Rishi Kapoor’s final film is a warm and entertaining farewell to an actor noted for bringing remarkable vigour and spontaneity to his roles. Sharmaji Namkeen, now available on Amazon Prime Video, demonstrates that the qualities that set him different never left him.
On the other hand, Rishi Kapoor had only become better with age. He was at home playing an intensely committed, crusading pater familias (Mulk) as he was fleshing out a zesty granddad in a chaotic family in the latter 10 years of his life and career (Kapoor & Sons). He is just as deliciously on the money in Sharmaji Namkeen, a suitable swan song.
Of course, Sharmaji Namkeen is about more than Rishi Kapoor. When the actor for whom the role was originally written is not in the frame, Paresh Rawal does a fantastic job of assuming the outfit of the titular guy, replete with a characteristic pullover and an overused briefcase. The film flawlessly transitions from one actor to the next. Sharmaji Namkeen, on the other hand, does not feel ‘complete.’ When Kapoor isn’t on the screen, the picture loses a little of its carefree quality.
Sharmaji Namkeen, on the other hand, generates restrained chuckles rather than thunderous guffaws. It floats lightly in search of a centre that can hold it together, neither too salty nor too spicy. Even when the flimsy plot fails to deliver, Rishi Kapoor does by giving us one last glimpse of his histrionic felicity, seamlessly combining the funny and the emotional.
The guy he plays in Sharmaji Namkeen, a happy family dramedy, resembles the tormented patriarchs he portrayed in Do Dooni Chaar and Rajma Chawal, both comedies with a hefty dose of whimsy.
Brij Gopal Sharma, a recently retired Subhash Nagar resident, falls halfway between the Lajpat Nagar mathematics teacher in Do Dooni Chaar and the aged businessman grappling with the ramifications of relocating to Chandni Chowk in Rajma Chawal in attitude and behaviour.
Sharmaji Namkeen, produced by Excel Entertainment and MacGuffin Pictures, begins with an emotionally evocative introduction by Ranbir Kapoor that contextualizes Paresh Rawal’s involvement in the production and highlights the reasons why this film simply had to be made.
It concludes with outtakes of Rishi Kapoor and his co-stars, over which one of the late actor’s most upbeat musical numbers – Om Shanti Om from Karz – plays. The music and the stumbling phrases depict the actor’s youthful and exuberant personality, which he always seemed to emanate.
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The film is a decent enough watch that does justice to the memory of an actor who would never fail to come alive in front of a movie camera, with its low-key, slice-of-life drama enlivened by a supporting cast that includes Satish Kaushik, Juhi Chawla, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Sheeba Chaddha, and Parmeet Sethi.
Rishi Kapoor’s strength was his ability to inject irrepressible zing into even the most mundane situations and set pieces, whether he was doing drama, delivering humour, or simply singing and dancing. Sharmaji Namkeen does not show all of it, and not that it matters; what is displayed in the film is sufficient to demonstrate why Rishi Kapoor will be sadly missed.
The protagonist, who has spent his entire working life happily selling juicers and mixers for a home appliances firm and caring for his two sons since his wife’s sudden death, is at a loss when a golden handshake limits him to his home – and kitchen. He is desperate to find something to occupy his time, and his love of cooking comes in helpful.
Sharmaji transforms into a home chef with a little encouragement – and some deception – from lifelong friend and Subhash Nagar neighbour (Satish Kaushik) and begins to rustle up lip-smacking delicacies on demand for motley kitty-partying women, including one he takes a shine to, Veena (Juhi Chawla), who lost her perfidious doctor-husband in a road mishap.
His new calling gains him fast friends (he plays silly charades with them) and a ready clientele (who can’t stop admiring him for his culinary prowess), even if it causes a squabble with his elder son Sandeep ‘Rinku’ Sharma (Suhail Nayyar). The conflict between father and son leads to the film’s conclusion in a Palam Vihar police station.
The young man wishes to purchase a flat in Gurgaon and relocate from his cramped West Delhi house in preparation for his marriage to Urmi (Isha Talwar), an office colleague. Sharmaji, who is emotionally wedded to his home, will have none.
The majority of the pleasure of Sharmaji Namkeen, directed by Hitesh Bhatia (who is also a co-scriptwriter with Supratik Sen), stems from Rishi Kapoor’s energetic presence, with Paresh Rawal doing everything he can to keep the energy flowing. In the film, Kapoor’s talent to immerse himself in the skin of a character is on full display. He is a joy to watch in a role that is right up his alley.
In a unique experiment, Paresh Rawal jumps into the gap in numerous critical moments, including the pivotal climax ones. However, he has enormous shoes to fill. You can’t but think that Sharmaji Namkeen would have been a considerably delightful experience if life had given Kapoor more time to complete the task.
This, however, has nothing to do with Paresh Rawal’s talent as an actor, and it’s just that no one can portray a Delhi father as well or as convincingly as Kapoor. He progresses from a middle-class man struggling to make ends meet in Do Dooni Chaar to a father struggling to reconnect with his son in Chandni Chowk (Rajma Chawal) to a mid-level corporate functionary forced into voluntary retirement who must quickly find alternative employment to keep boredom at bay.
Watch Sharmaji Namkeen for Rishi Kapoor. However, he isn’t the only reason to see the film. In one moment, the actor declares, “I am what I am.” Without a shadow of a doubt.
