"Dharam Sankat Main" is a combination of smart story, crafty direction, smooth dialoges and inspirational acting skills. Mr Paresh Rawal has once again touched the hearts of his fans with this extra-ordinarily staid, divisive and appealable performance. The movie is a continuation of sensitive cinema in India and marks the culmination of religious myths and beliefs. When at the age of 55, Paresh Rawal comes to know that he was a Muslim by birth, his agony, helplessness and distress is beyond control. He then decides to find his biological father with the help of his Muslim Neighbor Lawyer Friend (Anu Kapoor). During the search, Paresh comes across so many hurdles both domestically and religiously. When he finds about his father, he goes to visit him but the 'Molana' of the Orphanage(Where his father is living ) refuse to allow him to see his father being a 'Hindu'. The 'Molana' asks him to become "Muslim' first and then see his father as a condition. Perplexed by the situation, he decides to take help from his lawyer friend (who is a Muslim) to learn Islam. From here on starts a dual problem for him. His son is forcing him to go to 'Mundir' so that he can win the heart of her girlfriend orthodox Hindu father and the pinch to meet his father pushes him to adopt Muslim rituals and methods. During the hunt, he encounters a procession that is agitating against Muslims where he burns a 'Muslim Cap' to show his son his Hindu Image and this starts a wave of aggression against him by the Muslims. Ultimately, he ends up in a court where he admits that he is Muslim by birth and it is the 'Molana' of the Madrassa who is not allowing him to see his father because he is 'Hindu' and this caused him to learn Muslim rituals. The whole plot revolves around Paresh Rawal and he creates his persona throughout the movie through his comic timing and natural acting. Paresh Rawal 100% justifies his character and delivers his best. This film is another addition to his sublime acting career and a continuation of "Oh My God" extravaganza. A thumbs for the whole team and a salute to Mr Paresh Rawal Skills with a kiss to Anu Kapoor being so nice and hilarious in the short role!!!
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altaf4204914 September 2015
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dineshprakash10 April 2015Director Mr Fuwad Khan work is technically OK. He prefers lots of unnecessary movement in takes but I heartily appreciate him for keeping his vision very clear about this sensational issue. So, he kept writers group very focused about his wants. The Urdu fonts used in credit and title are creatively overboard. I got it while watching the film otherwise I was unable to get it. You can easily get the feel that it is written by more than one writer, actually there are four here. Due to this movie is not seamless. You enjoy the movie in bits and pieces. Over all writers Sanjay Sharma, Alpesh Dixit, Vijay Desai and Vedish Jhaveri work is good. They are excellent in dialogues but average in screenplay. Parallel cut of protagonist learning religious rituals is realistic, funny and intelligent but snatching file in orphanage office is typical filmy. There is one great shot used as metaphor, which is riding motorcycle by protagonist in three different looks, which reflects that common person is being sandwiched between religion. I loved this one. Then visualization of protagonist that he is approached by another religion is irritating. The main drawback of this film is less emotional quotient. The family bond is not established well, even the love track is bad. Both these notes are the soul of movie but due to not established well, you feel that why is he doing all this? Movie takes a slow start then grabs pace, again slows down after interval then picks up. Pre climax is slow, climax is average. The excuses made by protagonist time to time by covering his lie is cute and fresh i.e coming in Father gate up, excuse of wearing a particular cap. Over all you enjoy the movie. Performance wise Naseerudin Shah as Neelanand Baba is excellent in his brief role. He takes every word to a different level. Annu Kapoor as Nawab Mehmood..... is very impressive. He touches your heart by putting the right amount of emotions in words. Paresh Raval as Dharmpal is great. Murli Sharma as Imam is very good. One song "Allah Hoo.." is good and have great lyrics.
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namashi_112 April 2015An official remake of the 2010 British comedy film titled The Infidel, 'Dharam Sankat Mein' is a well-intentioned, honest film, but sadly, its not very entertaining. Reason? The half-baked Screenplay, which appeals only in bits.
