Murtuza Iqbal
Anurag Basu is known for his movies like Murder, Gangster, Life In a Metro, and Barfi. His last directorial Jagga Jasoos got a mixed response, but when he announced Ludo, I was quite excited about it, firstly because of its unique title, and secondly because the film features some amazing actors.
Ludo mainly revolves around nine characters, Bittu (Abhishek Bachchan), Mini (Inayat Verma), Akash (Aditya Roy Kapur), Shruti (Sanya Malhotra), Aalu (Rajkummar Rao), Pinky (Fatima Sana Shaikh), Sattu Bhaiya (Pankaj Tripathi), Rahul (Rohit Saraf) and Shreeja (Pearle Maaney), and how their lives get connected with each other.
Every character has a back story and the first few minutes of the film goes into establishing these characters and they have been established very well. Basu has written the story and the screenplay of the movie, and in the first half, he keeps you engaged with his writing as well as narration. But, the film dips a bit in the second. There are a few scenes that looked forced. Also, a romantic song in the background was not at all required.
Anurag Basu has narrated the film nicely. He has come up with a sweet-comedy that will make you laugh, get a smile on your face, and will also make your eyes teary in a couple of scenes (featuring Abhishek Bachchan). This movie is not as good as Barfi, but it is also not torturing like Kites.
One thing that deserves full marks here is the casting of the film. Each and every actor is perfect in their part. All the male leads, Abhishek Bachchan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapur, Rajkummar Rao, and Rohit Saraf shine in their respective roles. Talking about female leads, while Sanya Malhotra is good, Fatima Sana Shaikh and Pearle Maaney are excellent. Inayat Verma deserves a special mention because she is super cute and has given a wonderful performance.
The music of the film is composed by Pritam and it is decent. However, we miss heart-touching track like In Dino (Life In a Metro) or Phir Le Aya Dil (Barfi).
Overall, Ludo is a decent comedy film, and you can watch it at least once.
Ratings: 3/5
Watch the trailer here...
Consumers are advised not to eat them and to dispose of them safelyiStock
Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, survivor of the Air India plane crash, in Ahmedabad. (PTI photo)
Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt outshine Shah Rukh Khan Getty Images 
Mannat remains an iconic destination undergoing renovationGetty Images
