Hollywood's brilliant 2006 film, Little Miss Sunshine, seems to have inspired Mahesh Manjrekar's latest Marathi film, De Dhakka.
Those who have watched the Oscar-winning film will know the story of the Marathi film. Here, we have the Jadhav family from Kodoli village in Kolhapur district. Makarand Jadhav (Makarand Aanaspure) is motor mechanic, totally engrossed in inventing a fuel-saving part for vehicles. He has sold six acres of his ancestoral land for this invention for which his drunkard father Suryabhan (Shivaji Satam) scolds him often. Makrand's family consists of his son Krishna (Saksham Kulkarni of Pak Paka Pakak fame) grooming for wrestling, daughter Sayli, who is a natural dancer, his wife Sumati and his brother-in-law Dhanaji (Siddharth Jadhav), a kleptomaniac but good-natured youngster.
The family is a dysfunctional one. But when Sayli wins the district level dance competition and is invited for the Mumbai finale, the family starts coming together. They start a journey towards Mumbai and towards each other.
Mahesh and Abhijit Deshpande have adapted the Hollywood story very well to rural Maharashtra. Hrishikesh Joshi has penned fitting dialogues in rural gavran boli for the Jadhav family.
Actors Makrand Aanaspure, Siddharth Jadhav and Shivaji Satam carry off their roles effortlessly.
Director duo Sudesh Manjrekar and Atul Kale have tried their best to repackage Little Miss Sunshine in this Marathi film. De Dhakka has fun, drama and sentiments. Unfortunately, it all seems superficial. They have missed the bus -- or should we say tumtum -- where entertainment is concerned. Next time, they should present some original ideas.
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