'Dharam Sankat Mein' Synopsis: At the age of 55, a Hindu man discovers that he was born Muslim and adopted by a Hindu family. Chaos follows...
'Dharam Sankat Mein' has a terrific premise & to an extend, the film works. The narrative is nicely paced until its first-hour, where its protagonist gets into a series of unexpected events. But, the same can't be said about the preachy second-hour. All of a sudden, this light-comedy becomes a drama about the Hindu-Muslim conflict & the depiction of god-men in a bad taste, seems to be getting repetitive now. First OMG, then P.K & now 'Dharam Sankat Mein', have been primarily based on religion & god-men. The only difference between the previous 2 films, were, that they were extremely well-made, but 'Dharam Sankat Mein' falls short on expectations.
The Screenplay begins with skill & even the dialogue are clever, but the second-hour is strictly a no-no. Fuwad Khan's Direction is fair. Cinematography is standard. Editing is fine. The Songs, however, add nothing to the narrative.
Performance-Wise: Paresh Rawal can never be doubted. And although he has enacted a similar part in OMG before, the screen-legend enacts the central part with amazing ease. He's delightful all though as the man in question. Annu Kapoor, also, is in fantastic form. His scenes with Paresh, work very well. Naseeruddin Shah, as an exaggerated god-man, hams. His performance stands out like a sore thumb.
On the whole, 'Dharam Sankat Mein' is certainly made with noble intentions, but as a cinematic experience, its strictly okay! -
Finally after it official release 2 weeks ago DSM releases in Vancouver.
Dharampal (paresh rawal) is a nice and contented man but he hates his Muslim neighbour Nawab (annu kapoor) for obvious reasons. One day, he discovers an affidavit in his dead mother's locker where he discovers he is a Muslim by birth and an adopted child. He takes the help of Nawab to locate his real parents and the local Mullah (murali sharma) sets a condition that he must learn the ways of a devout Muslim to see his father. On the other hand, Dharampal's son is a staunch follower of Neelanand Baba (naseeruddin shah) and he wants to impress his girlfriend's father who is a staunch Hindu so he compels Dharampal to learn the ways of a proper Hindu. What happens from there forms the rest.
The director has come up with an eye opening storyline and while the presentation was rich, the narrative was quite absorbing. The dialogues were well written. The script was above average and the screenplay made it lot better. The background score was melodious and three songs were worth watching. Cinematography was the main strength to this film. Editing was crisp. Costumes were well designed to suit the backdrop while the art department was majestic. It was Paresh Rawal's show all the way and he was superb. Naseeruddin Shah was excellent. Annu Kapoor was awesome. Alka Kaushal made her presence felt. Murali Sharma was impressive. Others did their bit as required and added value.
Any film which has to do with religion and sentiment is always sensitive but it takes good sensibility to shape it in the right manner and a dose of entertainment. In this movie, the first half goes about with elements of drama, some humor and some intense moments. The interval bang was interesting and the second half takes the required momentum with its share of twists and turns.The films minus is that it has hangover of films like OMG and PK, though different in many ways, the nostalgia factor does hinder at times, and a more rational climax would have done wonders.Overall, this is a movie which must be watched not just for its entertainment but also for the rational perspective it offers to all groups of audience.
3.25/5* or 6.5/10 -
sidhartharajak29 January 2016SCREENPLAY- The movie has some turns & twists but most of these are predictable & the movie can not be considered as compact.
DIALOGUES - Dialogues of the movie are not impressive excepts the dialogues of Paresh Rawal & Annu Kapoor, even Naseeruddin Shah is not looking
comfortable with his dialogues.
MUSIC - Music was handed over to new face like Meet Bros Anjjan,Sachin Gupta,Jatinder Shah,Kaptan Laadi are failed make any impact but "Tu Takke Tu"
song was in the top lists of radios for a while.
