One by Two

The movie was an out of the box experience, literally!! It was just like reading a well written novel. The suspense was just about optimum and maintained right throughout the movie.

Normally, I am known to dole out bad reviews for most Bollywood films, but this one simply caught me by surprise! Great acting by Abhay Deol. He never lets me down in that department. Preeti Desai was okay. She put in a good effort.

The movie will come as a breather for those chronically frustrated by Bollywood's habit of dishing out stale melodramatic no-brain movies.

Thumbs up to the production team! This movie simply does not deserve such bad reviews from a moronic audience!

Release date: 31 Jan 2014

Banner: Amit Kapoor Abhay Deol Sanjay Kapoor Vikram Khakhar Viacom 18 Motion Pictures

Director: Devika Bhagat

Producer: Abhay deol

Writer: Devika Bhagat

Stars: Abhay deol,preeti desai

Story Line: How do like your soup to be served? Amit likes it one by two. Yes, it is the same Abhishek who is super-pakaoed with life. But why is Amit so pakaoed afterall? Well, there are many reasons. Samara, on the other hand, is frustrated with her life. She loves dancing, but success seems a dream too far-fetched for her. Devika Bhagat's One By Two tracks the lives of Amit (played by Abhay Deol) and Samara (played by Preeti Desai). If you are expecting a typical Bollywood masala flick, this movie is not for you. However, if you just want to relax and enjoy a good romantic-comedy, this is it. Amit is a regular guy, stuck in a monotonous life: work, home, sleep, repeat. To make matters worse, his girlfriend Radhika dumped him. And now his mom (played by Rati Agnihotri) wants him to get married to a girl named Shisikaa (yes, that's her name) from Prabhadevi. Well, now you can really imagine why Amit is so pakaoed. Samara is an aspiring dancer. But there is always something or the other coming in her way of success. What happens when these two meet? Is there any meet-cute situation? This is a film on self discovery and following one's dreams, and has been very well done for its quirky concept. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's music is melodic and groovy. Especially the track Kaboom by Anushka Manchanda – it is peppy, the kind of song which you can listen to in order to boost up your lazy mornings. Khushfehmiyan, by Shankar Mahadevan and Sheher Mera by Thomas Andrews are easy on the ears. Overall, the tracks are nicely done and are hummable. Why must you watch the movie? One By Two is a romantic-comedy without the usual syrupy melodrama. There are no saccharine-sweet dialogues or the usual hero-heroine song-dance sequence. The movie is about two people living two different lifestyles. Despite its flaws, the movie genuinely is a break from the recent torturous bombardment of loud and over-the-top Bollywood movies. We would definitely like to see more of Abhay & Preeti's togetherness on screen www.bollywodjuncture.com

Script Analysis: Two is a romantic-comedy without the usual syrupy melodrama. There are no saccharine-sweet dialogues or the usual hero-heroine song-dance sequence. The movie is about two people living two different lifestyles. Despite its flaws, the movie genuinely is a break from the recent torturous bombardment of loud and over-the-top Bollywood movies. We would definitely like to see more of Abhay & Preeti's togetherness on screen

Star Performance: Abhay Deol as Amit Sharma plays the role as written. But is not at his usual best. C'mon, I just can't get over the Abhay Deol from DevD and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. It is difficult to say, whether he was 'acting' pakaoed or was actually pakaoed in the whole movie. Most of the time, other then sulking, he farted, burped and… farted some more. Excuse me please. At times it gave some comic relief, but later, it became a tad redundant. Preeti Desai as Samara just dazzled. The viewers got a break from the sulky face (and potty talks) of Abhay Deol with her graceful dance moves and screen presence. However, the on screen chemistry of the real life couple didn't create as many sparks as was expected and hence became a rather disappointing affair. Lillete Dubey and Rati Agnihotri did a fine job playing the mothers of the respective protagonists – albeit with a little over-acting now and then. Jayant Kriplani and Darshan Jariwala also did a commendable job as supporting actors.

Direction, Editing and Screenplay: Devika is good at all and delivers a fresh movie.Sceenplay could have been better...

Without going into any introductory lines, I would straight come to the point giving you the shocking news that if you also had a strong opinion (like myself) that there ought to be something out of the box or path breaking whenever the thinking actor ABHAY DEOL goes for producing a film, then unfortunately we were all quite wrong. Because here is a film co-produced by Abhay in which he does try to go out of the box, but in the attempt, mistakenly kicks the ball so hard that it goes out of the stadium instead of the box, never to be found again.

