BOTTOM LINE
Luck Favors Baskhar

RATING
2.75/5

CENSOR
U/A, 2h 30m

What Is the Film About?

Baskhar (Dulquar Salman) is an ordinary guy with a near-poor life. He works as a cashier at Maghada Bank in Bombay. The financial circumstances around him eventually force him to take the wrong path. The movie’s basic story is what happens when Bashkar takes the wrong route and how it impacts him and his family.

Performances

Dulquar Salman perfectly fits Baskhar’s role. The film offers him dual shades primarily and other small variations making it a well-rounded affair for him.

It also helps that Dulquar Salman’s is the only character in the movie with a proper character arc. From a simple guy to a greedy ultra-rich person, the transition is neatly and naturally conveyed without any exaggerated emotions. He sails through the proceedings with his natural charm and style and with subtle emotions. Be it anger, frustration or extreme happiness, there is always an economy in emotion and it’s well captured.

Meenakshi Choudhary gets a decent role. She looks good and has a couple of moments to show her dramatic skills. They are simple and do the trick for her.

Analysis

Venky Atluri of Tholi Prema and Sir fame directs Lucky Baskhar. It is a rags-to-riches narrative which also includes the side effects of becoming greedy. Basically, it is a tale of greed and the retribution of a common man.

Lucky Baskhar takes time to establish the world the story is set in. It has two distinctive tracks within it, one is the family and the other is related to the banking sector. These two form the core plot elements the movie handles, they are family emotions and financial crimes.

The family emotions aspect of the movie is routine. We have seen it many times before. However, the good thing is the director swiftly moves through this predictability without too much lag. The birthday sequence where the wife gets hurt, the tearing up of the pocket, for example, conveys it clearly.

The criminal aspect offers freshness to the routine setup. The first half deals with smuggling via importing stuff. These parts offer newness as a background, but narrative speaking they happen very conveniently for the hero. He faces no challenge at all and is prepared well in advance.

What that does is, despite the fresh backdrop and something new on offer, the depth is missing and therefore the expected high is not reached. A flat sense prevails. Again, like the emotional track, there is hardly any lag. Things move swiftly with a smooth screenplay which keeps the curiosity alive. The pre-interval and interval segments help in maintaining the same.

Post-interval is where things get exciting as the stakes become higher. The financial crime aspect adds to the novelty. The business jargon is used just enough to make things look a little authentic and not overdone to make things confusing. A balance is achieved which helps navigate the proceedings without taxing the brain much.

Things go on a predictable path, but some of the payoff related to the ‘monetary’ aspect that’s established previously helps the flow. The spending of 69 lakhs in a single day is such a sequence.

The real deal with the movie arrives via the character arc of Baskhar during the second half. The change in personality due to greed, the realisation and the eventual transformation to normal are neatly done. The scene with the father during this portion is the clincher as far as Lucky Baskhar’s fate with the audience goes. What happens later is just icing on the cake tying all the threads. The stretch towards the climax is a little lengthy but satisfying.

Overall, Lucky Baskhar has a straightforward story that is easy to predict. There’s no real challenge for the hero, but the engaging screenplay and interesting narrative make up for it by keeping us involved in how the events unfold. Watch it if you like crime narratives with routine drama embedded in them.

Performances by Others Actors

Lucky Bashkar is filled with artists. You have many people filling up different worlds. But, none among them have well-defined parts. They are bits and pieces roles and chip in as per the requirement and then disappear, to then appear much later reminding us of their presence.

Among the many, Tinu Anand, Rajkumaar, AVPL Tatha etc manage to register. They all have minor parts but play a key role in taking things forward.

Music and Other Departments?

GV Prakash provides the music and background score for the movie. The musician doesn’t deliver on the songs front, but makes up for it a little bit via the BGM. It is loud and blaring, but serves the purpose.

Technically the movie is slick with neat cuts, frames and art work. The cinematography is consistently good and adds to the vintage feel. The editing is neat. The predictable moments, especially in drama, don’t overstay to cause irritation. The writing is adequate. Nothing stands out, but there isn’t much to complain about as well. The production values are good. The movie bears a visually striking look.

Highlights?

Dulquar Salman

Backdrop

Second Half

Pre Climax

Drawbacks?

Predictable Narrative

Parts Of First Half

No Real Threat For Hero

Did I Enjoy It?

Yes

Will You Recommend It?

Yes