ACTING - Paresh Rawal was the "One Man Army" in the movie who took this plot into a new level and not even a single time he has disappointed his fans in this
movie. Annu Kapoor made justice to his role & proved himself once again. Naseeruddin Shah was lesser than both as per as the acting, only because the role
doesn't suits him.
DIRECTION - The movie is directed by a newly introduced Fuwad Khan and he has done a brilliant job in this movie as he has a good experience as a cinematographer
in the movies like Saaya,A Wednesday,Gandhi To Hitler,Raat Gayi Baat Gayi etc.
DRAWBACKS - The first half was more interesting & have turns and twists but the second half is not as impressive compared to the first. The climax is the main drawback of the movie as it doesn't have any realistic logic behind it & the audience doesn't except that type of climax in the end after so
wonderful story.
MY VERDICT - I think u should watch the movie at least once as there is no scope of getting bored & Paresh Rawal should be appreciated for his brilliant work. -
path_to_parth12 November 2020Half of the movie focuses on how graceful and deeply meaningful islam is a d how ridiculous n stupid hinduism is.
I wonder, how would a realistic version of this could be. For example, you can show that some non-hindu is trying to learn prayer n all (like julia roberts n all), n how halaala is done, terrorist camps are there, a boy doesn't get his love due to religious differences, ending up shooting that girl and zakir naik preaches people.
Anyways, reality is seen on TV n this is a classic example of overcompensating in hope of image makeover. -
ahmedmaher9610 April 2015one the best comedy movie this year paresh rawal awesome comedian and this movie is super you should watch 9/10 awesome superb great awlaaa paresh rawal fans if u like oh my god u like this movie i love comdey movies At the age of 55, a Hindu man discovers that he was born Muslim and adopted by a Hindu family.Religion and the extremism around it has been a favoured topic for many filmmakers in Bollywood. The latest to join the group is director Fuwad Khan whose film 'Dharam Sankat Mein' features Paresh Rawal, Naseeruddin Shah and Annu Kapoor in lead roles.
A tad similar to Rawal's 'OMG: Oh My God'. 'Dharam Sankat Mein' revolves around a Hindu man who goes through an identity crisis when he discovers he was adopted as a son in a Hindu family but was born in a Muslim family. The journey starts with finding his real father.
The film has already courted controversy due to its religious connotation. -
nairtejas11 April 2015If one looks at the number of Bollywood films that are being churned out about religion, piousness, and god-men, most deal with thwarting/satirizing the ideologies of faith and religion like OMG! Oh My God! (2012) and PK (2014). Dharam Sankat Mein promises a good theme but ends up confusing itself with its preachy message.
The story about Dharam (Rawal) who wakes up one day to find that he was born to a Muslim couple and was adopted by his Hindu parents is a clever start. And when he learns that his biological father is still alive, breathing, he decides to meet him. But is accosted by the aged man's caretaker to practice Islam so that he doesn't offend his father. Even this is acceptable, but the drama that follows and the way that everything is depicted is full of flaws and cringe- worthy.
If the makers wanted us to take the drama seriously, they could have polished it with doses of critical, thematic representations. Of course when you satire, seriousness is a collateral damage, but making Rawal fool around just to induce humor is some embarrassing tripe. Running around offices, stealing documents is not the best to way go about it. While the antagonist (Shah) brings back the nightmarish memories of MSG (2015), one can predict what's gonna happen and that is why PK is such a bad movie. It preaches, with no consequences.
One will also think why and how an agnostic person suddenly becomes so conscious about religion. No, not because of the obvious reason in the pot, but because of poor writing. The writers clearly have forgotten to base the primary character on something credible. The drama becomes tedious and deafening when Rawal goes on soul- searching, simultaneously practicing Islam and Hinduism. Annu Kapoor is a catalyst in the film who is an advocate in the film but carries out the job of a priest. It addresses issues like blind faith, religious differences, and conversions, but the problem is it shouts on your face. A few chuckles is all that the film offers, and if you (choose to) manage to pass the first half, second half will be easy.
