Cirkus (2022): Ranveer’s “Comedy Of Errors”

Twins are two unique souls united by birth. But what if, two identical pairs of twin brothers give rise to a Comedy of Errors? That’s right! Because that’s what happens in Bollywood’s new release titled “Cirkus”. Adapted from William Shakespeare’s “Comedy of Errors”, this comedy-drama has been co-produced and directed by Rohit Shetty. The film stars Ranveer Singh in a dual role.

Now the question is, will the theaters showcasing “Cirkus” be filled with the same levels of excitement as in a real circus? Let’s find out!

Cirkus (2022) Synopsis:

This is the story of two pairs of identical orphaned twins who got separated at birth. One of the pairs of identical twins were both named “Roy” (Ranveer Singh in a dual role) and the other pair of identical twins were both named “Joy” (Varun Sharma in a dual role). These two pairs of identical twin brothers were in an orphanage run by Jamnadas (Murali Sharma).

The identical twins got separated at birth in the most unusual manner. Jamnadas gave one Roy and Joy to a couple and another Roy and Joy to another couple. So now when they grow up, Roy 1 gets married to a girl named Mala (Pooja Hegde), and later finds out that they cannot conceive. Thus, Mala decided to adopt a child from the same orphanage where her husband Roy was separated from his twin brother.

In another scene, Roy 2 is in love with a girl named Bindu (Jacqueline Fernandez). When Roy 2 and Joy 2 visit the same city where Roy 1 and Joy 1 lives, their lives intertwined and a comedy of errors ensued. Watch till the end to find out whether Roy 1 and Roy 2 will be able to save their respective love lives because a dire misunderstanding follows them. Bindu’s father, Rai Bahadur (Sanjay Mishra), had seen Roy 1 with Mala and has mistaken Roy 1 for his future son-in-law, who is actually Roy 2! Rai Bahadur thinks that his son-in-law Roy 2 is cheating on his daughter Bindu when actually the one he saw was Roy 2’s identical twin brother Roy 1 with his wife!

Cirkus (2022) Official Trailer:

The Good:

Colorful Visuals

Cirkus is laden with colorful visuals, thanks to the awesome cinematography by Jomon T. John. I was startled by the variety of colorful costumes worn by the actors. Cirkus is a historical comedy, and I must say that the colorful old-fashioned 1960s costumes of the actors did amplify the overall retro essence of the movie.

Cirkus was shot extensively across locations in Indian cities like Mumbai and Ooty. As always, the breathtaking landscapes and scenic beauty of Ooty do add to the cinematic essence of any movie which is shot there.

Electrifying Songs

Check out the groovy tracks in Cirkus. The song “Current Laga Re” is absolutely high-voltage! In this track, Ranveer Singh can be seen dancing with his real-life wife Deepika Padukone who reprises her character from her 2013 film Chennai Express. Other tracks include “Sun Zara” and “Aashiqui” which are rhythmic enough to make you tap your feet to their beats. The choreography of these tracks is amazing and has been done by Ganesh Acharya.

Aptly Edited

Cirkus has been marvelously edited by Bunty Nagi. The scenes in the movie have been sequentially placed so as to minimize confusion in the humorous yet confusing story. Moreover, the editor has managed to keep the run duration to 2 hours and 20 minutes, and I have to agree to the fact that this is a considerable reduction of a massive plot whose original credits go to William Shakespeare himself.

Satisfactory Performances

I won’t say that the performances of the actors in Cirkus were great. In fact, the forced screenplay of Cirkus made their performances suffer. Still, the actors managed to carry out their respective roles satisfactorily.

I am not talking about just any Bollywood actor here. I am referring to the shining star, the “dynamic entertainer” of Bollywood, Ranveer Singh! You must be aware of his incredible performances in historical epics like “Padmaavat” and “Bajirao Mastani”.  This is actually the tyrannous emperor “Alauddin Khilji” of “Padmaavat” who gave nightmares to the audiences! If you compare his performance in those movies with this one, you will agree with me that Ranveer Singh has experienced a considerable downsize in his acting career. Nowadays, he has become more used to playing comical cheeky roles rather than serious, action-oriented, and intriguing ones which he once used to.

Varun Sharma who played the second identical twin pair has been seen in various comedy films since the last decade. He is used to playing supporting characters in films, maybe the hero’s friend or his brother. The reason filmmakers cast him is because he adds considerable humor to the script with his bizarre actions and chubby looks.

The lead actresses in Cirkus, Pooja Hegde and Jacqueline Fernandez, performed averagely despite their gorgeous looks. I would say, Cirkus actually lives up to its name! I am saying this because this comedy-drama comprises tons of actors and if I start naming them all, the list may end up in another three or four pages!

