CINETALK

Treasuryvala) adding to the confusion, the movie starts meandering.

The writer’s intent about showing past love coming back in the protagonist’s life is understandable but somehow the final outcome isn’t engrossing enough.

Yes, the songs are soothing but they are so many and come in quick succession that they tend to become distracting after a while. Moreover, the proceedings cease to be gripping enough with the drama fast losing its sheen.

The silver lining here comes from the performances. Himesh shows improvement over his Aap Kaa Surroor and Karzzzz days and comes up with a natural act for most part of the film. Enacting emotional scenes is his forte, as evidenced in his countless music videos, and this is on full display in Radio as well. Watch out for the sensitive moments that he shares with both the women.

Shenaz as well as Sonal fit into their parts quite well. In fact they not just look good but also stay within their characters to come up with an act that is definitely better than expected from people who have just started off. Yes, they do become part of a couple of inexplicable and embarrassing scenes like the one where they start breaking the plates in a restaurant. Or when Shenaz dresses up as a clown. But leaving such aberrations aside, they do show sparks.

One can’t fathom though, the need to have Paresh Rawal in the narrative. He is completely isolated from the storyline and fails to give a final punch in the finale. His role seems to be a case of a last moment addition in the script. As a prank caller hired by the radio station, his jokes fall flat. And he doesn’t share a frame with any other actor even once.

The second half of the film doesn’t quite stand strong on its feet. A scene or two do bring in an emotional touch to the story but beyond that Radio doesn’t quite get the right tuning on. In the end, what remains with audiences is a good soundtrack and some performances. One can clearly sense that Himesh has made a sincere effort to stand tall as a leading man in a non-masala film like Radio He cannot be written off yet and has it in him to do more movies provided he gets a better platform.

Joginder Tuteja