Param Sundari Movie Review: In Bollywood, there are two types of promotions ahead of a film’s release. One is where the actors are found sitting across every other podcaster, sharing their fallibilities, insecurities and struggles. How they felt second fiddle for not being invited to Koffee with Karan for a long time, things like that. Another seems a more clueless one, where you will see the leads touring Tier 2 cities and being captured by paparazzi while eating at iconic joints. My simpleton brain can’t fathom how Sidharth Malhotra and Janhvi Kapoor relishing chaat in Lucknow or savouring chole bhature in Delhi can convince me to go and buy tickets for their latest. It only makes me crave an unhealthy, roadside snack. And with dietary desires like these, I walked into Param Sundari. If, by any chance, films could be tasted, this one is a culinary experience akin to drinking a protein shake from a coconut.
Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Janhvi Kapoor, Manjot Singh, Renji Panicker, and Sanjay Kapoor
Directed by: Tushar Jalota
Screenplay by: Aarsh Vora and Tushar Jalota
Amongst other drawbacks, the film suffers the most from taking up an unoriginal, dated idea. The North-South romance has been explored before, both cutely and comically, in films like 2 States (2014) and Chennai Express (2013). Param Sundari offers nothing more than a reheated dish. It can’t even rely on the screen presence and acting prowess of its leads. Sidharth and Janhvi are pleasing to look at, but they don’t exactly crackle. It isn’t a sure-shot that two individuals having biological advantages can ensure chemistry.
Sidharth is Param Sachdev, a stereotypical Punjabi stallion. He is even introduced with a morning routine of pull-ups, shot only with the purpose of showcasing his chiselled physique. Think Rocky Randhawa’s introduction sequence in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). Param, as we are informed by his own voiceover, is a member of the young, ‘confused’ generation who idles away on dating apps. He also burns his father’s money by investing it in failed startups. One day, he is approached with a pitch for an app, lazily titled ‘Find your soulmate’. It’s exactly what it sounds like. Param decides to test the app on himself, and it shows that his soulmate, Thekkepattu Sundari Damodaram Pillai (Janhvi), is residing in Kerala. Time for the munda to don some mundu.
Param Sundari is essentially a straightforward Bollywood rom-com where boy meets girl, but society won’t let them marry. It’s budget DDLJ with an ‘explore Kerala’ rather than ‘explore Europe’ agenda. For all its comical tirades of not generalising the South, the film’s visual grammar makes a Kerala hamlet look no different than a Tamil Nadu village. It’s amusing to witness a product of the Hindi film industry, historically known for stereotyping the South, trying to teach viewers the difference between a Rajinikanth and a Mohanlal. Cinema lovers in the Hindi belt have been consuming Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam films, albeit dubbed, even before the term Pan-India was coined.
The film, with its visuals of elephants, temples, and Kalaripayattu, often starts feeling like a ‘know-your-Kerala’ reelshow. Both Sidharth and Janhvi are unable to leave a mark with their performances. Sidharth tries to put on an SRK charm while Janhvi’s Malayali accent is sporadic. We see Sidharth’s Param engage in a lot of physical activities, from running in shorts to rowing a boat. Janhvi too gets to showcase her southern elegance, in kasavu sarees and hair decked with gajra. But all of it feels empty and soulless.
The biggest issue is that Param Sundari offers no surprises. It becomes as predictable as it proceeds. Param and Sundari’s love story seems like it has been generated with the help of an AI prompt. Everything is very surface-level. Punjabis eat parathas for breakfast, “makkhan maar ke" (With some butter). One of the Keralites is unnecessarily a nurse. A turbaned Sikh exists only for comic relief. A Gen Z girl keeps whipping out Korean hearts. The film seems to come out of a Pan-India rom-com manual (I am sure it exists). If Param Sundari was a feeling, it has been described by the film itself: “Dimaag ka coconut khali ho gaya aur dil toddy pi kar naach raha hain (My brain’s coconut is empty and my heart is dancing, while being drunk on toddy).” Go figure.