Forrest Gump is a 1986 novel by Winston Groom. The title character retells adventures ranging from shrimp boating and ping pong championships, to thinking about his childhood love, as he bumbles his way through life. This book was adapted by Tom Hanks’ “Forrest Gump”, which has been reviewed extensively as a centerpiece movie for decades. In it’s Indian adaptation—”Laal Singh Chaddha”, offers an Indian retelling  of this classic movie by Paramount.

Laal (Aamir Khan) recounts his life story to passengers on a train. He grows up bullied because of his leg braces, despite his protective mother (Mona Singh), but he befriends a classmate, Rupa (Kareena Kapoor Khan), and later falls in love with her.

Comical fortuity transpires when Laal inadvertently becomes a track-and-field star, inspiring a key signature dance, then rescues his frenemy during a mountain clash, and earns millions producing underwear. The famous box of chocolates from the OG  is refashioned as golgappas (a crisp fried savory treat).Directed by Advait Chandan, the integration of disturbing Indian historical events get a restorative encapsulation where Laal shows the power of empathy at the Kargil war, while the shooting of erstwhile Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the riots of 1984  also find their way into Laal’s life (Laal is Sikh but only barely grasps these violent events.), however the script makes a very deliberate attempt not to make it political.

 While Forrest Gump endeavored to have its character interact with a troubled history, Laal Singh Chaddha is pleased, to let its character be a reflexive manifestation. As if simply having him near history when it happens is good enough.

Rupa’s journey is drastically different in this version of the story, abstaining from the subtextual commentary provided by Jenny’s travels through the underground in the original in favor of a simple girlfriend-of-a-gangster tale.

Through no fault of Kapoor’s, Rupa’s arc is almost completely flat, eliminating one of the most fascinating facets of the original film.

Khan’s Laal is also a much broader version of Gump. Rather than Hanks’ forthright depiction of a man with a low IQ, possibly somewhere on the autism spectrum, Khan plays Laal as a caricature of a rationally incapacitated protagonist.

This is an extraordinarily lazy adaptation and direction from Kulkarni and Chandan. Most of the discourse is lifted word for word from the original; minor changes exist, but only when completely necessary.

Aamir Khan is 57 years old, and he spends a hell lot of time in this movie playing Laal in his 20s therefore being digitally de-aged in most of the scenes to make his face and body look younger and body frame more youthful. A lot of the footage looks green screened though.

Laal Singh Chaddha is a feel-good film just like its predecessor, featuring two of Bollywood’s biggest stars, and based on one of the most beloved films in history, but it is a lazy remake.

HERE IS THE TRAILER

Though Satyajit Pande’s cinematography showcasing the vast and diverse landscapes of India is absolutely stunning, it isn’t enough to save this mawkish disarray.

Between the sterilized adaptation, the direction that seems satisfied relying on original shot pans, this movie by Khan, basic ambiance of its classic original