Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl

Having seen Band Baaja Baaraat which I really liked, I'd had quite some expectations from Maneesh Sharma's next feature, Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl, which stars the same actors in lead roles. For me, the film is a great disappointment, though it is not that bad per se. Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl is an unoriginal film about a con man who, using different names and identities, woos young women only to eventually rob them of their property. Then his victims hire a girl to take revenge and get their money back, and this girl he really falls in love with. Blah. Yeh, this is quite an old cliché and so is this movie, which lacks not only originality, but also depth and substance. It's a glossy one though, I must say, and watching it with friends may be quite enjoyable, particularly if they are not in the mood for something serious. The film has some catchy songs as well, though none really is memorable enough. The actors are good enough, but no one is great. Ranveer is alright. He's confident, at times over-confident, but the part is too ordinary to make a difference really (and maybe I was expecting more after BBB), and it does not challenge him in any way; instead it just gives him some corny lines and silly makeovers, and the good moments are too few to matter. Anushka is just too charming to ignore, although, just like with Ranveer, the role itself is nothing special compared to her brilliant turn as Shrutti Kakkar in Band Baaja Baaraat. Yet, there is something about this girl. It's amazing how often she reminds me of Preity Zinta. She is spunky, vivacious and very pretty, and has a strong screen presence, so I still believe she has quite a future in the industry. Of the three girls, all are quite hot, but Parineeta Chopra is clearly the show-stealer and is quite a promising newcomer. She is incredibly cute and consistently credible thanks to her natural flair for comedy and superb dialect. Sadly, the cast were not given a very memorable film to work in. Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl is a most predictable film; the script is well contrived for its own good and the ending couldn't be more saccharine. It has its moments, but it's still forgettable. Watch it if you must, really.

'Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl' is A Decent Entertainer, that works in parts. The First-Hour is quite entertaining, but the Second-Hour isn't really arresting. However, it's a film that will pass your time.

'Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl' Synopsis: A charismatic fraudster who cons ladies for a living finally meets his match when a bunch of his conquests form an equally crafty plan.

'Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl' has a winning first-hour, which is full of entertaining moments. The 1st chapter is engaging, the 2nd chapter is fair, while the 3rd chapter is quick yet effective. The problem with this film, starts in it's second-hour. The entire thing of getting back to the Con-Man to teach him a lesson, is not that entertaining. Even the climax for that matter, looks superficial. Aditya Chopra's Story is watchable, but not memorable. Maneesh Sharma's Direction is good. Cinematography & Editing are passable. Music by Salim-Sulaiman, is energetic.

Performance-Wise: Ranveer Singh is impressive. The actor performs his part with confidence from start to end. Anushka Sharma enters the scene late, yet does a fair job. Parineeti Chopra makes a terrific debut. Her comic-timing is just perfect. Dipannita Sharma is appropriate. Aditi Sharma is nicely restrained. Others lend support.

On the whole, 'Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl' is, at best, a time-pass fare, that works in parts.

Team-BBB (Band Bajaa Baraat) clearly had an advantage with their first outing. Yashraj films were at its lowest ebb which translated the expectations to sub-zero. When the winning combo decided to strike again, the sky-high expectations ended up working against it.

What works?

Ѻ Well written conning portions. Bollywood has generally witnessed scarcity in on this genre, Mr. Sampat and Mr. Natwarlal in the past and Bluffmaster and Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! in the recent come to my mind.

Ѻ Ranveer Singh - Undoubtedly he is the one who has what it takes to carry the mantle forward.

Ѻ Anushka Sharma - Seamless performance. A word of advice to the leading ladies of 90's who are toying the idea of returning from sabbatical. You quit when you were ahead of the game, so stay put. Watch her and you will know why.

Ѻ Parineeta Chopra - A surprise package. This dark horse nearly stole the thunder from Anushka Sharma.

Ѻ Choreography on a few select songs.

Ѻ Authentic supporting characters.

Let downs.

Ѻ The mushy-mushy YRF ingredient. Seriously, the plot had enough potential to steer for a better finale otherwise.

Ѻ The spicy ingredients which went missing in the second-half.

Ѻ The grand conning act appears to be long drawn.

Verdict: A definite one-time watch material. And looking forward to the next outing from Team-BBB!

It was an era when Yash Raaj was mastered in Love Troika Films but since Dhoom they are continuously targeting relatively young audience and this is again a movie especially target the youth but has entertainment for all ages. People liked the on-screen chemistry between Anushka & Ranveer and greatly applauded by masses in Band Baja Barat and once again the couple is spontaneous. This is not a classic, this is not a big but a medium size film and have all ingredients to make it entertaining. Songs are great, story is good and the performance are also good but the girl in the role of Dimple (Parineeti Chopra) will inspire you with her innocence. Director Mahish Sharma who was also the director of Band Baja Barat seems still in the trans of her previous hit.

Script is not much powerful but the performance of all five main characters cover this weakness and songs added worth to watch it. You can spare some time to watch it one time and you won't be conned through this con-movie.

Again a Yash Raj movie,again a Maneesh Sharma film,again Anushka-Ranveer pairing that worked wonders in Band Baaja Baraat,but on the contrary Ladies vs Ricky Bahl never has that element of magic that BBB had.Of course u can blame Anushka coming to the fore in the second half,but the movie actually subsides in the second half itself not only because of some boring sequences but the predictability the movie creates as we rush through second half.First half is fun-filled specially because of the presence of Parineeti Chopra (Priyanka's cousin) and it never ever seems its her first movie.Ranveer as always is impressive not only in conning girls but flaunting his body with those 8 pack abs.Dipannita and Aditi have done commendable jobs.Anushka(especially in the black bikini)looks hot.Songs are OK.Overall the movie could have been better in the second half.Go for it only if you are an ardent fan of Ranveer.I go with 6/10