Deewana Mastana (1997)

Bollywood has seen many intense love triangle movies - Sangam, Silsila, Saagar, Ram Avtar, Chandni, etc. This is also a love triangle but since it’s a David Dhawan film, this feature alone carries it several notches above the run-of-the-mill love triangle - it’s a comedy.

FIRST HALF

Storyline

Raja and Gaffoor (Anil Kapoor and Johnny Lever) are minor league crooks who black-market railway tickets. They dream of living the sweet life, and come across an old colleague Inspector Mhatre (Avtar Gill) who despite being a policeman is a crook like them. The trio plan to rob 25 Lakhs in Mhatre’s custody. The plan is that if Raja and Gaffoor rob the 25 Lakhs then Mhatre can conduct the investigation on them and plant false information. During the robbery, Raja and Gaffoor double cross Mhatre and run away with all the booty.

Raja and Gaffoor move to Bombay, and Raja sees psychiatrist Dr Neha (Juhi Chawla). Love at first sight. Raja takes Gaffoor as a patient to Neha and through one conversation, Neha starts to see Raja in a good light. Gaffoor urges Raja to start friendship because if he starts love first, he will fall flat on his face.

At the same time, Bunnu (Govinda) is introduced. His dad Birju (Anupam Kher) is trying to convince him to jump in the swimming pool however Bunnu is too scared. Bunnu has an appointment booked with Dr Neha and is scared to go into the lift. In Bunnu and Neha’s appointment, we learn Bunnu has a phobia of multiple things; fire, water, running and heights. Due to Bunnu, Neha cancels a meeting with Raja - twice.

Neha’s uncle (Shakti Kapoor) has eloped with a girl (Upasna Singh) so Neha’s dad Nandkishore Sharma (Saeed Jaffrey) suggests they all go to Ooty to convince the girl’s parents to accept the union. Neha tells her secretary (Guddi Maruti) that she’s going on holiday and no one should find out where she’s going. Raja and Gaffoor dress up as police inspectors and force the secretary to divulge her whereabouts, whereas Bunnu disguises as a police commissioner and does the same thing.

Raja and Bunnu reach Ooty and Raja saves Bunnu’s life. Raja takes Bunnu to Neha’s house not realising he is Bunnu. The trio go to a disco where some goons attempt to tease Neha. Later, Raja beats them up in a bathroom and accidentally loses the chain he stole from Bunnu. The goons arrive at Neha’s house to apologise and return the chain. Neha ends up believing Bunnu smashed them and starts taking more of a liking to him whereas Raja vents his frustration in alcohol.

Gaffoor directs Bunnu to a den that’s about to be blasted by a bomb. Bunnu escapes and realises Gaffoor was trying to murder him so there’s no obstacle in Raja and Neha’s way.

Tracks and Songs

Despite the story sounding serious, the comedic track here is good. The initial scenes with Anil Kapoor and Johnny Lever are good. Johnny Lever advising Anil Kapoor is funny. Govinda’s entry scene is funny and Anupam Kher’s expressions make it all the more hilarious. The police disguise scene and Shakti Kapoor’s first scene is funny. The scene where Anil Kapoor gets drunk is hilarious.

The romantic track is merged with the comedic track, so there’s not that much romantic scenes except the way Juhi likes Anil and Govinda. The song "Yeh Gaya Woh Gaya" is pleasant to listen to and Anil and Juhi’s costumes blend well with the background. The song "Tere Bina Dil" is short but it’s really good. It has both leads dreaming about Juhi. The song "Oh Mummy Mummy Oh Daddy Daddy" sounds stupid but it’s a good song about Govinda dreaming about Juhi. The lyrics are also heartfelt for Govinda’s character. The dance steps are good, due to it being a Govinda song.

There’s no scope for the action but there’s two action scenes. The break-in to the police station with Anil and Johny taking on the police constables was awesome. The bathroom fight scene was brilliantly handled and I thought it was quite imaginative.   

Acting

Govinda’s character seemed quite serious to me because he seems to take his condition quite seriously and his parents seem genuinely worried for him. However he has his funny moments and as the film goes on, I started to find him quite funny because there wasn’t that much emphasis on his condition. As of now, he isn’t as funny as the others.

Juhi Chawla looks pretty and quite smart. Her costumes are good and she matches steps with both leads in the songs. Her acting doesn’t make her look like a slut stringing along the heroes, like nowadays. And that’s the best thing about her acting. 

Anil Kapoor is awesome. He carried out the two action scenes convincingly. He carries off his one liners in his fun fashion. His character is a good lair, and his expressions in those scenes are great. He gels well with the comedic setup.