The casting and performance is bad. Shah could've been replaced, while Rawal is the only thing that could salvage the drama which tears down to a substandard comedy. Ugly camera work and dialogs that are awkward do not support the trembling premise.
BOTTOM LINE: The film could have been better for the makers' intentions were wise - to satirize the plight of a man who is caught between the crossfire of two big religions. Unfortunately, the development and execution falters to make it just short of satire. 3/10 - below average.
Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES -
Vivekmaru452 June 2015Love of humanity follows no caste or creed. The main message of this beautiful film emphasizes this. The central character of this film Dharam Pal(Paresh Rawal) finds out upon the opening of a safe deposit box left by his late mother - that he is a child adopted from a Muslim couple.
Having been raised as a Hindu for so long, this comes as a rude awakening to him. He is left in a moral dilemma - whether to confide in his wife or not. He opts not to tell his wife, but confides his secret to his next-door neighbor Nawab Mehmood Shah(Anu Kapoor), who is a lawyer by profession. Nawab Shah helps him to find his real biological father.
Upon learning that his father has been found and is seriously ill, Dharam Pal rushes to meet him, but he is stopped by the Imaam who is taking care of his father.
He tells Dharampal that if his father saw that his only son has been brought up as a non-Muslim, it could cause severe damage to his health. Therefore, he tells Dharampal to learn how to become a true Muslim and come back to meet his father once he is ready.
Watch this excellent film to find out what happens next...
The film also stars veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah in the role of Neel Anand Baba.
Paresh Rawal Films To See: Woh Chokri, Sir, Sardar, Naam, Kshana Kshanam (1991), Money (1993), Money Money (1995), Govinda Govinda (1994), Rikshavodu (1995), Bavagaru Bagunnara (1998), Shankar Dada M.B.B.S. (2004), and Teen Maar (2011), Shiva (1990), Tamanna (1996), Chachi 420 (1997), Hera Pheri (2000), Phir Hera Pheri (2006), Deewane Huye Paagal (2005), Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007).
Anu Kapoor: Utsav, Mr. India, Tezaab, Chameli Ki Shaadi, Arjun, Ram Lakhan, Main Azaad Hoon, Ghayal, Yodha.
Naseeruddin Shah: Tridev, Woh Saat Din, Pestonjee, Mirch Masala, The Perfect Murder, Hum Paanch, Masoom, Jalwa, Paar, The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen(LXG), Khamosh, Hero Hiralal, Khoj, Vishwatma, Mohra, Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyoon Aata Hai, Sarfarosh, Chinagate, Sir, Panaah. -
sofia55531 August 2018Just like many other movies, the plot of this one could fit an hour long movie instead of dragging it for 2 and making it feel like torture. Unfunny jokes and over the top "acting" by the main character's son makes me not want to watch another movie for a while!
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cooldwijen2 March 2021Another movie where religious divide is shown and laughed at while preaching the message of religious harmony
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faisalfaves8 September 2018These types of movies which are mostly shot outside then inside amazes me, plus the story is very good. Simple and good. Sometimes movies like this are real gifts. Everybody acted great. Watch it!
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bobbysing1 August 2016Hindi film industry is known to follow the running trend blindly, so here is another of those noble attempts in the newly found genre of 'religious-political satire' rediscovered post the big success of OH MY GOD! and PK. The word 'rediscovered' is being used here as the genre was always there in our cinema with films such as DHARAMPUTRA(1961), YAHI HAI ZINDAGI (1977) and more but rarely used till it was re-presented in an entertaining as well as enlightening form again in the recent years.
Coming to the latest release DHARAM SANKAT MEIN focusing on an important and burning debate that whether religion depends upon the birth or the family bringing up the child since his early childhood, the film is no doubt a brave and thought provoking attempt by its debutant director Fuwad Khan in all respects. But if only he could have stayed with the basic subject without going into the already exhausted plot of fake babas and their influence on innocent people, the film could have been another eye-opener for all those fanatic practitioners of various religions unarguably.
