Ishqiya Movie Review

Ishqiya is about two thieves Khalujaan (Naseeruddin Shah) and Babban (Arshad Warsi) and a forgotten widow Krishna (Vidya Balan). The two, after double-crossing their boss Mushtaq bhai for money, look for a hide-out to save their lives from their merciless boss. After trying their luck everywhere, they end up at a friend’s place in Gorakhpur only to find out that he is dead. However, his widow Krishna offers them to stay until they make all arrangements to leave the country.

However, Mushtaqbhai soon lands up there and threatens to kill all three if he does not get his money within the allocated time. Complications increase as Khalujaan falls head over heels in love with Krishna, while the Babban starts lusting after her, falling in love with her eventually, too. Krishna takes up a different act soon after leading to more complications. Who gets Krishna? Do all three manage to save their lives? Watch to find out.

Ishqiya Review

It would be unfair to compare Ishqiya with Omkara, for besides cosmetic resemblance, Ishqiya has a soul that is unique, edgy and riveting. The film is a rustic tale of an unusual love triangle, lust, deceit with a backdrop of crime. Filled with witty and saucy dialogues, it is a movie that is high on spirit, drama, romance, thrill and is very very foxy (Definitely not for anyone under 18).

Agreed, Ishqiya has a Vishal Bharadwaj feel to it, but débutante director Abhishek Chaubey is equally talented in creating an intriguing tale that has a reflection on his own and marks his credibility. Ishqiya gets to the act right from the first beginning. Although it takes us a while to get used to the dusty – rustic feel and lingo of the movie, the flavor is mostly urban, light-hearted and comical that doesn’t demand a lot of effort to understand. It has multi-layers of emotions and drama attached but it does not divulge too much into anything beyond needful. Be it the character introduction or the past to which they belong or sub-plots of gang-formation and kidnapping, it’s all in tone with the central plot and does not deviate much. Bharadwaj’s dialogues and music is outstanding. The dialogues are extremely effective and high on wits. Some simple yet classic lines that’s worth a mention are: “is duniya sab se gehri dushmani miya-biwi ke beech hai”, ” aap ka ishq ishq hai aur mera ishq sex”. Every song is a treat, especially ‘Dil Toh Bachcha Hai’ and “Badi dheere jali naina”. Its not the story but the dialogues, the sinless performance and to an extent the story-telling that has made all the difference.

Ishqiya is not without it’s share of flaws. The story definitely needs some patching and clarity of thought. Although the character portrayed are very impulsive and energetic, the pace is an hindrance. The first half especially was a drag. Chaubey’s effort is commendable, but the narration at times was inconsistent and the twist towards the end seemed a little far fetched.

Some scenes to look forward too:

1. The passionate lip-lock and lovemaking sequence between Arshad and Vidya has been dexterously captured.

2. Confrontation scene towards the climax between Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi.

3. Naseer’s expressions throughout the Dil Toh Bacha Hai Ji song.

Flaw-less performance by its ensemble cast is what works highly for Ishqiya. Naseeruddin Shah yet again delivers an impeccable performance. He gets into the feel of Khalujaan’s character and emotes more through his eyes and mannerisms. In scenes where he looks at Krishna longingly, he makes you smile and at the same time pity his condition.

Arshad Warsi is a delight to watch. He gets the meatier role which he performs with full justice. He shares great chemistry with Naseer and his interactions with the village lad Nandu too is hilarious.

Vidya Balan surprises yet again. She portrays the most complex character and pulls it of with ease, brilliance and simplicity. Kudos to her stylist, for she looks absolutely gorgeous and irresistibly sexy  although covered from head to toe.

Overall, Ishqiya is an unique tale packed with powerful performances. But before you decide to go watch the film, be aware that it is not for everyone. Those seeking high on entertainment films would probably be terribly disappointed.

At the box office, such films rarely open to huge numbers and the lack of mass appeal too would restrict its prospects.

Rating: ★★★½☆

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64 Comments

  • Rajib Halder
    this is not Veer’s page this is Ishqiya’s page.
    so please put this verdict of Veer on Veer’s page
    Ishqiya is getting good business .it is abt 9-10 cr in 1st weekend.

  • @ Nauman, what u meant by ur above comments. U keep on maintaining that u like Salman, But u r always against him. Such a Hypocrite & Fake Person. huh !!!

  • @Rooksana, I said it may not have been the BIG HIT now it is. Read the post carefully.

