Movie Review: Namastey London

Directed by Vipul Shah, Namastey London brings the east and west together once again through the total Punjabi munda played by Akshay Kumar and the Indian born, British brat played by Katrina Kaif. The girl's father (Rishi Kapoor) is quite upset with the way his daughter has become a slave to the western culture thus leaving her Indian roots far behind, and so he decides to get her married to a total desi lad. This is where Akki comes in and before the girl can actually offer her platter of protests, they both are bound in the wedlock.
 
The lasso however has a firangi already up her sleeve and wants to marry him after managing to come back to the foreign shores once again. But the desi boy is not willing to let go off his bride and his lawfully wedded wife so easily and thus tries to win her back. This is very much the story of this purab-pashchim milan, and the movie pulls off quite an okay performance overall.
 
Katrina and Akshay have worked together earlier as well in "Humko Deewana Kar Gaye" and have managed pretty decently in this film as well, opposite each other. Rishi Kapoor has given good work and so has Upen Patel. The movie also features Riteish Deshmukh for a special appearance.
 
The screenplay is neat and has been penned by Suresh Nair and presents an organized story. Vipul shah has already met with success with projects such as "Aankhen" and "Waqt" in the past and his directorial skills do not fail to shine even this time as he plunges into the genre of romance for the first time.
 
The music has been given by Himesh Reshammiya. "Chakna Chakna" and "Dilruba" are being played through the length and breadth of the nation. Even the song "Main Jahan Rahun" has a fresh feel to it and resounds in the mind, as the super talented Rahat Fateh Ali Khan lends his voice to this musical score. There is humor incorporated in the movie and scenes where the grooms are interviewed and the interaction between Bebe and Katrina is truly hilarious. The movie does not fail to arouse patriotic feelings at various junctures and also stressing upon the traditions and culture of the Indian society.
 
Overall a respectable pick but it just might fall back in the contest of popularity as another remarkably exceptional movie by Mira Nair "The Namesake" stands tall as a contender and is already topping charts and leads the race in drawing audiences to its theatres.
 
Our verdict: Namastey London is total paisa vasool…. No more, no less….!!!