Revolving around a middle aged Hindu person who shockingly finds out that he was actually an adopted boy and a born Muslim, the film is an official remake of British comedy THE INFIDEL (2010) wherein the Muslim protagonist happened to be a born Jew. Now though the idea seems to be quite fresh and novel in the first look, it interestingly remains an innovative extension of many lost and found formula Hindi films only, wherein the heroes after getting lost in the childhood, get adopted and then brought up by different families practicing distinctive religions like in Manmohan Desai's AMAR AKBAR ANTHONY.
Putting it more specifically, it can also be said that DHARAM SANKAT MEIN in fact begins from where films like DHARAMPUTRA (1961) end when the lead character gets to know his real identity and religion belonging to a different family. But then the major difference here lies in the treatment which in the present times tends to become all comical instead of getting serious or deeply introspective. DHARAM SANKAT MEIN begins superbly with a scene straight away mixing Hindu, Muslim and Punjabi communities together in just 2 minutes and then its truly a treat to watch the exceptional actors Paresh Rawal and Anu Kapoor together on the screen for its next hour. The director along with his dialogue writer and actors very bravely and carefully executes many sensitive scenes related to the different traditions or religious prayers and for that they certainly need to be praised whole heartedly. For instance, as Anu asks Paresh to come into the car, Paresh questions "Kyon Musalmaan Hun Isliye?" To which Anu replies, "Nahin Tum Pareshaan Ho Isliye....."
In short it's a completely enjoyable film till the intermission with an interesting story progression and many socially relevant scenes. But as always the same cannot be said for its second half since the team is not able to maintain the quality of content and pace moving into all weird and avoidable directions in its concluding hour. Post intermission, focusing more on the fake baba (poorly played by Naseeruddin Shah) and forcibly added social-political games once again leading to a court room, the film falls apart badly and offers nothing new to the audience strongly reminding them of both OH MY GOD as well as PK in exact terms. Though few well written scenes do keep coming in at gaps in its final hour, but overall DSM completely turns into a lousy sequel of the two films mentioned above towards the end and the viewer doesn't leave the theater thoroughly impressed or entertained ruining the fine buildup made by its initial hour. Particularly when a (sanskrit) song erupts all of sudden sung by Naseer and later an utterly silly connection revealed between a Punjabi pop singer (Gippy Grewal) and the fake Baba (Naseeruddin Shah), also making a clear indication towards another Punjabi music industry icon who was allegedly caught for "Kabootarbaazi" (illegal immigration) a few years back.
In the technical department, DSM has a decent soundtrack with two catchy Punjabi based songs and one well written-composed track, "Main Kis Mitti Ka Jaaya Ve" inserted perfectly where required. Both the background score and cinematography help the film a lot to get into that pensive mood, editing makes it move at a good pace only to get disturbed by an amateurish climax, whereas the dialogue writers keep coming up with great one liners constantly till the end.
In the performances, Paresh Rawal seems to have achieved mastery in such similar roles and thus he is right there at the top with a flawless portrayal. But the one who leaves you asking for more is Anu Kapoor, once again reminding the industry about his unexplored talent not given enough chances to deliver many possible path breaking performances. Their scenes together simply become the backbone of the film along with praiseworthy supporting acts coming from Murli Sharma, Alka Kaushal and more. However the major spoilsport among these all remains the hamming act of Naseeruddin Shah, probably due to an over the top performance demanded by the director. In fact had his character not been given so much footage in the second half, the film could have reached much higher status in terms of satire as well as the message stored for the society.
Overall, DHARAM SANKAT MEIN can be seen once for its subject and all 'Anu-Paresh' sequences alone, crediting the makers for their courage shown in taking up a satirical comedy project based on such a sensitive subject in the present scenario involving 'The Original Religion'. -
The film is about a person raised as Hindu, who discovers he was born Muslim. Its always difficult to present a film, which deals with sensitive topic such as religion. Its remarkable that the film appears, very much justified in its approach. The story of main character swings as a pendulum to find a balance between both religion's, his family and quest to discover his biological father.