    3 IDIOTS would have been a HIT at end of day even without favourable reviews, But Would not Have Earned 192 cr nett.

    It would have finished Under 100 crores, if the reviews were not that gr8.

  • Vicky
    that msg was only for Rajib Halder. not for any other person.
    he thinks that only Veer is super hit and all other movies are flop.

    i m sorry if u felt bad .
    but it is true that Veer cant be flop , minimum avg and maximum semi hit.
    so just chill
    veer is in safe zone.

  • Nauman, then target him dude, y targeting VEER.

    Yes at min VEER will be AVG. , at max Semi-hit.

    At max. lifetime will be 50cr-52cr nett.

    At min. lifetime will be 45-50 cr. nett

  • Anyways, i have watched Ishqiya. I Always rate a Movie as an Audience, not as Critic.

    Though all critics have gone gaga over it, it could have been better if the Climax was good.

    I rate it 2.5/5.

    Again, Ishqiya is over rated.

  • ishiqiya is agood movie. must watch for good cinema lover.
    rann is also superb.
    ishiqiya is going to be 1st sucess of 2010.

  • 1st week going to be 15 cr-16 cr
    and overall lifetime it will easily earn 22 cr in its lifetime.
    so 1st hit of 2010

  • Calcuttatube.Com

    VEER by Salman Khan is the first Superhit of 2010

    Salman’s VEER is Super Hit of 2010.

    Salman khans VEER is now heading for a 55 crore net plus total with Wednesday,Thursday,Friday and Saturday collections of 14 Crores. VEER is going strong at all India release in spite of new releases in Rann and Ishqiya.Veer has grossed Rs41 crore worldwide at the box office in its opening weekend, Eros International, the distributor of the film, has said.

    Veer took Rs32 crore in its first weekend in India with Rs9 crore overseas, an Eros spokesman said. The film released 1,300 prints and in digital cinemas all over India and a further 236 prints overseas. It has emerged a big grosser in circuits such as Rajasthan, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Nizam and Gujarat with single screens doing excellent business and over the weekend.

    Nandu Ahuja, senior vice-president for India distribution at Eros International Media Ltd, said, “Audience reactions to Veer have been extremely heartening. With Salmans huge fan base in India and overseas, Veer is a huge in all over India. With the opening weekend followed by the Republic Day holiday teamed with Salmans star power, Veer collected already 41 Crores in the extended Weekend.

    VEER had terrific response to single screen, it managed to acquire good space in second week inspite of new releases of Rann and Ishqiya. Veer is already a Super Hit of 2010.

    VEER by Salman Khan is the first Superhit of 2010

  • Hugely overrated movie.2star.mark my word it ll not cross 17cr lifetime.only media hype..AKLAQ FANTASTIC REVIEW BRO..nauman dun compare ur review wid aklaq.u r nowhere close to aklaq..read bollywood hungama forum members reviews.tujhe teri aukat pta chal jayegi ki ek acha review kise khte hai.

  • I completely agree with Amit & Sudeep on the Ratings for Ishqiya. Though i rated it 2.5, after analysing it again i will rate it as 2/5.

    The 2 stars are just coz of the Performances & 2 Good Songs. Rest Everything in the Movie Sucks to the Core.

    On what Basis Critics Have Given it 3.5 or 4??? I can’t really Digest This. :-o

    The story was bad & Climax was Really Unbelievable. Critics Grow Up !!!!

    This is a Bad Movie. Not at all a Family Film.

  • Now-a-Days , The Criteria For Rating a Movie :-

    1. If It Stars Salman Khan or a Akshay Kumar, irrespective of how good the Movie is Critics will Rate it in the Range of 1 stars or 2 stars.

    How can Someone rate a Good Movie Like LONDON DREAMS 2 stars??? Phew !!!!!

    2. If the Movie Stars Shahrukh Khan or Hrithik Roshan it will be rated 3.5 stars to 5 stars, irrespective of however Bad a Movie is.

    3. If the Producers are Big & Give The Critics a handsome money, then they will rate it from 3.5 or 4 or 4.5 .

    I have Completely Lost Faith in Critics After their Ratings for VEER & Ishqiya. Critics Sucks, Very Badly :x

  • Ishqiya Has Solid First Weekend

    Monday 1st Febuary 2010 18.00 IST
    Boxofficeindia.Com Trade Network

    Ishqiya has done solid business over its first weekend. The film has managed to collect around 9.50 crore nett. The business is pretty similar to films like Paa and Wake Up Sid which collected 10 crore and 10.50 crore respectively over their first weekends.

