About three months before the release, filmmaker Luv Ranjan asked Twitterati to guess the title of his next. He announced the cast of Ranbir and Shraddha Kapoor and gave the abbreviation ‘TJMM’ for users to go wild. Some suggestions might have proved useful (Tu Juliet Main Majnu), one sounded like the next Arijit Singh chartbuster (Tu Jo Mujhe Mila), and another, if it was used, might have had copyright issues with some B-grade film (Tu Jungle Main Mowgli). As I exited the theatre, one of the guesses popped in my head: Tera Joota Mujhe Maar (Hit me with your shoe).
There are two kinds of Luv Ranjan directorial and all of them dabble with some form of sexism. There are the ‘bros before girls’ (Pyaar Ka Punchnama, Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2) and the ‘bro before girl’ (Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety). Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar falls in a third category: the ‘fam before ma’am’.
The plot, if it can be explained, goes like this: Ranbir Kapoor plays Rohan ‘Mickey’ Arora, a scion of a rich Delhi family. He has multiple businesses, but his passion lies in being a break-up guru for Gen Z couples who won’t go for good old-fashioned ghosting. His best friend is Manu Dabbas (Anubhav Singh Bassi), whose task is to give comic relief in a comedy film. Manu is getting married to Kinchi (Monica Chaudhary), but he wants to break up because she ‘loves him too much’. He asks Mickey to help and he is willing until Kinchi’s best friend is revealed to be the love interest Shraddha Kapoor as Nisha ‘Tinni’ Malhotra. Now he can’t help Manu because how will Nisha date the best friend of the guy who ditched her best friend? Bear with me.
After the boy meets the girl and the boy begs the girl on his knees to be in a relationship with him, it’s time to meet the family. Mickey’s liberal but overpowering kin prove to be overwhelming for Tinni. You can guess what’s coming. She makes the call without knowing relationship-Mickey is breakup-Mickey. Mickey decides to teach her a lesson. There are no truecallers, voice recognitions or logic in this world.
But there is a lot to distract you from a garbled storyline. Pritam’s music is catchy, Ranbir’s abs are prominent, and Shraddha looks equally electrifying in sundresses and bikinis. Everybody gets a monologue, Ranbir’s character probably lives in one. Comedy is truth being told at a fast pace but in TJMM everybody communicates in a ‘scream’ of consciousness which either leads one to dizziness or asking their fellow viewer questions like ‘What did he say?'.
Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar makes a case for the joint families. Not all of them are toxic and controlling, some are evolving with time, soaking in modern sensibilities. When all else fails, the family comes to the rescue of this Luv Ranjan film. The last forty minutes are a hoot because of the endless barbs exchanged among Mickey’s kin. Shraddha’s Tinni finally gets back with Mickey and his family. They live happily ever after... like she had a choice.
Rating: 1.5/5 stars
(This story originally appeared on cinemaexpress.com)