The film has a very good approach to the conclusion it wants to convey to audience. There are humorous factors to which a person can relate to, if not all of them. Various element's such as friendship and family values are presented well.
I would recommend this film to every fellow human.
rating: 7.5/10 -
rspks27 January 2022A good start but gets silly as the movie proceeds. The story is crap and illogical, has many flaws and loose ends. This is just another propaganda garbage !!!
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nnk-3999011 April 2020Paresh was the backbone of this show & I expected Shah's role to be bigger but it was very small .
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udkadam2 April 2020Really Good story and good message from movie to understand where is heaven ? ..its your home.
Good acting by Paresh Rawal and Anu Kapoor.
Must watch. -
mitulkathuria29 September 2023This movie is a complete propoaganda with a complete bias. The situation is completely unrealistic, with no connect to the realistic world. Such a waste of time. Acting by Paresh Rawal is impressive, but storyline, cinematography, direction is completely lousy. I would never recommend this movie to anyone. Better to save 2.5-3 hours of your life than to see this unrealistic movie.
This movie is a complete propoaganda with a complete bias. The situation is completely unrealistic, with no connect to the realistic world. Such a waste of time. Acting by Paresh Rawal is impressive, but storyline, cinematography, direction is completely lousy. I would never recommend this movie to anyone. Better to save 2.5-3 hours of your life than to see this unrealistic movie. -
usamafarooq13 April 2015What a great comedy movie after some months.. The film revolves around a Hindu man (Paresh Rawal) who goes through an identity crisis when he discovers he was adopted as a son in a Hindu family but was born in a Muslim family. The journey starts with finding his real father.
It is the first time a Bollywood movie has 3 National Film Award and Filmfare Award winners in its main cast. Viacom 18 Motion Pictures launched an extravagant teaser campaign to promote the movie. Using Naseeruddin Shah's character of Neelanand Baba, they created pseudo religion called Neel Dharma. Neel Dharma had its own website, Facebook page and Twitter account. Dharam Sankat Mein also used WhatsApp in its mobile promotion where subscribers received updates on the movie from the first person account of Neelanand Baba -
malik-9842020 May 2022Where did they get this bullshit Muslim from doesn't know how to pray and drinks *scotch* the movie was a waste of time don't ever watch it it is utterly pointless.
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ramaragavendra18 January 2016This movie I played as casual watch; but while watching it made me to feel worthy of the movie.
Movie starts with a brahmin family man, how he lives in the society; and all of sudden he realized that he is an Islamic person by birth and grown as Brahmin. Movie shows that he tried to see his father and how he faces all the problems; at the end, he met his father and he pulled out the back ground plot of a swami ji and family unites again, and thus movie gets over.
I enjoyed the Paresh Rawal acts, he did it very well. His humorous speech and his facial expressions are awesome throughout the movie and made me to watch twice. Some of the comedy scenes are awesome and scored 100% marks (especially he himself gets confused how to greet the hindu priest while seeing with the mixed thinking he is being an Muslim).
Please watch the movie and you will reveal the above said lines.
Thanks, Simply the Subbu ! -
indianature5 December 2015I bought the DVD of Dharam Sankat Mein because frankly it was going cheap!
It turned out to be a very entertaining watch. Paresh Rawal is of course excellent in these type of roles.
The film though humorous and downright hilarious in parts, has an underlying serious storyline of the emotional upheaval faced by a person who discovers he is adopted and brought up in a faith different to that of his birth. This movie also shows up the goodness and the flaws of people of different faiths, essentially conveying that we are all as good or as bad as anyone else regardless of our religion.
Films like this should be screened free all over India. Paresh Rawal is a BJP MP in real life and the message conveyed through this film will spread a very positive message of tolerance towards all faiths.