Movie Review: Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar

Luv Ranjan’s Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar is one of another entertaining Luv Ranjan’s romantic comedy flick, this time featuring some of the Bollywood’s A-listers Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor.  

When we talk about Luv Ranjan’s movies, we effuse about breakups between millennials couples, we get to see modern love unwind in complex manners, we also get to observe the modern social relations being tested to their limits.

That’s what Luv Ranjan has established about himself and the type of projects he keeps throwing to the audience. These projects have been a staple in giving Luv Ranjan the deserved spotlights. His movies are known to be entertaining and intimate and are set in the theme of bustling urban lifestyle romance.

This new movie, however, is a bit different. It combines contemporary romance with old school concepts and  depicts their unique mixture which becomes quite evident.

When it comes to Tu Jhooti Mai Makkaar, the biggest feat this project offers is that it gets to offer the opportunity to the movie viewers to get a sigh of relief and witness Ranbir instead of Kartik Aryan.

Previously, Kartik Aryan has been the star in the Luv Ranjan’s movie universe, starting off way back in Pyar ka Punchnamaa in 2011 to Sonu ki Tittu Ki Sweeti in 2018, he has been holding one of the most prominent characters in the Luv Films universe.

Rohan Arora (Ranbir Kapoor) is a spoiled man child who has little to no interest in his family business and is a party animal on every weekend night. However, he does seem to have his own peculiar businesses with his friend cum family member Dabbas (the debuting Anubav Singh Bassi).

This business entirely revolves around orchestrating breakups situations between couples who are way too afraid to say it to their partners, that they no longer are compatible.

However, things get a turn when Ranbir finds himself head over heels with Tinni (Shraddha Kapoor) during a vacation in Spain.

Rohan expresses his feelings, Tinni agrees, and things seem to kick off in a very predictable manner until a surprise twist appears at an unexpected length of the film.

If you haven’t watched the movie yet, I suggest you do watch it and experience that strange turn of events yourself while being saved from any sort of spoilers.

After watching Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar throughout its first 30 mins, it seemed anything but unique. It was the same old run of the mill romances and scenes helmed by dreamy shoot locations and not so entertaining comic dialogues.

It was until that twist I’ve mentioned, after that, I pretty much stayed glued to the screen. The second half of the movie becomes more entertaining and engaging for the viewers and represents a number of feats of a modern rom-com movie.

Ranbir blends into the character of Rohan Arora seamlessly. Infact, he has this thing of playing rich spoiled brats, He meticulously did it in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil , Bachna Ae Haseeno and Wake Up Sid.

What differentiates Ranbir is that he brilliantly adds a sense of emotion to it, making that character more than just a rich spoiled brat.

He plays the character who handles the moods like a piece of sweet cake. Ranbir essentially is ab actor of multiple shades and maintains a balance of roles he plays in different movies. What is positive is that the Kapoor star fits perfectly into Luv Ranjan’s world of modern love stories, for which Kartik would have seemed the perfect role.

This makes me realize and notice a spew of emotions that are mirrored by Kartik and Ranbir. They do seem to share the same fecundity in expressing these emotions. Their faces, to some extent, display the same character and emotions with superb talent.

This surprisingly gives rise to the debatable fact that Kartik might be the only actor capable of portraying Ranbir’s signature facial emotions. He, however, lacks the ability to dance like RK, which is still smooth as butter.

While the male protagonist implies commendable efforts, his female counterpart fails to impress. Shraddha is a versatile actress, but the role assigned to her somehow fails to bring out the best.

Despite this, Shraddha manages to take breath away with whatever she can get and enhance it. Viewers majorly would recall her in songs where she has been in her boldest form to date.

Speaking of songs, Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar comes with a  number of swooning music pieces featuring prominent singers such as Arjit Singh, Shreya Ghoshal, and Sunidhi Chauhan.

Each song carries a potent carrying away emotion and is sure to make way into the viewer’s heart. A complete treat for song lovers.

But what’s the best thing about the movie?

It’s primarily the theme.Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar revies the old rom com era of movies. It gives David Dhawan and Karan Johar vibes. This particular genre has been in its depleting stage in Bollywood and few filmmakers are risking in such endeavors.

As for both the actors, the movie plays a vital role in their lives and offers them a comeback after prolonged breaks.

Ranbir and Shraddha have had had longer breaks from their career. This film provided them with a breath of much needed fresh air to return to the screen and on sets.

Ranbir once said in an interview that it took a long tenure of 180 days in the shooting instead of normal 120 days. Furthermore,  the film was done and that too without a proper script in hand.

Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar had the second-best opening for a Hindi category, falling only behind SRK’s Pathaan .

The movie is currently airing on Netflix and is a worth watching piece of entertainment fo young adults.