Wild Wild Punjab Falls Flat: A Buddy Comedy That’s All Too Familiar
Even as I watched Wild Wild Punjab for the first time, I couldn’t help but think, “I’ve already watched this,” and not because it’s not a novel concept. Every scene (barring maybe a handful) feels like something you’ve already watched before.
The film’s setting is obvious from its title and the character introductions give you some hope.
Directed by Simarpreet Singh with a story by Luv Ranjan and a screenplay by Harman Wadala and Sandeep Jain, Wild Wild Punjab follows heartbroken Rajesh Khanna (Varun Sharma) as he sets out to win back his ex-girlfriend. Joined by Maan Arora (Sunny Singh), Gaurav Jain (Jassie Gill), and Honey (Manjot Singh), this “buddy comedy” promises laughs, adventure, and maybe even some social commentary.
The film’s setting and character introductions give you some hope.
But Hope is perhaps the critic’s biggest enemy. Satire is a far stretch from what the film turns these themes into. There’s misogyny, gun violence, and drug peddlers on a rampage, and none of it gets the smart writing it deserves. Even the film’s attempts at humor fall flat, relying on gimmicks rather than well-crafted comedy.
The film’s satire falls flat, relying on gimmicks rather than well-crafted comedy.
And then there are the characters. Radha (Patralekhaa) is the quintessential “good girl” whose “true colours” emerge when she’s inebriated, and Meera (Ishita Raj) is the “cool, brash, biker girl” who beats men up because they owe her money and vapes because… well, what else is her archetype supposed to do? These characters feel like they’ve been plucked straight from a stereotype manual.
Meera’s character feels like it’s been plucked straight from a stereotype manual.
While Varun Sharma and Sunny Singh deliver some laughs, it’s not enough to save this film from its overall lack of originality. Maybe we need to look at these kinds of buddy comedies in the eye and say, “I’m over you.”