Johnny Lever is too good. He’s not overly loud and isn’t forced in the film. His advice to Anil, his threatening Guddi Maruti or how he acts like a mental patient are all funny. If I’m not wrong, he won the Filmfare Best Comedian Award. 

Anupam Kher is funny. The scene where Govinda makes him walk 13 floors instead of going into the lift is hilarious. I like him in all the scenes he’s got so far.  

Avtar Gill is funny in the scenes and displays an affinity for the comic genre. Anil Kapoor beating him was funny.

Shakti Kapoor is funny. Saeed Jaffrey is alright. Reema Lagoo is as usual in her miniscule screentime.

Overall Opinion

In the second half, I’m expecting more comic scenes especially Govinda and more good songs.

SECOND HALF

Storyline

Raja finds out Bunnu is scared of water so he pushes him into a swimming pool. Gaffoor pushes a boulder into Bunnu and inadvertently cures his running phobia. Bunnu cuts the brakes of Raja’s motorbike and tries to hire Pappu Pager (Satish Kaushik) to kill Raja but that fails as well. Then both get their hands on a trump card to outwit each other. Raja hires a hooker Tina (Pratibha Sinha) to seduce Bunnu and she succeeds using some magic potion whereas Inspector Mhatre has returned to Bombay on the lookout for Raja and ends up asking his whereabouts from - Bunnu.

At the climax, Neha calls Raja and Bunnu to court, apparently with the purpose of marriage. Armed with rings and garlands, both arrive and are surprised to find the other there. Then they find out, Neha is getting married to someone else, Prem (Salman Khan) and Raja and Bunnu end up being witnesses to her marriage. Neha and Prem drive off in the sunset whilst Raja and Bunnu are left watching each other’s face.

In the last seconds, Raja and Bunnu see another girl (Raveena Tandon) and try to serenade her.

Tracks and Songs

There’s no action track here. The romantic track isn’t much given importance but it’s handled decent. The song "Dil Chahe Kisise Pyar Karoon" is a pleasure to listen to and is funny because Anil Kapoor and Johnny Lever are spying on Govinda and Juhi Chawla. The song "Head Ya Tail" is great because the lyrics are good, the picturisation is funny and the beats are awesome. The song "Tere Bina Dil" is reprised again and sounds better in the climax. The "Hungama Ho Gaya" song is a typical Suhaag Raat type song that can only be found in David Dhawan’s world. Govinda’s dancing in this song is tremendous.

The comedic track is better here. Anil Kapoor’s angry expressions at funny whether it’s the "Head Ya Tail" song or Juhi’s badminton match where he threatens Govinda. Govinda dancing in front of the boulder or crashing into his house’s wall was laugh-out-loud. The scene Anil and Govinda threaten each other using their titles of their film names. Overall I enjoyed the comedy scenes in the 2nd half.

Acting

Anil Kapoor is superb throughout. Whether he’s expressing love towards Juhi or losing his temper at Johnny Lever, he is at his best. The best thing is that he matches Govinda and Johnny Lever in their comic timing. He is in his comfort zone because he plays a Tapori.

Govinda delivers a fantastic performance. Whether he’s dancing in front of the boulder or running around his house, he is brilliant. He carries off the imitation of Dilip Kumar with ease. I must add, his dance steps in the songs are awesome, as usual.

Juhi Chawla looks even prettier than the first half. Her pink salwar khameez makes her look adorable and his looks in the climax are to kill for. She does well and compliments both characters well.  

Johnny Lever is hilarious. His actions in the "Dil Chahe Kisise Pyar Karoon" and the "Hungama Ho Gaya" song are fab.

Anupam Kher is top notch. His scenes with Govinda and Avtar Gill was funny.

Shakti Kapoor is funny in that one scene where Johnny Lever gets the chicken stuck in his mouth.

Pratibha Sinha is ok. Her expressions are decent, especially in the "Hungama Ho Gaya" song.

Satish Kaushik has a cameo. He totally owns those scene with his Tapori styled dialog.

Salman Khan has a friendly appearance towards the end. He looks decent and his role is a throwback to his Sooraj Barjatya characters.

Kader Khan has a friendly appearance towards the end, as expected of David Dhawan films. He is decent as the lawyer who gets Juhi Chawla and Salman Khan married.

Overall Opinion

All in all, I’d give 6.5 out of 10. The comic timing of the film is really good. It’s refreshing to see a love triangle that doesn’t have superficial sacrifices and one can tell, future films will follow the comedic love triangle established by Deewana Mastana. The film is watchable, even today.