OMG 2 review: Akshay Kumar-Pankaj Tripathi's social drama is a disjointed attempt at addressing a crucial issue

2/5

Kanti Sharan Mudgal (Pankaj Tripathi) is a simple man, a devoted follower of Lord Shiva, a loving father, and a spouse in the satirical dramedy OMG 2. One day, Vivek (Aarush Varma), his son, is expelled from school for alleged immoral behaviour. After speaking with his son, Kanti realised that his son had been misinformed and misguided. Kanti, overwhelmed by his loss and his inability to solve the situation, packs up his family and prepares to leave town. However, some sort of divine intervention (Akshay Kumar) helps them deal with their problems. Then, in a dramatic courtroom scene, Kanti vows to take on everyone responsible by forcing comprehensive education in schools.

At the beginning itself, there's a scene where a doctor (Brijendra Kala) explains to Kanti Sharan Mudgal (Pankaj Tripathi) how an overdose of Viagra landed his son Vivek (Aarush Sharma) in the hospital. There, the explanation becomes uncomfortable but important, betting on the fact that Kanti has understood how to deal with this matter. He doesn't make a hullabaloo about his son growing up and indulging in masturbation, as the doctor also requests that he become a friend of his to make things smoother.

This establishes the fact that sometimes a parent has to become the teacher and explain to their child, which the whole world refuses to do. So, why do you need a God or the messenger of God here to make things right? My only issue with this film before and after watching it is the presence of God as an advisor to talk about an important subject like sex education, which is still considered taboo in the country.

The first instalment of the franchise was entirely dependent on an atheist filing a case against God due to an "Act of God," destroying his source of income. So, it makes sense that the presence of a celestial being is important to take the story forward.

My prejudice with the film was proven right because here's a terrific storyline that should be a must-watch for many but turns out to be just unnecessary because a celestial being is forced to come in to take the story forward. I wish the comparisons would have ended here, as the 2012 film has recall value even now, given the relevant points being put across by an atheist questioning religious practises.

The film starts on a high note, with a helpless Kanti deciding to fight the case against the education system and prodding them to make sex education a subject on the syllabus. To fight against this petition, enter Kaamini Maheshwari (Yami Gautam), a sassy lawyer whose background score is quite similar to that of Gabbar Singh in Sholay. Her menacing act works to an extent; however, the fight just loses its meaning in translation. Kaamini's discussion of why Vivek should remain suspended due to an alleged "vulgar" act in school just takes a turn, and she starts making a point of masturbation being a sin and blasphemy. Soon after, we see "spokespersons" of different religions calling out Kanti for being immoral and saying that sex education cannot be implemented in schools.

The whole point of the case then and there gets nullified as the video that led to Vivek's suspension is leaked, which itself is a punishable offence. A private video made public due to which a student's dignity is questioned and affects his mental health is a crime, which is not even mentioned during the whole case. A "vulgar" act happened in the bathroom of a school; since when did cameras make their way to a private place like a bathroom? This itself should have been the first round of the case, which could have saved more time by making more relevant points on sex education.

Amit Rai, who is also the writer of the film, made this big mistake that could have altered the film's path altogether. However, that's not the only thing that didn't work for me. As mentioned earlier, Oh My God! is not a forgettable movie, and every scene that Umesh Shukla created turned out to be iconic. In that case, if Amit Rai was also planning to make original content, he had no right to end the film the exact same way because he didn't have anything left to pad it up.

OMG 2 on OTT: Here’s where you can watch Akshay Kumar-Pankaj Tripathi's social drama after its theatrical run

Giving credit where credit is due, the weak script gets uplifted by the brilliant performance of Pankaj Tripathi. The actor, with a straight face and emotionally welled-up eyes, fights for his child and, through the process, also educates himself on how sex education is a necessity. The actor, of course, gets the best lines and also clap-worthy moments, but those are just solo moments as a performer, and the storyline doesn't support them.

The bigger problem is also that the dialogues are in pure Hindi, which everyone would not understand. If there are subtitles during the screening, well and good; otherwise, you might be scratching your head and assuming what those dialogues meant.

For Yami Gautam, it's definitely a brave attempt, given that there are many scenes where she is the solo woman in the frame and portrays a strong individual who is not getting intimidated in any way. On the contrary, she scares people around with her tough questions. However, the questions stop making sense altogether after a point in time, and so does her character arc.

Talking about Akshay Kumar, the actor's presence has a background score with the sound of a damru, and he shows his anger just like Lord Shiva is touted to be. However, his limited presence does the best work, but that could have been the whole film. If it was a human presence being a catalyst to the story, in the form of a lawyer or relative, that would have helped the story establish itself better, but definitely not as a celestial being.

It seems like Amit Rai got this gem of an idea to make a film about the prevalent topic of sex education in India, but how did that make it into the OMG franchise, and why? Even I wonder why. A solo film, being a courtroom drama, could have worked to a great extent, but that's where the film loses its charm in the first place.

ALSO READ: Pankaj Tripathi on OMG 2 getting an 'A' certificate: Only regret is that the message meant for kids aged 12–17 will now be deprived of it

OMG 2 is quite similar to how a kid in school is made to write an assignment on a simple topic, but they end up writing five pages, thinking quantity over quality.