Do Dooni Chaar

I don't remember when was the last time i saw a movie with such a simple but strong storyline. I won't term this movie as a comedy but it definitely had humor in it. The plot of the movie is so simple that any middle class Indian would be able to relate to it, the dream of Duggal Family to become the owner of a four wheeler from a two wheeler(as you can already make out from the title). Rishi Kapoor essays the role of a low earning maths teacher which he played to perfection, hardworking and still hated by his students(reminded me of some of my school teachers), Neetu Kapoor was the housewife who in parts reminded me of my mother, hardworking and tired but still non complaining. Add to that two kids who always have complaints from there parents as they are trying to become a part of the high society friend circle. The house and the society in which the Duggal's stayed kept me guessing through out the movie as to which part of Delhi was it as it could have been any middle class Punjabi dominated area of Delhi. Add to this a lot of complicated situations to the life of the Duggal's in their effort of buying a car and you get a complete family package. It is a movie without the usual glam sham which you expect from a Hindi movie but considering the story and the excellent acting of Rishi Kapoor, I don't think there was a need for any. See this if you like simple family movies without any melodramas.

Was flipping through channels on Sunday night after having nothing better to do and saw this wonderful movie do dooni char. Captured essence of middle class life so succinctly and reminded me of my childhood. Best was ending of movie when narrator (daughter of protagonist) claims that consumerism is not bad. In family's desire to buy a car they could rediscover their dad, started taking pride in their lives and his brother and father came close to each other. Their effort to win lucky draw by opening thousand boxes of detergent reminded me of how dutifully mom was collecting each edition of local newspaper when they had a maruti draw or how I used to try KBC phone religiously in college. Typical middle class dreams and desire to fulfill them. How one has societal pressures of showing one in good position in marriage at one's relatives, how neighbors fight and learn to live together and how old teachers always live in heart of students.

I am a middle class salaried person, having two children (one son and one daughter), a wife having the typical middle-class mindset and a moderately furnished house. Till three years back, I was riding a scooter only (still I ride the scooter only for most of the time). In 2007, upon shifting from Rawatbhata (Rajasthan) to Delhi, I bought a car (Maruti 800). So when I saw the promos of this movie, I at once decided to watch it because I felt I would relate to it. And my prediction came true.

Do Dooni Chaar (two twoja four) is the story of a typical middle class family living in a metro like Delhi whose head is not a permanent employee in a govt. office or a reputed company. He is a mathematics teacher (that's why the name of the movie is a mathematical one) in a private college, getting moderate salary and he supplements it by doing tuitions. He rides an old Bajaj scooter and lives with his family (consisting of his wife, son and daughter) in a moderate single bedroom flat. Like almost all the middle class Indian families, they have to spend more than their capacity for the sake of pomposity, relationships and social prestige. Like several middle class children living in metro cities, their children also like to make girlfriend / boyfriend, visit Mc Donald for eating and make quick money for out of pocket expenses which their parents are not able to provide them. Like most of Indian middle class parents, they also want their children to study in reputed English medium educational institutions and become something big in their lives. For that sake, they control their own expenses but ensure that the children's future is not adversely affected for want of money.

However this Do Dooni Chaar family has a family head with a difference from likewise family heads. Though like a typical middle class housewife, the wife wants her husband to earn some extra bucks even by compromising his conscience, the head of the family has his own morals to cater to. They pay bribes to the corrupt Indian establishment under compulsion (like most middle class Indians have to) but they do not do anything likewise themselves. The first reason is conscience. However the bigger reason is fear of doing something bad (or unlawful, to be exact). However when they have to suffer humiliation upon using the neighbour's car upon the special occasion of attending a marriage in close relation, the self-respect of the head of the family (the Duggal family) gets hurt to that much extent that he decides to buy his own car. Now what happens in making arrangement for down payment of the car which is not a small amount for a hand-to-mouth family in the capital city and how several allied things come to the fore, form the post interval part of the story.

