Sharmaji Namkeen Movie Review: Rishi Kapoor's Last Cinematic Dish Is Indeed Sweet And Tasty

From that cute little child walking in the rain in the iconic song Pyar Hua Ikrar Hua in Shree 420, that extended cameo in Mera Naam Joker (1970), and then the blockbuster debut with Bobby (1973). Rishi Kapoor's career has been nothing less than a film itself. Rishi Kapoor has done some legendary jobs in the field of cinema, from romantic films like Kabhie Kabhie (1976) and Laila Majnu (1976), multistarrer masala Amar Akbar Anthony (1978), hard-hitting social drama Prem Rog to 90s multi-genre films, and then to a newly reformed aged star in the 2000s and 2010s decade. It is unfortunate to know that he couldn't complete his last film, but we are fortunate to see that incomplete dream come to fruition somehow. Sharmaji Namkeen is a film that must be seen to experience the magic of the legendary actor for one last time. That nostalgia is enough to make your time worthwhile.Sadly, Bollywood hasn't really been able to crack the formula of cook-based films. Thank God, we had a masterpiece like Bawarchi (1972), otherwise we would have never cracked the cook's formula even once, and even that was a remake of a Bengali film which itself took references from the Hollywood classic My Man Godfrey (1936). It is even more sad for Bollywood that Malayalam cinema has made a cult film like Ustaad Hotel (2012), starring legend Thilakan Sir and young talent Dulquer Salmaan, while we continue struggling with mediocre content. Sharmaji Namkeen comes as a somewhat pleasant break in the midst of the lost formula, but that's because we care more about Rishi Kapoor than the film.Naturally, Sharmaji Namkeen is a story about B. G. Sharma, a 58-year-old widower. One of millions of faceless people in this mundane routine called life and also a retired person, bored of being jobless at this age. He keeps finding ways to stay relevant, but only ends up getting in his sons’ ways. Until one day, he comes into contact with a group of merry women as a specialist cook. He finds new enjoyment and new friends in the second innings of life, but then there are several family errors to spoil his nice-going party. The rest of the story revolves around how he overcomes his own blood and fresh and persuades them to believe in him.Watching Rishi Kapoor in such a relatable role is a pleasure, I tell you. Sharmaji is sweet, innocent, talented, and, moreover, Rishi Kapoor makes it more believable. In the end credits, we get to witness the behind-the-scenes fun, and you are going to love those two minutes for sure. That enthusiasm, that hunger to give his best shot by having fun, everything looks so damn adorable. A special mention goes to Paresh Rawal, who completed the role of Kapoor after his demise and kept it interesting. Most of the time, when we see any actor replacing someone on TV or stage, we notice some deliberate throws from his side, but here, Rawal does not force himself to become Kapoor. Instead, he tries to play the character in his own natural way, and believe me, Paresh Rawal's natural flow is never dull. Sharmaji Namkeen becomes truly Namkeen with these two senior actors portraying the same role with different flavours.Juhi Chawla still looks so gorgeous in her traditional avatar – without trying to be glamorous – that I wonder how she manages it. As an actor, she does what she could do. Sheeba Chaddha and the rest of the ladies' gang provide hilarious support. Suhail Nayyar leaves an impact as the tolerant son, while Taaruk Raina, Satish Kaushik, Isha Talwar and Parmeet Sethi support him well. The acting unit is a little scattered, but not completely.What works in Sharmji Namkeen's favour is the age-friendly humour and comedy. You don't expect it to be a funny film, but it comes out as a damn enjoyable film. What it lacks is the proper branding of the content. The jokes look childish sometimes, and even a few other elements look unnecessary. Speaking of the music, it's situational and that's why it's passable. Even so, the background score is encouraging, while other technical aspects fall down with no burden of any expectations. You are going to burst into laughter on many occasions because the dialogues have that strength, unlike anything you expected, but then again, a little repetitive.Hitesh Bhatia tries every known trick to make his feature film debut massy plus classy, but is that enough? Somewhat, but not entirely. Bhatia's direction doesn't go against the mainstream flow, and as it tries to move forward with the regular flow, it gets stuck. The techniques are too old, but I must say, effective for the family audience who has grown up watching daily soaps. Sharmaji Namkeen could have been anything it wanted, but it fails to understand the potential of the story. This cook-based concept has the potential to reach any level of unique filmmaking, but Sharmaji attempts nothing else but the same family drama with light-hearted moments. However, it still makes a decent sweet dish with Rishi Kapoor adding enough sugar and Paresh Rawal adding the needed salt to it. As a whole, Rishi Kapoor's last cinematic dish is indeed tasty enough, and only movie buffs with good taste can understand why.