbar khan was great. Mithun Da and Boman were also great despite having a small role in the film. (2.5)

DANCE:- The dances are great especially of the last song. (1.5/2.5)

BEST SCENE:- I liked the scene wherein Ritesh and Arshad tell that education is not only Science, Commerce and Arts but can also be of your hobbies.

A bad adaptation from a 2006 Hollywood movie accepted...

FALTU is primarily geared to tap the Generation-X multiplex audience (read that college crowd). It has everything to soothe their eyes and ears. Right from the hardships of being a student, goading parents, college gags, the rat-race of exam scores and of course foot tapping music.

FALTU has certain good moments thereby nearly ducking itself from being categorised as fully FALTU. Overall the concept works in pockets but not in entirety. Inspiration to 3-Idiots are visible, however to make it palatable the entire creative team should have indulged in progressive brainstorming exercise and questioned every aspect to better it. In the era of "India Shining" the education system needs a revamp and no two ways to that. But the ideas suggested/ recommended in FALTU are closer to mockery than plausibility.

The producer with big pockets has the might to re-launch the twinkle of his eye. Jr. Bhagnani fails to register a strong impact on a yardstick of star material. Puja Gupta can be aptly described as "out of sight, out of mind". Don't expect "Rolling on the floor laughing" comedy looking at names like Ritesh Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi & Boman Irani. Akbar Khan enacts poor man's Feroz Khan. Chandan Roy Sanyal has clearly accepted the assignment either for money or goodwill. Sushmita Sen, Mallika Sherawat & Mithun Da make a cameo appearance as a gratitude to Vashu Bhagnani.

"Party Abhi Baaki Hain" is sure to be a rage in the disc. Others might gain popularity over period of time. As a choreographer he is two-thumbs up, wish I could use that expression for Remo as a director.

PS: Expect launch ver 3.0 sometime soon.

An inspired or copied film doesn't provide me enough excitement to write about it in details. And F.A.L.T.U. remains one of those unofficial inspired movies which fearlessly take the main idea from another director's work and then serves it with some extra toppings to the viewer as an original creation. But in this case, even the copy is not the first as there was another movie released in year 2010 which was also based on the same idea taken from the English flick "Accepted" (2006). Yes, "Accepted" too is said to be made around a similar idea used in few other movies such as "Camp Nowhere" (1994). But still this fact cannot be used as an excuse by the makers of FALTU for their copying act.

Some students who are not able to get admission in any reputed college due to their low percentage think of opening a fake university online, just to show to their parents that they have been accepted there. But their idea turns out to be big problem when the university becomes famous on the net and more students apply to it unknowingly. Last year we had a small budget movie called ADMISSION OPEN which was also based on this novel original thought of Steve Pink's "Accepted". And this year we have a comparatively decent budget movie made on the same topic from the house of Vashu Bhagnani. In the original the fake university is called "SHIT" which stands for South Harmon Institute of Technology and in this present copy version it is called "FALTU"which stands for Fakirchand and Lakirchand Trust University.

As a movie experience, F.A.L.T.U. gives you the same result as per its title. Its weak, its amateurish and has too many songs which irritate. Thought some of the tracks are good but coming one after another just like that, make the viewer restless. The script takes too many liberties in its execution of an interesting idea and as a result the proceedings on the screen look like childish and unbearable. Like I couldn't understand where from all that money used to come for paying the huge bills of the University? The writers also try to incorporate the idea of "Do what you want to do in your Life" in the film on the lines of "3 Idiots", but in the process fail completely. At certain points, it even gives you an impression of a film made in a hurry, which is surprising since it features the producer's son (Vashu Bhagnani) too in the lead.

The director Remo D'Souza directs too simply with only the climax giving you something to rave about. Particularly the dance sequence which is his forte stands out and impresses. But again we have already witnessed some similar excellent performances in the director's TV show "Dance India Dance" too. In the acting department also, I didn't find anyone doing something great in the film out of the routine. And I really felt sad seeing Arshad Warsi, Ritesh Deshmukh and Boman Irani being wasted in such a way.

However, despite of all these drawbacks I would like to support one good idea put forward by its writers which surely deserves an applause. The thought is that if all the colleges give admissions only to the students securing above 70% then why the passing percentage is kept at 33%. In this scenario what all those majority students are supposed to do, who manage to secure only marks in between 33 and 70 percent. So to avoid all this rejection and confusion why don't keep the passing percentage only at 70% which will further motivate the students to study more harder.

The idea is great, sounds logical and gets my full support too. But unfortunately I cannot recommend you to see the movie only due to this noble thought presented. So for this week, just plan to do something better than this FALTU.