Review ‘Ishrat Made in China’: A complete laugh-riot targeted at the masses

If you’re attempting an action-packed comedy flick with a dose of romance, you need to get a few things right…

 

One, the film should make you laugh. As simple as that!

 

 Two, the action should be livewire. Ditto for the chemistry between the on-screen pair.

 

And Ishrat Made in China gets it right.

 

Ishrat Made in China is a smartly packaged entertainer, an unabashed masala fare that packs just about everything that the avid moviegoer expects from a film of this stature. Designed to woo the masses, the film leaves you beaming, breaking into applause on varied occasions, as the plot advances.

 

The film opens with the introduction of Ishrat (Mohib Mirza) the heartthrob of his college, the dream of every girl, but he likes Akhtar (Sanam Saeed) who is her confidant and biggest strength. Ishrat aims to make it big one day. He makes money by participating in donkey races (that’s the only thing he does best). Things take a turn when he heads to a donkey race in China to win millions of Yuan. As the story progresses, he begins to expose deadly secrets and finds himself in trouble. What happens next forms the rest of the film.

 

Comedy is a serious business and the audience has moved over from banana peel humor in movies. The comedy in Ishrat Made in China makes you laugh in most parts. Sure, there’re times when you feel that the humor looks forced (first half especially), but you don’t grudge it since Mirza’s intentions are crystal clear from Scene 1 onwards: Commonhh. Despite the blemishes, Ishrat Made in China is a full-on entertainer. One thing is for sure, you’d fall in Ishq with Ishrat and his antics.

Mohib Mirza also the (director) spirited execution of the subject forms another USP. His handling of the comic and action sequences deserves brownie points. The cinematography is first-rate. Music composers Shani Arshad, Simaab Sen, Sami Khan and Talha Dar deliver a charming album. ‘Tick Talk’ is the pick of the lot and the presence of leading actors Mohib and Sanam gives it an edge, while ‘Ishrat Aaya Re Song’ is lively and full-of-zest. The background score (Shani Arsahd) is electrifying. Dialogues (Ahsan Raza Firdousi) are excellent. The witty lines are written with equivalent flamboyance. The action sequences are, of course, the hallmark of the enterprise. Note the fight at the climax point, will make the masses go into raptures.

 

As for the performances, absolutely no prizes for guessing that it is the inimitable Mohib Mirza, who is the ‘captain’ of the ship. He has the maximum screen time and delivers a fine performance. He’s charismatic, emotes exceptionally well, and tickles your funny bone without making faces. It’s a fantastic performance all the way. Sanam Saeed continues to surprise. She surprised you in Cake. She surprises you again in this film. She scores in both emotional and light scenes. Also, Mohib and Sanam make a wonderful on-screen couple.

 

The next set of towering performances comes from Shamoon Abbasi and Sara Loren. In an exclusive interview with Fashion Times earlier, Abbasi stated that despite being offered to play the antagonist ‘Master Mangshi’ he choose to play Master BP as the character was very sweet. And we couldn’t agree more. He gets to play a great part and his comic timing is spot-on. There’s a lot to his character and his track than what was shown in the trailer and he’s particularly great in the second half.

 

It’s a great comeback vehicle for Sara Loren and she gives her best shot and delivers a heartfelt performance as Jia. Despite having limited screen time, Loren holds her own with her restrained performance.

 

The antagonist Master Mangshi’ aka HSY rocks the show and how! He impresses from the first scene itself. His voice and his look give the term ‘villain’ a new meaning altogether. He packs a solid punch in a role that seems tailor-made for him, a character that will remain synonymous with his name. Ali Kazmi gets limited scope and is decent. Shabbir Jan is good. Mani and Mustafa Chaudhry also do a fine job.

 

On the whole, Ishrat Made in China is designed to magnetize the masses in hordes. The accurate blend of action, romance, drama, and comedy, besides superlative performance by the entire cast, makes this film an immensely pleasurable and delightful movie-watching experience. If you savor typical masaledaar fares, this one should be on your have-to-watch listing for certain. Dhamaal entertainer!

 

Rating: 4/5 stars

You can watch Ishrat Made in China at a theatre near you. Please remember to wear a mask.

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