‘Poster Boys’ Review: Nothing More Than Phata Poster Nikla Zero!

Jwalamukhi vaise toh teen prakar ke hote hain. Shant jwalamukhi – yeh kabhi nahi phate hain. Jagrut jwalamukhi – yeh bewajah hi phat jate hain. Aur prasuk jwalamukhi – yeh upar se toh shant dikhte hain, par jab phate hain toh…

(In general, there are three kinds of volcanoes. Inactive Volcanoes – they never explode. Active Volcanoes – they explode without a reason. And Dormant Volcanoes – they appear to be calm, but when they explode…)

A basic geology lesson is enough to sum up the Poster Boys.

Bobby Deol is the shaant volcano – his character ‘Vinay Sharma’ is the irrelevant one in the film.

Shreyas Talpade aka Arjun Singh is the active volcano, who tries to ‘extort’ humour, but fails to generate ‘interest’.

And obviously, the retired officer Chaudhary Jagawar aka Sunny paji, is the dhansu dormant volcano, that ejaculates... err… explodes with energy.

Talpade’s Poster Boys is a remake of Sameer Patil’s popular Marathi film Poshter Boyz (2014). It’s about the gharelu lives of three men that get ‘snipped’ when they find themselves on a government poster advertising vasectomy.

Well, you’re probably thinking – what could possibly go wrong in a film that’s a scene-by-scene and word-for-word remake of another film, right?

Wrong! Poster Boys did what a nausikhiya chef does to your butter chicken – he screws it up beyond recognition. I mean, how can you possibly go wrong with butter chicken? Same goes for a story that has already been a successful commercial hit in 2014. Right?

BUT... the film is so wrong on so many fronts that I cannot believe I actually sat through two hours and eleven minutes of this brainless humour, with an apparent social message that completely lacked mojo.

Nepotism Returns

There is one thing they managed to keep alive in the film, and that’s the ongoing debate on nepotism. So if Karan Johar is the flag bearer of nepotism, the Deols aren’t far behind. After Yamla Pagla Deewana and Yamla Pagla Deewana 2, the Deol khandaan came together yet again for Poster Boys.

Papa Deol too makes an entry, albeit in the form of a dialogue, when an old and blind Khap lady, who keeps a revolver under her pillow, touches Sunny paji’s face and says, “Dharmendra?” Bobby responds, “Nahi unka beta.”

#HailNepotism!

Self Goal(maal)

If you thought the film is only guilty of encouraging nepotism, then of course, you’re wrong. Poster Boys is a stage set only for self-promotion. The film is all about the poster moments of the three actors. You’ve got the entire Golmaal 3 team making a special appearance right at the end. #SastaLabour.

You’ve got a song from Bobby’s debut film Soldier set as his ringtone. #ThrowbackBobby.

There’s also a dhai kilo ka haath and tareekh pe tareekh nostalgia, along with the hand pump from Gadar – Ek Prem Katha being replaced by wooden fences and locks. Not to forget Sunny paji’s patriotic Border reference, which goes like this –

Doctor: Aapko maine kahin dekha hai!

Sunny: Lekin main toh Kashmir ke border pe tha. Phir Punjab border pe chala gaya. Phir Rajasthan border pe chala gaya.

Doctor: Haan, lekin maine aapko kahin dekha hai!

Bobby: Haan JP Dutta ki Border mein dekha hoga.

Yes, this happens for real.

Social Cause Zindabad!

The film is unbearably preachy on social issues like vasectomy, family planning, mardangi and beti bachao. But irony died a thousand deaths when they decided to open the film with an item number. #BetiBachaoBetiNachao. Poster Boys has sexist and lame jokes sprinkled throughout the script.

Sunny: Shaadi se pehle tu bomb thi. Aur shaadi ke baad, ab tu atom bomb hai.
and...
“Abe isne toh meter ka connection hi katwa diya”.
aur....
“Masterji, meri zindagi ek black board ki tarah ho gayi hai. Ab toh aapka white chalk bhi khatam hai”. (Pointing towards Bobby Deol)

The only entertaining factor throughout my Poster Boys experience was the sweet lovebirds sitting in front of me. The simplicity of the girl teaching her boyfriend the correct usage of tenses in between the film grabbed my attention more than Sunny, Bobby and Talpade’s sensational nude protest.

For me, Poster Boys was nothing but a ‘phata poster nikla zero!’

1.5 Quints out of 5

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