In fact the above statement is the best way to express the experience of watching ONE BY TWO frankly, as in this too the viewer desperately keeps waiting for the story to begin in its entire 135 minutes, just like waiting for the ball to be brought back into the stadium. But the director is simply not interested in beginning her tale even till 125 minutes into the film and then decides to end exactly at the point where the story actually begins. So that should say it all if you really wish to know about the film's basic story progression. However for the fans, who are still eager to know more about this unexplainable, pale, boring & hard to watch film (featuring the thinking actor), then here are my one liner conclusions formed after painfully going through this badly made film, as mentioned below:

"It feels really great and intellectual watching the maestro WOODY ALLEN's films, but one shouldn't dare to try that ever…… if he or she doesn't have that deep understanding of life, vision, clarity & a dialogue writer by the side having a similar, gifted intellect."

"ONE BY TWO is probably the only Hindi Film in which the lead pair doesn't meet each other ever, till the last scene in the climax & yet its supposed to be a love story with all those interesting love songs."

"When there are so many reality shows thrown at our faces every evening through the numerous channels, do the film-makers still think that the viewers would be interested in watching another one on the big screen spending both their time and money?"

"Many a times, films are made just to establish a particular person and ONE BY TWO has clearly been made to establish PREET DESAI in the industry, since the film completely focuses on her, ignoring everyone else including the hero Abhay Deol. The girl looks pretty but gets totally betrayed by a poorly chosen script and her own foreign accent."

"ONE BY TWO is a film which repeatedly uses 'Toilet Humour' in its badly written dialogues in the most disgusting manner."

"It is undoubtedly the weakest, silliest and the most pathetic script Abhay Deol has ever featured in and the same can be said about his uncaring act in the film too."

"If you wish to watch a veteran like Rati Agnihotri hamming in the role of a mother then do watch ONE BY TWO"

"One of the songs of film goes with the lyrics, "I am just Pakaaoed……!" and that's precisely what one feels several times, while watching the film in the theater."

Summing up, there is indeed one out of the box, yet interesting feature of the film to be found in its fine SOUNDTRACK, which though remains completely wasted in the film, but still has many good tracks in it written thoughtfully. The best track of the album remains "Khuda Na Khaasta" sung by Arijit Singh, followed by "Khushfehmiyan" by Shankar Mahadevan, "Baat Kya Hai" by Clinten Cerejo, "Shehar Mera" by Thomson Andrews and "Kaboom" by Anushka Manchanda.

However listening to the tracks once again online, I really wish they were used in a different film with a decent amount of sanity in its script giving them proper justice. And yes, Abhay Deol was perfectly right if he was very much concerned about the music not reaching the audience in time, since the tracks do have a lot to say both in terms of rendition as well as the lyrics, moving ahead than many other OST's, honestly.

Anyway, as a film ONE BY TWO turns out to be the first highly disappointing film delivered by one of the most reliable and dependable actors of Hindi cinema i.e. Abhay Deol. And the actor shouldn't have really opted for such a useless script at all.

'One by Two' is An Under-Rated Film! An enjoyable, slice-of-life film, that is realistic, humorous & engaging. It might not follow the usual clichés that Hindi Film romances do, but it still has a fresh approach.

'One by Two' Synopsis: This is the story of Amit and Samara - two souls in Mumbai, a city of millions & how the universe conspires to bring them together.

'One by Two' is about two diverse souls, who are inter-connected with their each-other due to many circumstances. Its about a guy who's heartbroken after a failed love-affair & an ambitious dancer who's giving her best to make a name for herself. Its the diversity between its protagonists, which makes 'One by Two' a memorable affair.

But, there are some flaws. the slow-pacing, firstly, needed some serious persuasion. The pace is consistently slow, which tends to get to you at times. Also, the running-time, over 135 minutes, needed some trimming.

Devika Bhagat's Screenplay offers an interesting tale of two diverse individuals, with freshness & some really funny dialogue. Bhagat's Direction, on the other-hand, is simple. Cinematography is standard. Editing lacks sharpness.

Performance-Wise: Abhay Deol is natural to the core. He delivers a believable performance. Preeti Desai, keeping aside her faulty diction, is confident & shows off her dancing skills without any inhibitions. Amongst the supporting cast, Darshan Jariwala & Rati Agnihotri are a joy to watch.

On the whole, 'One by Two' is certainly worth a watch.

i find the film wholly entertaining.abhay deol has graciously played his role of pakaoed IT freak. not necessarily every movie should present it's lead actor as an inspiration for masses. the movie is full of wittingly sarcastic remarks. the plot is unexpected all along with it's highs and lows but never boring.music is refreshingly fresh with crazy lyrics. dialogues are as in normal conversation never superfluous. sidecharacters of shashika, ACP dhawan, amit's parents and friends are fun to watch. story could be common but presentation is entirely offbeat. the movie would definitely qualify for contemporary cinema. better watch it in theatre than wait for DVD print...