April Fool (2010 film)

Last updated

April Fool
April-fool-Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Viji Thampi
Written by Francis Veber
Jagadish
Produced by Santhosh Damodharan
Starring Jagadish
Siddique
Navya Natarajan
CinematographySanjeev Shankar
Music by M. Jayachandran
Release date
  • 1 April 2010 (2010-04-01)
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam

April Fool is a 2010 Malayalam comedy film directed by Viji Thampi, scripted by Jagadish, and produced by Santosh Damodar. It stars Jagadish, Siddique and Navya Natarajan in lead roles.

Contents

While the film credits Jagadish as the script writer, it is in fact an uncredited remake (except for some regional adaptations in the dialogue) of the 2007 Bollywood film Bheja Fry by Sagar Bellary which itself was a remake of the 1998 French film Le Dîner de Cons by Francis Veber (which in turn was a cinema adaptation of the theatrical play of the same name written by Veber himself) which was also adapted in Kannada as Mr. Garagasa and in English as Dinner for Schmucks

Plot

Rakesh Menon is a music producer (a publisher in Veber's script) married to a singer. Rakesh and his friends get together every Friday for a party. In this party, they invite idiots to ridicule them behind the scenes and calling them "talent". They enjoy doing it so much that they don't even mind missing out on family appointments.

One of Rakesh's friends meets Krishnanunni, an Income Tax Inspector (a Finance Ministry employee in Veber's script), on a bus trip and decides that he could probably be a source of entertainment for Rakesh. Rakesh promptly calls Krishnanunni and invites him for dinner.

Krishnanunni is a talkative self-promoting singer (in Veber's script, passionate in building replicas of landmarks with matchsticks) who carries with him a photo album showcasing his musical life. He is excited at the prospect of meeting a music producer which might help advance his career as a singer. Krishnanunni is kind-hearted and wants to help everyone but he also has the ability to mess things up for people around him. He can be annoying to the person who is sitting next to him but he makes it a funny experience for everyone else watching him.

Friday arrives but Rakesh accidentally falls into a swimming pool and gets injured (a golf injury, in Veber's script). His back is sprained badly and is restricted from moving around. Rakesh knows that he will not be able to make it to the party but still decides to meet Krishnanunni to see how good or rather bad he is. Before Krishnanunni arrives at Rakesh's residence, Rakesh's wife leaves after an altercation with Rakesh. When Rakesh asks Krishnanunni to call his family doctor, he accidentally calls Rakesh's girlfriend. Rakesh asks Krishnanunni to leave his home for all the mess he has created. Rakesh tries to get information regarding his wife's whereabout. Krishnanunni offers to help and calls Rakesh's wife's previous boyfriend Sarath under a false identity. Instead, he ends up giving Rakesh's Landline number that makes it obvious to Sarath that Rakesh is trying to get all details. Sarath tells Rakesh that his wife might have gone to a party hosted by a sex-freak.

It turns out that a colleague of Krishnanunni, an Income Tax Inspector Grade 1 (a tax auditor, in Veber's script), knows the whereabouts of this person. Jagathy is an eccentric character who loves to watch cricket and is an ardent fan of Sachin Tendulkar.

While trying to mend the relationship between Rakesh and his wife, she tells Krishnanunni that he was called by Rakesh to make a fool of him and have fun at his expense. This hurts Krishnanunni, but the good-hearted Krishnanunni still wants to help Rakesh by letting her know how sorry Rakesh is because of his acts and how much he loves her.

Krishnanunni does so by calling Rakesh's wife, who had been involved in a car accident after leaving the apartment for the second time (the first time being when Krishnanunni had sent her away thinking she was really Rakesh's ex-girlfriend), and makes no mistakes in this conversation, as well as making up near perfect excuses on the spot and with no prompting. After encouraging Rakesh's wife to return home, Krishnanunni makes yet another mistake after he picks up the telephone when she calls to talk to Brochant despite having previously told her he was in a phone booth.

Cast

Soundtrack

All lyrics were written by Gireesh Puthenchery.

Production and release

The film was shot in Thiruvananthapuram. It was released on the April Fools' Day (1 April) of 2010.

Reception

Sify.com wrote "After Happy Husbands drew inspiration from Charlie Chaplin (and also from its Hindi version, No Entry), here is another copy in Malayalam cinema, where the dearth of original ideas has become a real threat. The question here is, do we need such shameless rip-offs, when the DVDs of Hindi films are available here aplenty? We want original films, not some uninspiring imitations!" [1] Paresh C Palicha from Rediff.com wrote "Coming back to the original question of the tagline used in the movie title -- yes, I believe it is intended as an April Fool joke as the film is a blatant copy of the hugely successful Hindi film, Bheja Fry." [2] Shyam PV from News18 India wrote that "Undoubtedly, this time too, Viji Thampi wasted a good opportunity to utilise a bunch of top class artistes to the fullest." [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Sethurama Iyer CBI</i> 2004 Indian film

Sethurama Iyer CBI is a 2004 Indian Malayalam-language mystery crime film directed by K. Madhu and written by S. N. Swamy. It stars Mammootty in the title role, alongside Mukesh and Jagathy Sreekumar in supporting roles. Shyam composed the background score for the film.

<i>Thilakkam</i> 2003 Indian film

Thilakkam (transl. Glitter) is a 2003 Indian Malayalam-language comedy thriller film directed by Jayaraj and written by Rafi Mecartin. Dileep, Kavya Madhavan, and Thiagarajan play the lead roles. The rest of the cast includes Nedumudi Venu, K. P. A. C. Lalitha, Nishanth Sagar, Jagathy Sreekumar, Cochin Haneefa, Harisree Ashokan, Salim Kumar, and Bindu Panicker. It was remade in Kannada as Nandeesha in 2012, starring Komal.

<i>Bheja Fry</i> (film) 2007 Indian film

Bheja Fry is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by Sagar Ballary and produced by Sunil Doshi. The film stars Rajat Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Sarika, Milind Soman and Ranvir Shorey. It was released on 13 April 2007. It is based on the 1998 French film Le Dîner de Cons.

<i>Hallo</i> (film) 2007 Indian film

Hallo is a 2007 Indian Malayalam-language comedy thriller film written and directed by the Rafi Mecartin duo. iT stars Mohanlal and Parvathy Melton(in her Malayalam debut), with Jagathy Sreekumar, Siddique, K. B. Ganesh Kumar, Madhu, and Samvrutha Sunil in important roles. The music was composed by Alex Paul. The film received positive reviews from critics. Critics praised Mohanlal"s performance. The film was also a major commercial success. It was remade in Telugu as Naa Style Veru (2009) and in Kannada as Manjunatha BA LLB (2012). The plot of the movie was reported to have been partially borrowed from the 2004 movie Cellular.

<i>Witness</i> (1988 film) 1988 Indian film

Witness is a 1988 Indian Malayalam language crime thriller film, directed by Viji Thampi and co-written by Jagathy Sreekumar, starring Jayaram, Jagathy Sreekumar, Parvathy, Madhu, Sukumaran and Thilakan in the lead roles.

Viji Thampi is an Indian film director, actor, right-wing politician, and social activist who works in Malayalam films. Thampi is a member of Thiruvananthapuram regional board of the Central Board of Film Certification and the State Advisor of Kerala Kshetra Samrakshana Samithi. In 2021, Thampi was appointed as the Kerala State President of the Vishva Hindu Parishad. He was also a Jury member of National film awards declaration committee in 2022.

<i>Kalyanaraman</i> (2002 film) 2002 film directed by Shafi

Kalyanaraman is a 2002 Indian Malayalam-language romantic comedy film directed by Shafi and written by Benny P. Nayarambalam, starring Dileep, Navya Nair and Kunchacko Boban. The plot follows Ramankutty and family who runs a catering service and the events that follows after they take the work of Ambattu Thampi's daughter's wedding. The music was composed by Berny-Ignatius. The film was a blockbuster and developed a cult fan following, especially the character Ponjikkara played by Innocent. The film was remade in Telugu as Kalyana Ramudu (2003).

<i>Kaaryasthan</i> 2010 film directed by Thomson K. Thomas

Kaaryasthan is a 2010 Malayalam-language action comedy film written by the duo Udayakrishna-Siby K. Thomas and directed by debutant Thomson K. Thomas. It stars Dileep, Siddique, Madhu, Suraj Venjaramoodu and Biju Menon. It was Dileep's 100th feature film. Akhila, a noted television anchor and dancer, debuted as an actress through this film. The film was released on November 5 coinciding with Diwali.The film received highly positive reviews from critics became a blockbuster at box office and it was also one of the highest grossing Malayalam films of 2010.

<i>Thiruthalvaadi</i> 1992 Indian film

Thiruthalvaadi is a 1992 Malayalam film written by Kaloor Dennis and directed by Viji Thampi. The film stars Siddique, Jagadish, Jagathy Sreekumar, Urvashi and Sivaranjini in the main roles. The basic plot was based on the 1982 Tamil movie Manal Kayiru, directed by Visu.

<i>Nadakame Ulakam</i> 2011 Indian film

Nadakame Ulakam is a 2011 Malayalam-language comedy film directed by Viji Thampi and starring Mukesh, Vinu Mohan, Sarayu, and Saranya Mohan in the lead roles. Its songs are composed by veteran music director Johnson with lyrics written by Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri. The film was released on 25 February.

<i>Vakkalathu Narayanankutty</i> 2001 Indian film

Vakkalathu Narayanankutty is a 2001 Indian Malayalam-language legal comedy-drama film co-written and directed by T. K. Rajeev Kumar, starring Jayaram, Mukesh, Manya and Jagathy Sreekumar. It was actor Bobby Kottarakkara's last film. It was during the shooting of this film that Bobby Kottarakkara died, leaving the team to continue the shooting without him. The film had an average performance at the box office.

<i>Avittam Thirunaal Aarogya Sriman</i> 1995 Indian film

Avittam Thirunaal Aarogya Sriman is a 1995 Malayalam film directed by Viji Thampi.

<i>Marupuram</i> Indian film

Marupuram is a 1990 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film directed by Viji Thampi and written by Renjith and Kaloor Dennis. The film stars Jayaram, Mukesh, Urvashi, Sukumaran, Jagathy Sreekumar, M. G. Soman, Siddique, Lalu Alex, Jagadish and Devan.

<i>Apaaratha</i> 1992 Malayalam film directed by I. V. Sasi

Apaaratha is a 1992 Indian Malayalam-language film produced and directed by I. V. Sasi. The film stars Rahman, Sukanya, Urvashi, Siddique and M. G. Soman. The plot follows a person who is trying to find a job and the hardships he has to face after managing it later.

Kunukkitta Kozhi is a 1992 Indian Malayalam-language comedy-drama film directed by Viji Thampi and written by Kaloor Dennis, starring Jagadeesh, Siddique, Rupini and Parvathy. The songs were composed by Johnson.

<i>Magic Lamp</i> (film) 2008 Indian film

Magic Lamp is a 2008 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by K. K. Haridas and produced by Cherupuzha Jose. The film stars Jayaram in four roles, with Meena, Sangeetha, Divya Unni and Kalabhavan Mani appears in lead roles. The film has musical score by Ouseppachan.

Simhavalan Menon is a 1995 Indian Malayalam-language comedy film directed by Viji Thampi and written by Sasidharan Arattuvazhi. The film stars Madhu, Jagadish, Urvashi and Jagathy Sreekumar in the lead roles.It is a remake of the 1979 Hindi film Gol Maal, of which some scenes were used in a previous Malayalam film Ayalvasi Oru Daridravasi (1986), directed by Priyadarsan, starring Mukesh and Prem Nazir in the corresponding roles. The film has musical score by S. P. Venkatesh.. It is considered one of the best movies ever made in mollywood.

<i>Mohan Kumar Fans</i> 2021 film by Jis Joy

Mohan Kumar Fans is a 2021 Indian Malayalam-language comedy drama film written and directed by Jis Joy. The film is produced by Listin Stephen under the banner of Magic Frames. Kunchacko Boban played the role of a singer. The film also features Siddique, Anarkali Nazar, Mukesh, Sreenivasan, Vinay Forrt, Saiju Kurup, Ramesh Pisharody and Krishna Shankar in pivotal roles. The songs are composed by Prince George, while the score is composed by William Francis. The film premiered on 19 March 2021.

<i>Simhasanam</i> (2012 film) 2012 Malayalam action film

Simhasanam (transl. Throne) is a 2012 Malayalam action film written and directed by Shaji Kailas starring Prithviraj Sukumaran and Sai Kumar with supporting cast including Siddique and Devan. The music was composed by Ronnie Raphael.

<i>Lion</i> (2006 film) 2006 Malayalam film directed by Joshiy

Lion is a 2006 Indian Malayalam-language political thriller film written by Udaykrishna-Sibi K. Thomas and directed by Joshiy. The film stars Dileep, Kalasala Babu, Kavya Madhavan and Vijayaraghavan alongside a supporting cast that include Jagathy Sreekumar, Innocent, Sai Kumar, Shammi Thilakan, Riyaz Khan and Karthika. The film was produced by Noushad and distributed by Shan Entertainment. The film received positive reviews and was a blockbuster at the box office. It was remade in Tamil as Nam Naadu and in Telugu as Evadaithe Nakenti.

References

  1. "Review - April fool". Sify . Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  2. "Review: April Fool is a blatant copy of Bheja Fry". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  3. "April Fool' manages to fool audiences". news18.com. 2 April 2010. Archived from the original on 3 February 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.