Do Dooni Chaar is an excellent and very well made movie. While watching the movie I was feeling as I were Rishi Kapoor, my wife were Neetu Singh and my children were their children. Everything shown and every character shown (especially the family members) are so realistic that even for a moment you do not feel that you are watching a fictional story of an imaginary family. And it is this realistic touch of simple middle class Indian life and simple middle class Indian characters that makes this movie a winner all the way. Whether it's Rishi's prohibiting his daughter from doing a call centre job or it's his blaming himself for his son's spoilage or it's Neetu's complaining to her husband for making her leave her job or it's her fuming over the monthly income and expenditure budget of the family; everything is natural. It's the typical Indian middle class family which barely manages to live a reasonable life but still dreams big. And still owning a car and owning a house are the biggest dreams of the typical Indian middle class people.

The movie also effectively underscores the nobility of the noble profession of teaching alongwith the fact that teachers (especially in the non-govt. sector schools) are the one of the least paid salaried people in India which is a major factor behind the poor educational standards in our country.

Rishi-Neetu are awesome in their performances with their off screen chemistry coming alive on the screen. But the actors (Archit Krishna and Aditi Vasudev who is the anchor also) playing their children have overtaken them by their brilliant performance. All others (including Akhilendra Mishra as their neighbour and the actress playing Phupho to be specially mentioned) have also done exceedingly well.

Music is not great except the marriage song - Banni Hamaari Chaand Se Pyaari. The art director has done a splendid job by capturing the life in Delhi with utmost reality. In fact the whole Do Dooni Chaar team deserves a big hand alongwith the writer-director Habib Faisal. The only thing which may not appeal to the non-Delhites and non-Punjabis is the overdoz of Punjabi language. But that's not a big issue.

This movie reminiscing the Hrishikesh Mukherjee-Basu Chatterjee movies of the seventies and early eighties, is just like a gust of fresh and cool breeze in the cinematic environment suffocated by so-called NRI movies. I recommend this light-mood family drama wholeheartedly and unconditionally to all the movie buffs.

Long after "Khosla ka ghosla" has a good movie with middle class background has come up. I would say the movie is far better than anyone can expect of Habib Faisal.

The movie starts with a very simple layout and continues the simplicity of middle class throughout. Definitely the characters are perfect suited for their roles and the storyline. Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh came out very realistic. This movie has changed the picture of Rishi Kapoor-the rich dad to Rishi Kapoor-a middle class man.

The movie portrays a normal family with mummy like housewife saving a rupee wherever possible; father still using age-old scooter; decent and trying to be a boy daughter; and a ambitious son doing just good with his demanding girlfriend. The best part is there were no Golmaal-type events or songs to make the viewer happy or sad and everything comes out very naturally except for 1-2 scenes. I assure you the climax is not very expected type but you would appreciate the originality and attention to detail.

Basically, the movie contains a great deal of drama, comedy, sentiments and definitely suspense as to what happens of the CAR. If you liked "Khosla ka ghosla-quest for middle class house" this "quest for a car" is your type. No food for thought-just entertainment.

Do Dooni Char is one small episode portraying a middle-class Delhi family struggling through their financial limitations. It is a humorous and enjoyable movie throughout but is more impressive for its authenticity and realistic feel more than the story itself. The story is where this exceptionally good film scores. The spirit of Delhi and its middle-class families ha been wonderfully captured. The casts,sets and the costumes are all very simple and thus create an enchanting sense of everyday realism which is very missing in Hindi films. The film has its moments and it actually deals with problems not usually dealt with in Indian movies, such as the modest salaries professional teachers get paid for their efforts and how this affects their life.The pairing of Neetu and Rishi Kapoor adds to the advantage of the movie and makes it much more better.Its great to see both of them on screen together after decades. The story deals with the life of Santosh Duggal,played by Rishi Kapoor. He is forced to use a scooter and at some point this starts saddening him and his family.The movie is also about the dream of the family to own a car.A lovely way of conveying a concept, and it is generally well done.The biggest plus point is the casting, particularly of Rishi Kapoor, who delivers an excellent performance. Neetu Singh is very good, especially considering the fact that she had not acted for decades. Do Dooni Chaar is a great film that relates to the life of many Indian middle class families and reminds of our childhood days.A real entertainer for me.