Paagalpan

Roma (Aarti Aggarwal) is the apple of the eye of her five Pinto brothers -- Arun (Dr. Vilas), Jack (Bharat Dhabolkar), Sunny (Joy Fernandes), Harry (Howard Rosemeyer) and Bunty (Farhan Khan) – who live in a typical Goan basti.

Sameer Malhotra (Karan Nath), son of tycoon Malhotra (Talat Rekhi), falls in love with Roma at first sight. Roma reciprocates his love gradually and Sameer wins over the confidence of the brothers one after another subsequently.

But tragedy strikes when a ship is made to sink under instructions from Malhotra, and several people from the basti perish overnight. Jack, Roma's brother, learns of Malhotra's misdeeds and a conflict erupts between the families of those who have perished and Malhotra.  

Things take a turn for the worse when Jack is killed in police custody and the Pintos hold Sameer and his father responsible for the crime. This leads to a rift between the Pintos and Sameer and the two lovers are forced to separate.

PAAGALPAN is about passionate love and the anguish the lovers go through when they get isolated. The film starts off well, but is hardly convincing in the first half.

The fault lies in the fact that the portions involving the Pintos are loud and do not sustain the viewer's interest. Even the strategy that Sameer adopts to win each brother is far from believable. But the film undergoes a radical change in the post-interval portions when the lovers are compelled to go two separate ways.

Joy Augustine, director the thoroughly entertaining TERE MERE SAPNE, gets a tight hold on the goings-on in the second half of the film. The intensity and passion of the lovers come to the fore in the scene when Sameer visits the basti and gets involved in a duel, with the Pintos thrashing him and Roma, who has been locked forcibly, attempting to harm herself.  

The film moves at a brisk face in these portions and the only factor you miss is the lack of a hit song to compliment the goings-on. The climax is equally well shot. The water boat chase, followed by a violent encounter outside the temple, keeps the viewer's interest alive.

Director Joy Augustine succeeds on two levels – One, he deserves full marks for extracting wonderful performances from the two newcomers and two, he has been successful in holding the audience attention throughout the second half.

Raju Singh's music is of a mixed variety. The tunes are easy on the ears, but a hit score, so vital in a love story, is missing. Yet, the numbers that have popular appeal are 'Dil Hai Deewana' and 'Mera Dil Kehne Laga'.

The basic plot is not new, but writers Janak-Hriday's screenplay, more towards the post-interval portions, has the raw appeal to keep the viewer absorbed. The action scenes and water boat chase deserve a special mention. Cinematography is efficient at places.  

PAAGALPAN introduces two new faces – Karan Nath and Aarti Aggarwal – and it must be said to the credit of both that they don't let you down.

Karan has screen presence and the youngster deserves a pat for coming up with a winning performance. He delivers the right expressions and has all the makings of a mature performer in times to come. His handsome looks will appeal to the young crowd instantly.

Aarti is not a conventional beauty, but a fine actress. You are impressed with the kind of honesty and sincerity she exudes in her first film.

Amongst brothers, Dr. Vilas, Bharat Dhabolkar and Farhan Khan leave an impression. Dr. Vilas has a goody-goody character, while Bharat Dhabolkar is equally convincing. Farhan Khan gives a good account of himself. He doesn't go overboard one bit when his character turns negative in the second half.  

On the whole, PAAGALPAN is targeted at the youth, who will like the second half for the performances and intensity in the goings-on. The film has opened to a decent response and at the box-office window, this moderately-priced fare should keep its investors safe.