Movie Review - Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety – by Suhel Johar

Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety Follows A Bizarre Love Triangle Plot.

Is director Luv Ranjan a misogynist? Given the stance of his films he seems to be a women hater portraying all women as a negative influence terming them as manipulative, opportunists and gold diggers. The men in his films though are portrayed as gullible fools, unsure and insecure who enjoy women bashing. Except for his second film Akaash Vani Ranjan’s Pyaar Ka Punchnama 1, Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 or the latest Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety are all films based on misogyny plots. So it's time for Ranjan to actually grow up in his thoughts rather than serving up the same mentality again and again.

Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety revolves around the three characters Sonu (Kartik Aaryan), Titu (Sunny Singh) and his Sweety (Nushrat Bharucha). Sonu and Titu are childhood friends cum buddies who are inseparable. They are together since kindergarten. They share the same roof, family, and alcohol. They are so close that Sonu calls Titu’s mother as Mummy which highlights the writer’s intention of displaying the depth of the bond.

The twist in the tale arises when too sweet Sweety enters Titu’s life and she appears perfect to Titu. Sweety is sanskari, delightful, appealing, and beguiling. She is a perfect girl who works with an NGO, arranges Mata ka Jagran, etc and is adored by Titu and his entire family. Titu decides to marry her instantly. But, Sonu is suspicious about over-sweetness of sweety and decides to unmask her.

Soon it is discovered that Pihu has a Tinder account when her boyfriend Titu snoops on her. Enters Sonu who drills into our system that Pihu is mean, disloyal, controlling and manipulative. Hereon begins the cold war between Sonu and Sweety. Soon, Sonu asks Titu to choose between him and Pihu.

In essence SKTKS is the same as Ranjan’s previous films and the theme further explores and leads you towards the dilemma that perhaps Titu is in love with Sonu subconsciously. A bizarre love triangle is formed in the film. But the film keeps the heterosexual romance between Sonu and Titu questionable under a curtain.

The film appears to be too diverted from the mainstream consciousness. Sweety is displayed as a vixen deliberately which shows the misogynistic approach of the director. But if you are going to watch this film neglecting this misogynistic part you may perhaps enjoy the battle of wills and egos played in Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety.

The characters of women in this film are path-breaking. From a difficult girlfriend, we move to saas-bahu drama where they are at loggerheads. In fact, one of the elderly mature men in the family rejoices at the idea of welcoming a strong daughter-in-law anticipating which side he would take – the saas’ or the bahu’s.

And it doesn’t stop there. The film doesn’t have a heroine. The film has a villain. The lead actress rolls her painted lips in style and says, ‘Main heroine nahi, villain hoon, villain.’ Wah, what women empowerment! We don’t even know what her mean motives are. She just sashays in designer clothes and an anglicized voice whispers, ‘she is a gold digger.’

The first half of the film is entertaining in parts with some genuine lol moments aided by some good comic timing by the actors. But the second half is scattered and a painful drag, needless song-dance routines get thrust in. There is a song for every occasion. Bachelor Party song. Come back to India song. Sangeet song. Pool party song. Mehndi song. Wedding song.

The film repeats itself at every given moment and is stretched to a point where the day and night of every wedding ceremony is shown!

Tackling a plot with his comfort zone director Luv Ranjan does what he is best at but it’s time that he reinvent himself and give us something new. Writers Luv Ranjan and Rahul Mody churn out material that stays true to their formula. Cinematography by Sudhir K. Chaudhary is okay. Editing by Akiv Ali needed to be crisper. Music by Hans Raj Hans, Rochak Kohli, Yo Yo Honey Singh, Amaal Mallik, Zack Knight and Saurabh – Vaibhav is peppy.

Performancewise, it's a Kartik Aaryan show all over. From his trademark monologues to his dance moves, he is just too good on screen. Sunny Singh has evolved a lot since Akaash Vani and PKP 2. He gets his moment towards the end of the film and he manages to emote well. Nushrat Bharucha is her regular assured self even though she gets such one dimensional character to deal with that her vampish role can’t infuse any depth to the role she plays. Alok Nath is funny and so is Virendra Razdan. Ayesha Raza Mishra is fabulous while the rest of the cast does a commendable job.

On the whole, if misogyny is your cup of tea and wife slandering jokes that you get on WhatsApp amuse you, you would enjoy Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety.