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By Taran
Adarsh, June 20, 2008 - 12:25 IST
 If
you've watched the promos of DE TAALI, you'd expect
a film with tremendous youth power. You'd expect
gags, gimmicks, laughter-n-sunshine and lots and
lots of fun. But DE TAALI is anything but this! On
the contrary, it's a slow-paced love story, which
depicts one of the actors as a modern-day Devdas who
hits the bottle when his girlfriend walks out on
him. There's a kahani mein twist as well -- the
kidnapping episode -- but you don't feel giving a
taali to that too.
Note another aspect. Two songs from the film have
been heavily promoted -- the title track [which has
lots of energy] and 'Maari Teetri' [plays to the
masses completely] -- which might compel you to buy
the ticket. The title track comes when the movie
concludes [end credits], while the other number is
just not there.
Most importantly, DE TAALI gets it wrong on the
script level. Loosely inspired by a popular TV drama
[DAWSON'S CREEK] is okay, but the material lacks the
power to keep you hooked. Sure, DE TAALI has a few
engaging and enjoyable moments, but it's akin to an
oasis in a desert.
In one word, disappointing!
Paglu [Riteish], Amu [Ayesha] and Abhi [Aftab] are
buddies, an integral part of each others lives. Amu
is a girl amongst the two guys, though Paglu and
Abhi don't treat her like one. Paglu is the one who
makes her realize about her feelings for Abhi. Life,
however, takes a serious turn when Abhi falls in
love with Kartika aka Anjali [Rimi Sen].
DE TAALI starts off quite well and the bonding
between the three friends is well established in the
initial portions. Things perk up the moment Rimi Sen
enters the scene and shows her true colors.
Everything's fine till she's kidnapped -- the
interval point.
But things only go downhill in the second hour. The
entire kidnap drama, the Saurabh Shukla track [it
can't get weird than this], the dejected lovers [Mukul
Dev, Pawan Malhotra, Sanjay Narvekar] reaching the
wedding venue and the family surfacing from
oblivion, everything looks ludicrous. By the time
you reach the finale, the viewer is already bored
and has lost all interest in the enterprise.
 E.
Niwas doesn't get in right this time. He knows the
job well, but if you've noticed his last few outings
as well as DE TAALI, you'd agree that he needs to
concentrate on the script than making the frames
look alluring. Vishal-Shekhar's music is a mixed
bag. Barring the above-mentioned two numbers, the
remaining songs lack fizz.
Riteish is lovable and his range is finally being
tapped by film-makers. Aftab lends his part the
required class. Ayesha Takia is getting better and
better with every film. Rimi Sen spices up the
otherwise bland scenario with her performance as a
gold digger. Anupam Kher is wasted. Ditto for Pawan
Malhotra and Mukul Dev.
On the whole, DE TAALI is a poor show. It's an apt
case of the promos looking great, not the film.
Rating * *
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