Mr and Mrs Mahi Movie Review: Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor Try to Evoke 'Abhimaan' Vibes in This Predictable Sports Drama (LatestLY Exclusive)

Mr and Mrs Mahi Movie Review: Imagine a cricket match where the spectator can easily predict where the next ball will land, or whether someone will hit a six or get bowled. Would that make for an interesting match? The answer to that question will determine whether you will enjoy Dharma's new offering, Mr & Mrs Mahi, which is as predictable as they come. Rajkummar Rao's performance is a positive aspect, and while his casting in a Dharma movie might seem curious, the dark recesses his character journeys into justify it. However, the drapes don't always match the carpet, and that often becomes a problem for Mr & Mrs Mahi. Mr And Mrs Mahi Song 'Roya Jab Tu': Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor's Song Shows Dreams Are Made of Both Love and Tears!

Directed by Sharan Sharma, who previously made the likeable Gunjan Saxena, Mr & Mrs Mahi is a coming-of-age drama wrapped in a sports film disguised as a romantic drama. The film doesn't do much justice to any of these genres, though. Mahinder (Rajkummar Rao) once aspired to be a cricketer, but his strict father (Kumud Mishra) benched him in their sports equipment store in Jaipur after his repeated failures to get selected for the state team.

A few years later, Mahinder receives a marriage proposal from Mahima (Janhvi Kapoor), a young doctor. In a rare moment of honesty, Mahinder reveals to Mahima that he has nothing much in life. This one moment is enough for Mahima to realise that he is sincere enough to be her life partner. Silly girl. Thus, they become Mr and Mrs Mahi. Aside from the nickname, the film has little to do with Mahendra Singh Dhoni, except perhaps to trap some Dhoni fans to watch this film.

Watch the Trailer of Mr & Mrs Mahi:

After an embarrassing incident at the shop (entirely his fault), Mahima encourages Mahinder to return to playing cricket. However, the years-long break from the game does him no good, and he is advised by his former coach (Rajesh Sharma) to train other students. Mahinder dismisses the idea rudely, but soon enough, he begins to train Mahima after seeing her natural brilliance.

An Unlikeable Protagonist...

Even though Janhvi's Mahi shares the title and has the more 'champion' moments, Mr & Mrs Mahi is more about Mahinder and his moral downward spiral. The problem is that it's hard to support him as a protagonist. I get that the movie wants to show him as a grey character who, spurned by his inferiority complex and bitterness, tries to capitalise on his wife's success and lashes out when it doesn't happen. The film's attempt to paint him in a sympathetic light, however, jars with the portrayal. As someone commented near me, this film feels like Animal meets Abhimaan, but Mr & Mrs Mahi is not as toxic as Animal, but still, the gaslighter hero gets away without much damage. As for Abhimaan comparison, the parallel is toxic itself.

From the beginning, Mahinder has been digging his grave through his arrogance and callousness. Yes, his father is a major bully who the film lets off quite lightly in the end, but Mahinder is no slouch either. He somehow lands a girl way beyond his league and fails to create chemistry that would make us root for this pair. The makers wanted an unconventional pairing, but Rao and Kapoor look more like misfit cousins than a married couple. Mr & Mrs Mahi Screening: Khushi Kapoor and Rumoured Boyfriend Vedang Raina Twin in Black as They Steal Spotlight at Star-Studded Event.

...And A Gaslit Heroine

Mr & Mrs Mahi calls it love, but it feels more like Mahima married him out of pity or to escape her controlling father. Her father is also a product of the film's inconsistent writing. At one point, he allows his daughter to marry a man he knows is simply manning a desk at his father's shop. And then we are told he had previously quashed her cricket ambitions when she was a wee child. This later gives her a moment to stand up to her father, but it doesn't feel earned and lacks impact.

Mahima is one of the most easily swayed female characters I have seen in recent times. She is someone who is easily gaslit by the men in her life, even to the point of making her quit a good job for a dream that she had forgotten years back. Kinda undercuts the struggles of other players, presumably those around her who had been striving for years, because she's naturally inclined. It doesn't help that Janhvi's performance feels like watching someone give a nervous viva test most of the time. Only in the climax does she gain a stronger voice, but even then, her character has to be mansplained into following her instincts.

Low Sports Stats!

The film doesn't seem to understand how sports work in this country. Seeing a state-selected female cricketer get primetime coverage with full media reporting, as if she had won the World Cup, is unrealistic, given how the media typically treats female-led sports in India. When Mahima was asked who she liked better, Dhoni or Virat, there was this opportunity for her to pull off a 'Smriti Mandhana', but alas!

It is natural for a former player to perform poorly on nets after returning to the game, but this is instead used as a plot device to undermine Mahinder. Most plot conflicts are similarly contrived, meant to show Mahinder's blinded ego but instead they make him look dumber than usual, making you appreciate his father for giving the idiot a job. This is a film that makes you think parents are right for some kids in wanting to make decisions for them.

The one scene that works in these portions is when Mahinder allows his jealousy to engulf him completely, and he takes it out on poor Mahima. It is a scene that benefits from having Rao in the lead, as he smashed it out of the park here. In fact, the film is watchable purely for him. I believe this is the kind of role usual Dharma lead actors wouldn't have taken up, but Rao would easily eat it up, hook, line and sinker.

So it is unfortunate that the writing lets him down most of the time, like how it takes merely one speech from Mahindra's mother to make his character see sense. Zarina Wahab makes her thankless role (oh, I see the irony here) in the film worthwhile with that. Kumud Mishra is also fine as the clearly biased patriarch who jumps at any opportunity to sell more bats.

The finale revolves around a cricket match that tests Mahima as a player. Hindi cinema seems obsessed with seeing Australian players as the final foes in sports films. Since Mr & Mrs Mahi didn't get to bring Australians in the final match, the makers dressed up the rival Punjab team in yellow jerseys.

The match lacked any tension, and the audience predicted the outcome of each ball well before the film itself. With poorly edited shots that hardly make the protagonist break a sweat, I was left reminiscing about the time when Hindi cinema made good sports films with nail-biting finales. It seems Bollywood filmmakers have forgotten to pass on those skills from the 2000s.

Final Thoughts on Mr & Mrs Mahi

Mr & Mrs Mahi is a predictable and inconsistently executed film that fumbles in its attempt to blend sports, romance, and coming-of-age drama. Rajkummar Rao is in fine form, portraying a grey-shaded character, and Janhvi gets a good scene near the end, but neither their chemistry shines nor does the love story survive the lacklustre, contrived writing.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 31, 2024 10:23 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).