Film: French Biriyani
Director: Pannaga Bharana
Cast: Rangayana Raghu, Danish Sait, Sal Yusuf, Nagabushan, Disha Madan, Sindhu Murthy
Rating: 3.5
Streaming on Amazon Prime Video
Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic made the OTT world the one-stop destination for film lovers, we have seen many Indian filmmakers promote their works with strong claims. They promised big but the results were hollow.
Perhaps, in their bid to churn out ‘message-heavy’, ‘well-intentioned’ and ‘content oriented’ films, they forgot to entertain and engage. Thankfully, ‘French Biriyani’ has broken the trend. Pannaga Bharana’s second directorial venture is an ambitious one that doesn’t ignore the language of its craft. Throughout the film, the hard-work gone into different aspects of ‘cinema’ is evident though the team falters in the end.
It is courageous of Bharana and his writer Avinash Balekkala (screenplay & dialogues) to mix all types of the comedy genres and the result, if not perfect, is definitely interesting.
Simon (Sal Yousaf), a French national, gets trapped in the world of local goons, triggering a roller-coaster ride in the streets of Shivajinagar, one of Bengaluru’s iconic areas. The humour in this just under two-hour film is riotously situational, dark, sexual and slapstick.
Now, the film might not work for those who are unaware and ignorant of the charm and chaos of Bengaluru. ‘French Biriyani’ is a hilarious ode to arguably the best cosmopolitan city of India. The film is sure to reach the hearts of people who have witnessed Bengaluru’s rapid growth and despite its imperfectness, call it their beloved home.
In the film, you find plenty of nods to the everyday life of Bengaluru and the Kannada culture. Be it the city’s famous tagline of auto rickshaw drivers (one-and-a-half), the language issue, people’s obsession towards melodramatic soap operas, the incessant traffic trouble and more. The best, though, is a dig at Huccha Venkat, controversy’s favourite child in the Kannada showbiz.
The many crazy characters are admirably consistent and that’s the triumph of writing. A typical Muslim auto rickshaw driver (Danish Sait), a gossip-hungry television reporter (Disha Madan), a couple troubled by their inter-religious marriage (Nagabhushana and Sindhu Murthy) and a local Tamil gangster (Mahantesh Hiremath) are so real that they organically grow on you.
Through these characters, Bharana and Avinash produce quirky and bizarre scenes that are backed by roaring one-liners.
The premise of this twisted journey isn’t new. Priyadarshan, for years, has been churning out films of this style. Yet, ‘French Biriyani’ is enjoyable because of the amazingly good performances.
Rangayana Raghu, usually the saving grace, in terrible films, shows what he can do to well-written roles. The gifted actor convincingly brings alive the role of a naïve and incompetent police officer. Danish, toast of the nation with his entertaining and creative short videos, proves his worth as an actor. We don’t get to see the usual gimmicks associated with him but he eases into the skin of the character and delivers a witty performance. The other actors are equally good.
As for Vasuki Vaibhav, who gives us two vibrant tracks (‘Bengaluru Song’ and ‘Hogbita Charles’), it’s time the youngster joins Charan Raj and Ajaneesh Lokanath in the league of brilliant, new generation music directors of Kannada cinema. Editor Deepu S Kumar, always far away from the limelight, silently adds great value to the film with his finesse.
The film’s drawback is its final portion. A crumbling screenplay, needless and cringey scenes and an oddly-placed song, dent the film’s flow. But overall, ‘French Biriyani’ is a laudable attempt.