Delhi Belly - Sh!t happens (like a work of art)

Having hated the pissing-farting-shitting humour in films like Dumb & Dumber, There's something about Mary and even 3 Idiots, I got into seeing this film with not much hope of even liking it. After all, the entire plot of the film is revolving around someone getting diarrhea as the title and the tagline so proudly proclaim.

It does begin pretty disgustingly. Three youngsters living in conditions that can only be described as absolute squalor. They are fast asleep as the camera lingers lovingly on roaches, butt cracks, toilet bowls, unwashed utensils with congealed leftovers, and more of the like in their shithole. I was wondering if I should be looking for humour in these sordid visuals. But soon humour itself found me. With the entry of the girlfriend of one of those, the three are forced to get up. And once the dialogue starts, there's absolutely no looking back.

The three main characters are simply superb. Each having enough to do and each doing it brilliantly. Even the supporting cast in whatever they have to do have delivered par excellence. If everyone just does a brilliant job, then credit has to be given to the direction. The music score is effective enough to work as almost another character in the plot.

Delhi Belly is definitely not for the prudes and I can imagine certain generations turning up their noses at the language and the visuals depicted. But this is what it is in the real world out there and the actors portray their characters in exactly the same manner.

What works for the film is the plot and the pace. The plot simply breezes along at a pace that makes sure you're kept wanting for more. The length and no-interval format work perfectly for it. The writing is one of the best that I have come across since a long time. That is the real hero of the film.

Don't expect meaningful cinema here. Expect an all-out comedy. But for enthusiasts of what works and what doesn't work in a film - this one would be a brilliant case to study. There's a song in the film that is titled: 'I hate you and within brackets: like I love you'. Likewise, this film is simply 'Mindless Crap and within brackets: that has been mindfully crafted'.