Welcome to Karachi : Spoof gone poof
Arshad Warsi has great comic timing. He is versatile actor too. He can deliver good performance if an author backed role is given to him. Unfortunately he rarely gets good scripts which can showcase his talents fully and give justice to them. He always tries to work in films which suits his style of acting but the writer/directors can not deliver what is promised on paper. “Welcome to Karachi” also isn’t an exception to this observation. It is a pity that such a good talent in comedy is wasted.
“Welcome to Karachi” starts on a good note. A young, stupid gujju boy, Kedar Desai (Jacky Bhagnani) wants to get American Visa by hook or crook. When he gets rejected second time even after changing his surname to Desai from Patel, his friend Shami (Arshad Warsi) gives him idea to go America by Boat. They both steal the Kedar’s father’s boat and leave the shore in pursuit of the land of opportunities. However, they get struck by cyclone and find themselves stranded in Karachi. What happens next forms the story of the movie.
The story is mostly dependent on stereotyping of Pak, Taliban, USA, India, Gujjus, etc. Pakistani stereotypes are used so blatantly that even we feel ashamed of the onscreen proceedings.
There are 4 writers (Kushal Ved Bakshi, Vrajesh Hirjee, Danish Hussain, Ashish R. Mohan) credited to the writing department proving that too many cooks spoil the broth. Though the idea looks promising, it did not get through in writing. Most of the gags fail, though some work. Dialogs work somewhere and many times they fail. So inconsistency is main feature in the writing.
Director Ashish R. Mohan could not salvage the ship. A Director’s main job is to make the right choices for the project and many of his choices seems gone wrong. It is evident from the ugly title graphics, low quality vfx, character introduction as the movie continues (as if it is a feature length trailer). The is a spoof on terrorism, wars and global affairs focusing mostly on India, Pakistan and Taliban. It had a good promise which remained unfulfilled. Ashish R. Mohan has a long way to go. Hope he gets enough chances (or better writers) to prove his potential.
Editing by Steven H. Bernard is inconsistent and could have been crispier. Music by Jeet Ganguly is lifeless. Cinematography by Mark Nutkins is decent. Casting by Rohan Mapuskar and Naila Mughal is fine. The actors performed well.
Performance by Arshad Warsi is good. He tries to save the film but it was out of his capacity. Jacky Bhagnani is always in the character of the dumb, stupid but good hearted Kedar Desai and he is earnest in his work. Lauren Gottlieb is wasted.
Overall, it is a good intended project which could not get the desired shape. However, few gags are good and there is enough which can keep you in your seat till the end.
Rating : 
Recommendation : Avoid it. Watch when available on satellite or home video. But if you enjoy watching stupidity with your group of buddies, you may choose to watch it.
