Raja Natwarlal Review – He Isn’t Fooling Anyone

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Raja (Emraan Hashmi) and Raghav (Deepak Tijori) are small-time conmen. When Raghav is killed during one of their cons, Raja takes it upon himself to avenge his partner’s death. He seeks the assistance of Yogi (Paresh Rawal), who, even though, is no longer into swindling people, has a flattering reputation nevertheless. Together they decide to dupe a wealthy and influential businessman, Varda Yadav (Kay Kay Menon), who resides in Cape Town. Also, there is a bar dancer, Jeena (Humaima Malik), with whom Raja is in love.

With all of this, you would expect Raja Natwarlal to be a thriller at the very least, right? Wrong. The film drags for much of the first half, and even though it picks up pace in the second half, it is to no avail. What ails the film is that it leaves the viewer feeling cheated inasmuch as the manner in which Raja and Yogi dupe Varda is not one bit convincing. Also, the story is punctuated by songs that are entirely avoidable.

If there ever was a case of a sub-standard script making an excellent performer seem ordinary, Raja Natwarlal has to be the perfect example as even the veteran actor Paresh Rawal seems lost as he tries to come to terms in this film. Likewise, Emraan Hashmi too, who you would expect to pull off the role of a conman with ease, fails to impress the viewer. In fact, Kay Kay Menon’s role in the film is so badly scripted that it is almost ridiculous. It is rather disheartening to see an exceptional artist like him being utterly wasted here. If seasoned actors cannot come up with an average performance between them, it is quite foolish to expect anything from debutant Humaima Malik. She will want to erase this outing from her memory as soon as possible.

Raja Natwarlal is so drab that it takes some effort not to give in to the urge of walking out of the theater midway. Even the diehard Emraan Hashmi fans will be displeased seeing their favorite star bumble his way through the film. What a shame then that what could have been a watchable film turns out in the end to be nothing more than a farcical fare. Anyone thinking of watching Raja Natwarlal should give up on the idea altogether.