KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN is the story of a man and his three brothers. Bhaijaan (Salman Khan) lives in Delhi in a neighbourhood where he’s much revered and respected. A corrupt wealthy man Mahavir (Vijender Singh) wants to usurp the neighbourhood for commercial gains. But he’s unable to do so due to Bhaijaan and his power. Bhaijaan meanwhile has three brothers, Moh (Jassie Gill), Ishq (Raghav Juyal) and Love (Siddharth Nigam). The quartet has vowed never to marry as they feel that their to-be partners will separate them. But Moh, Ishq and Love are secretly dating Muskaan (Palak Tiwari), Sukoon (Shehnaaz Gill) and Chahat (Vinali Bhatnagar) respectively. Nadeem chacha (Satish Kaushik) and his two friends (Tej Sapru, Aasif Sheikh) from the neighbourhood learn about their love affairs. They caution them that if Bhaijaan learns about it, he’ll be devastated. Hence, the brothers and their lovers decide to find a partner for Bhaijaan. As luck would have it, they come across Bhagylaxmi aka Bhagya (Pooja Hegde) and they conclude that she fits the bill. Fortunately, Bhagya also falls for Bhaijaan and gels well with the brothers, especially when the brothers tell Bhagya that Bhaijaan is a non-violent person, just like Bhagya’s elder brother Balakrishna (Venkatesh Daggubati). Bhaijaan, too, develops feelings for her and he goes ahead once he realizes that Bhagya won’t cause problems between them. Bhagya decides to head to Hyderabad with Bhaijaan to introduce him to his family. On the way, both get attacked and Bhaijaan violently finishes off the opponents. Bhagya gets the shock of her life and fears that the peace-loving Balakrishna would never accept him. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Sparsh Khetarpal and Tasha Bhambra’s story is promising and has all the trappings of a commercial blockbuster. Sparsh Khetarpal and Tasha Bhambra’s screenplay is a mixed bag. A few scenes are exceptionally written and thought of. But some major scenes in the second half lack meat. Farhad Samji’s dialogues are strictly okay. A film like this ought to have more funny and power-packed dialogues.
Farhad Samji’s direction is fair. To give credit where it’s due, he has handled the grandeur and scale very well. He has also left no stone unturned in showing Salman Khan at his best. Some scenes are executed deftly and enhance the impact. The family angle in the second half will be loved by the family audiences. Hence, this is a film that will appeal not only to Salman Khan’s fans but to a wider moviegoer base.
On the flipside, though a lot happens in the first half in terms of the story, the second half is where there’s hardly any progress in the narrative. Also, there was a lot of scope for humour but the makers let go of the opportunity. For instance, it would have been interesting to see how Bhaijaan and his brothers adjust to the South Indian customs but the makers simply don’t touch upon this aspect. Instead, the film is riddled with some poor scenes like Balakrishna’s extended dream sequence, Bhagya’s outburst etc. The lack of strong dialogues also hampers the impact. Thankfully, Salman Khan’s star power overpowers several minuses.
KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN starts on a rocking note. Bhaijaan’s entry is literally whistle-worthy and would be loved by the fans. Bhagyashree’s cameo is terrific. The entry scene of Bhagya and the subsequent scenes are not funny but will leave a smile on the viewers’ faces. The best is reserved for the intermission point. It is easily the most rocking part of the film and will lead to madness in the theatres. There’s an important twist at this point that further adds to the fun. In the second half, two scenes that stand out are Balakrishna agreeing to apologize to Nageshwar (Jagapathi Bapu) and Balakrishna and Bhaijaan’s conversation in the car. The finale has its share of massy moments.
Speaking of performances, Salman Khan is in a good form. He seems energetic and of course, his star power is exhibited in all its glory. Pooja Hegde looks stunning and delivers a first-rate performance. Venkatesh Daggubati puts in a sincere effort and comes out with flying colours. Jassie Gill, Raghav Juyal and Siddharth Nigam are decent and do well. As for the girls, Shehnaaz Gill leaves a mark while Palak Tiwari and Vinali Bhatnagar don’t get to shine much. Jagapathi Babu is fair as the villain while Vijender Singh could have done a better job. Bhumika Chawla is wasted but Rohini Hattangadi is memorable. The late Satish Kaushik is lovely. Aasif Sheikh and Tej Sapru are also wasted. Ram Charan and Bhagyashree are fantastic in their respective special appearances. Himalay Dassani and Abhimanyu Dassani also deliver fine performances.
The Music is of the chartbuster variety. Though there are 8 songs in the film, it doesn’t cause inconvenience and are well-tuned. ‘Naiyo Lagda’ is the best of the lot followed by ‘Yentamma’ and ‘Bathukamma’. ‘Jee Rahe The Hum’ is cute while ‘Tere Bina’ is touching. ‘O Balle Balle’ is okay while ‘Billi Billi’ is catchy. ‘Let’s Dance Chotu Motu’ is the only track that fails to entice. Ravi Basrur’s background score is terrific and massy.
V Manikandan’s cinematography is neat. Anal Arasu’s action is a bit disturbing but is also one of the film’s highpoints. Rajat Poddar’s production design is very rich. However, some of the sets look too similar to each other. Ashley Rebello, Alvira Khan Agnihotri, Sanam Ratansi, and Rochelle D’Sa’s costumes are glamorous and all the major actors look very presentable and appealing on screen. One Line VFX and Redefine’s VFX is satisfactory. Mayuresh Sawant’s editing is sharp.
On the whole, KISI KA BHAI KISI KI JAAN is a perfect Eid gift for Salman Khan’s fans who are sure to lap it up. At the same time, the family angle in the second half has the potential to appeal to a wider section of the audience. At the box office, though it’ll open slow today due to pre-Eid, the business over the weekend will show huge growth. The lack of no major releases and the festive period will work in its favour.
