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Good actors can be tricky proposition. While on one hand they do enhance any script, many a time they also tend to overshadow the entire screenplay with their brilliance. And when you have actors like Naseeruddin Shah and Pankaj Kapur it only gets more difficult. They leave you awed and satisfied as a viewer. Finding Fanny could have easily fallen into the pit where people might have just come out praising the performances so much that they did not realise if they liked the film for its story or the characters. That it does not, is to the credit of the director.
Set in a quaint village in Goa, this story primarily proceeds of shoulders of five characters - Ferdie (Naseeruddin Shah), Angie (Deepika), Rosy (Dimple Kapadia), Savio (Arjun Kapoor) a Pedro (Pankaj Kapur). Well actually, a sixth character - An old, rusty car too! When Ferdy finds that the lady he loved had actually never received his written marriage proposal, a letter he had written 46 years back, he is heartbroken. His best friend Angie hence decides to embark on a journey to get the Ferdie his love. Rosy, Savio and Pedro also become a part of this journey for their own motives.
Here starts a delightful journey of 'five oddballs' to 'find love'.
The story of Finding Fanny is not quite extraordinary. It is rather quite flimsy. And there are questionable moments too. For one, it is not sure why Angie really wanted Savio's car to travel. Not that the town did not have public transport. Had it not been for the car the characters would have not set out together. However humour is abundant and that keeps you occupied enough to not ask minor questions and from getting bored of any predictability in the screenplay.
Writers Homi Adajania and Kersi Khambatta have more motives than just tell a regular story. With Finding Fanny he looks at life from an altogether different viewpoint. The writing is solid as it not just creates some amazing characters but some beautiful relationships. Angie is the widowed daughter-in-law of Rosy and they share a relationship that binds them like a mother-daughter. What a change from the saas-bahu sagas that are forced into Indian tele-viewers everyday!
As a director Homi sets out to make a film the way he is comfortable in and there is clearly no compromise. He seeks to convey much more than what is said. He takes five distinct characters and projects their personal growth in company of the others. It is also about changing relationships - situations bringing people together.
The actors, seasoned and new, put up their best foot forward. You could actually just be jealous that they got such awesome characters to play. It is really difficult to point which character is better. My personal favourite would be Ferdie. This one character I would love to meet in person! But then Angie is as wonderful and Deepika Padukone - Ah! ravishing beauty - plays it to perfection. Arjun Kapoor too hold his own as Savio. Dimple Kapadia makes Rosy her own. And yet, the masters Naseer and Pankaj Kapur leave you spellbound.
As mentioned earlier, you may not be wowed by the story. Yet, Finding Fanny leaves you with a happy feeling. It is charmingly off-beat and yet mainstream. As you walk out, you would have much more on your mind apart from the delightful end-credit tune. Finding Fanny urges you to make a move if you want to find your love. I urge you to watch go to the theater and watch the film for sure. Just one advice - try catch the English version. Hindi is fine too but just not the language it is shot in.
Set in a quaint village in Goa, this story primarily proceeds of shoulders of five characters - Ferdie (Naseeruddin Shah), Angie (Deepika), Rosy (Dimple Kapadia), Savio (Arjun Kapoor) a Pedro (Pankaj Kapur). Well actually, a sixth character - An old, rusty car too! When Ferdy finds that the lady he loved had actually never received his written marriage proposal, a letter he had written 46 years back, he is heartbroken. His best friend Angie hence decides to embark on a journey to get the Ferdie his love. Rosy, Savio and Pedro also become a part of this journey for their own motives.
Here starts a delightful journey of 'five oddballs' to 'find love'.
The story of Finding Fanny is not quite extraordinary. It is rather quite flimsy. And there are questionable moments too. For one, it is not sure why Angie really wanted Savio's car to travel. Not that the town did not have public transport. Had it not been for the car the characters would have not set out together. However humour is abundant and that keeps you occupied enough to not ask minor questions and from getting bored of any predictability in the screenplay.
Writers Homi Adajania and Kersi Khambatta have more motives than just tell a regular story. With Finding Fanny he looks at life from an altogether different viewpoint. The writing is solid as it not just creates some amazing characters but some beautiful relationships. Angie is the widowed daughter-in-law of Rosy and they share a relationship that binds them like a mother-daughter. What a change from the saas-bahu sagas that are forced into Indian tele-viewers everyday!
As a director Homi sets out to make a film the way he is comfortable in and there is clearly no compromise. He seeks to convey much more than what is said. He takes five distinct characters and projects their personal growth in company of the others. It is also about changing relationships - situations bringing people together.
The actors, seasoned and new, put up their best foot forward. You could actually just be jealous that they got such awesome characters to play. It is really difficult to point which character is better. My personal favourite would be Ferdie. This one character I would love to meet in person! But then Angie is as wonderful and Deepika Padukone - Ah! ravishing beauty - plays it to perfection. Arjun Kapoor too hold his own as Savio. Dimple Kapadia makes Rosy her own. And yet, the masters Naseer and Pankaj Kapur leave you spellbound.
As mentioned earlier, you may not be wowed by the story. Yet, Finding Fanny leaves you with a happy feeling. It is charmingly off-beat and yet mainstream. As you walk out, you would have much more on your mind apart from the delightful end-credit tune. Finding Fanny urges you to make a move if you want to find your love. I urge you to watch go to the theater and watch the film for sure. Just one advice - try catch the English version. Hindi is fine too but just not the language it is shot in.
(3.5 / 5) : Very Good 
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