Taxi No. 9211 hits the roads

Nana Patekar and John Abraham as the protagonists, excellent chemistry between the actors and the music keeps Taxi No. 9211 in top gear.

BY A CORRESPONDENT

26 February 2006
MUMBAI, INDIA

Taxi No. 9211 stars an unconventional pairing with Nana Patekar and John Abraham in the lead. Produced by Sholay's Ramesh Sippy and directed by Milan Lutheria (Kachche Dhaage and Deewar), the film covers a span of 24 hours, and tells the life of two men from vastly different worlds, and how a taxi ride changes both their lives.

Raghu (Nana Patekar) is a caustic and witty taxi-driver whose wife thinks he's an insurance salesperson. To keep up the façade, he aims to earn Rs.30,000 by the end of the day, by tricking wealthy passengers. Jai (John Abraham) is a chronic philanderer and the son of a wealthy businessman but might lose all his millions if the terms of his father's will are followed and the manager gets the money. He too much get his 300 crores, by the end of the day.

Jai catches a cab to contest the will in court, and for Raghav, another rich bakra has landed on his lap. The crucial piece of evidence that can save Jai lands up in Raghav's possession, and chaos follows. Preliminary scenes are set up by Sanjay Dutt in his 'Munnabhai' role. Patekar plays a pivotal role with a mix of the usual
drama and humour. Some of his memorable lines include telling his son, "Tereko Tendulkar banna hain, Kaif nahin," or telling a hooker, "Ek aadmi paise dega, patang sab udaayenge" or telling John, "Main sirf
Scotch peeta hoon."

Although inspired from the Samuel L Jackson-Ben Affleck thriller Changing Lanes, it promises to entertain its Indian audience with a Mumbaiyya take on the entire proceedings. Raghu's wife is played by Sonali Kulkarni, while Sameera Reddy plays Jai's love interest. The foot-tapping music has been directed by Vishal Shekhar.

Taxi No. 9211 features some foot-tapping and serious numbers, and the songs seem to have been well-received by critics and the audience alike. While hip and upbeat, the songs in Taxi No. 9211 have a distinct Mumbaiya flavour to them.

Nana Patekar is excellent in the movie, and that is expected from him. John Abraham's performance in Taxi no. 9211 has been described by critics as one of his best so far. Normally known for wooden performance, he found it easy to get the laughs in Garam Masala where he partnered with Akshay Kumar, and his partnership with Nana Patekar in Taxi No. 9211 sees him defnitley improving as an actor. 

Sonali Kulkarni who plays Nana Patekar's wife in the movie gets applause for a restrained performance, while the same cannot be said about Sameera Reddy - she doesn't seem to fit the role well. 

While there is no plot to the movie, excellent situational humour and the chemistry between the lead actors saves the movie. Add the excellent music, and you have a reasonably succesful movie.