Actors in Cirkus include legendary Bollywood comedians like Johny Lever, Tiku Talsania, and Sanjay Mishra. Veteran actors like Murali Sharma and Uday Tikekar were also present in this movie. All the actors did carry out their respective characters to their full potential. However, certain shortcomings in the script and screenplay ruined their efforts and diminished the impact of their performances. In short, the actors aren’t to be blamed for the failure of this film.

Interesting Cameo Appearances

Cirkus has special cameo appearances of Bollywood biggie Ajay Devgn in the climax, and actress Deepika Padukone in the song “Current Laga Re”. Deepika happens to be Ranveer Singh’s real-life wife. These two special cameo appearances added glamour to the screenplay; a screenplay that was indeed irritating! if you ask me, why so irritating? Then check out my opinion on that in the next section.

Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone in the track “Current Laga Re” from Cirkus

The Bad:

A Forced Screenplay

The screenplay of Cirkus by Yunus Sajawal appears forced. I mean, a lot of unwanted comedy has been deliberately forced into the script. What the filmmakers don’t realize is that when you blend excessive unwanted comedy with a confusing plot, it can get direly irritating for the audience. So, this adaptive screenplay of Cirkus fails to live up to its promise of putting in healthy humor. Of course, comedy should be there. But putting in comedy where it is not required does spoil the show!

Here, Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors has been adapted to a script depicting a circus just to add to the humor. Upon becoming aware of the storyline, I feel that depicting a circus in this movie was absolutely unnecessary. Similarly, certain instances as well as characters in this movie have been forcefully added just to elongate the screenplay. In a scene, you will see Roy (Ranveer Singh) touching a live wire but he doesn’t receive a shock. Instead of him, his identical twin brother staying somewhere else receives the shock. Such scenes do add humor, but if you ask me, I would say that these are completely illogical and absurd.

However, there are some genuinely hilarious scenes in Cirkus like the one where the married Roy gets mistaken by his identical twin brother’s would-be father-in-law, Rai Bahadur as a cheater. In fact, he was with his wife then. But as Rai Bahadur’s would-be son-in-law was Roy’s identical twin brother, also named Roy, the grievous misunderstanding happened. The scene was actually funny.

Not So Pleasing Dialogues

The dialogues in Cirkus co-written by Farhad Samji, Sanchit Bedre, and Vidhi Ghodgaonkar are not at all appealing. The dialogues are supposed to be comical but they fail to create an impact due to the way they have been written and delivered. On a serious note, you won’t find them pleasing at all. They are just there for the sake of it.

The Verdict:

I think the main reason why Cirkus fails to appeal to the audience is because of its predictable and unoriginal plot. I say “predictable and unoriginal” as this movie is not only adapted from Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors but is a remake of the 1982 comedy-drama “Angoor“. And what’s more, Angoor itself was a remake of the 1968 film “Do Dooni Chaar“. So Bollywood, for decades, has been formulating movies based on the same plot. I doubt if, in the next 10 or 15 years, we will again see Bollywood come out with yet another movie that will be based on the same plot. The film took two years to be completed owing to the COVID-19 lockdown and restrictions. It finally was able to release on December 23, 2022.

To be honest, Rohit Shetty who happens to be a master action director in Bollywood has failed to create an impact this time. Shetty has directed some master blasters like Golmaal, Singham, and Simmba. But his direction in Cirkus is disappointing. I can’t blame him for this. When the raw material is bad, then the end product is sure to come out as bad! I mean, a mindless comedy can be healthy but if it is not backed up with some solid scriptwriting, matters do get worse!

Cirkus does have a happy ending with all misunderstandings resolved. However, the climax leaves the audience wondering if there would be a sequel that may come up soon. The ending shows the cast of the Golmaal film series (The four iconic friends, if you have seen the Golmaal series you would know them) coming to stay at Jamnadas’ orphanage. So will we see a sequel that will integrate the Golmaal franchise with this movie? Both happen to be Rohit Shetty’s work. It may be possible! Who knows?

As you can see, I have subtitled this review as “Ranveer’s Comedy of Errors”. You may wonder, why? The fact is that I believe, Ranveer Singh has done the biggest mistake in his career by transitioning himself to comical roles from serious action-oriented ones. And the truth is, we can see that for ourselves! One by one his movies are failing at the box office. His earlier comedy-drama “Jayeshbhai Jordaar” failed, and in a similar manner, “Cirkus” may suffer the same plight. I believe that Indian audiences are finding it real hard to accept him as a comical hero. But at the end of the day, I hope all goes well for this shining Bollywood star!