    Ishqiya has done its best business in Mumbai, Delhi/UP, East Punjab, CP Berar and Mysore compared with the other circuits.

    The film showed a jump in business on Saturday and had another good day on Sunday. The weekdays should do decent business and the film can finish the week with around 14 crore nett which would be a good result for a film like Ishqiya.

  • The house seems to be pretty much divided on Ishqiya. But each one has a strong reason for his like or dislike for the movie. Is it worth 3.5 rating or 2/2.5? Well for me it was a big let down. I will go with 2.

    I agree with both parties here, because I feel the story was very good. However the treatment of the story, thoughnot run of the mill, wasn’t outstanding either. For me the biggest disappointment was Naseer’s talent going unused. The director could have sharpened his character. Vidya has the best role, she is outstanding in the film. Portrayal of her angst and lust is brilliant. Arshad is good and whacky, but he is majorly helped by his character: street smart, fallible, and funny.

    Second half is much better than the first half. I agree with one and all about the absurd ending, I firmly believe a story well told should be well wound up. To summarise, my 2 raring is for Vidya and Naseer, who despite being under utilized still manages to come up trumps. I would have given the same story 4 stars only if Naseer had better footage and the end would have been more definite.

  • Amit Singhania
    mere aur indicine ke review match kar ke dekh le.
    aisa lagta hai jaise woh meri copy karte hoon
    but i m not saying that they copy my review. even i said lots of times i copy there style.
    and if my reviews are so bad then why i am joining a website?
    tu aik blog hi bana le apna to woh hi bohat hai.
    tere Sallu ki movie ka 2nd weekend 5.25 cr pe aaya hai ap dekh kia hota hai veer ke sath.
    veer ne phoda nahi eros ki kismat phod di hai.
    BOI check kar

  • Hi Nauman m a silent visitor of this site and always come here to see review of indicine & ur reviews and some good debates. I dont participate much bcoz of work.

    So i want to know why u did not post ur review of Ishqiya ??

  • gaurav
    thx u like my reviews , thing is that i am in sydney and here Ishqiya didnt release because it is small budget movie.
    i watched it on DVD but pirated DVD no good results and lots of scenes were cut so i couldnt watch properly and didnt write my review.
    but it was good movie , but not 4 star may be 3.5 maximum.
    but i am not sure becauase i didnt watch in cinema and if i dont watch in cinema i never put review.

  • @ Amit Singhania

    Thanks bro for liking my review. but honestly speaking i really like Nauman’s reviews. There is no competition between us. All of us on this website are like brothers and sisters who have their own likes and dislikes. We respect each other’s opinions as much as we respect each other.

    I must admire Nauman. He writes his reviews and is Masha Allah on his way to become a professional reviewer. Yet he always encourages me on my reviews, although i have very less experience in writing reviews as compared to him. I wish you all the best Nauman for your ventures with review-writing.

    Anyways Amit… mate…I am highly grateful for your compliments regarding my review being good. Its a source of big encouragment for me. May Allah bless you.

  • Nauman! Like Gaurav, i use to see ur review b4 going 4 mv. but this time u haven’t kept ur review so last weekend i saw this mv. i am sure that if u will see in cinema u will give more than 3.5.

    Any way thanx 4 posting gd reviews. keep on posting..

    Regards,
    Akshay

  • Gaurav , akki and Akhlaq bhai
    thx for ur comments.
    Gaurav what is World cinema ???
    wht do u mean by it.
    akki bhai thx again and from MNIK i will be on my site with much batter style and without grammar and spelling mistakes.
    i will announce the name of that site soon may be on 9,10th Feb.

    Akhlaq bhai dont need to talk with Amit S , he is mad after final verdict of Veer. woh hum main be maqsad larai kara raha hai.
    but u r brothers. and why u didnt add me yet on yahoo or msn , i left my ids for u on this page.
    even suneil added me .

  • bullshit film of the highest calibre. very rude, crass, and degrading. i can’t believe that such a clean miss goody too shoes – vidya balan , actually agreed to do such a kissing scene in the film. that too with such a third rate ugly actor like arshaf warsi. gosh, what was she thinking !! disgusting.

  • vidya is really a great actress ….. the film is good with splendid performances by all. vishal bhardwaj suceeds in potraying a new kinda masala . million times better than veer n rann..

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