NEW DELHI: AFTER tickling the funny bones of their fans with Hera Pheri, Garam Masala and Bhool Bhulaiyaa, the hit pair of director Priyadarshan and actor Akshay Kumar is back for the sixth time with yet another light-hearted outing, Khatta Meetha, which releases this Friday.
While their previous films were slapstick comedies, Khatta Meetha takes a dig at the corruption and bribery. "Our country is said to be a growing superpower with the fastest growing economy, but we still do not have good roads because of corruption in our system. This film is a message to people involved in the system...," said Akshay.
Produced by Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd and distributed by DreamWorld Searchlight Pictures, Khatta Meetha is a remake of Priyadarshan's 1988 Malayalam film Vellanakalude Naadu. It will also launch southern actor Trisha in Bollywood. The star cast of the film also includes Makrand Deshpande, Johnny Lever, Rajpal Yadav, Aroona Irani and Milind Gunaji.
Akshay's character in Khatta Meetha is modelled on R.K. Lakshman's iconic Common Man cartoon character. The movie revolves around a struggling road construction contractor, Sachin Tichkule (Akshay), who dreams big but his dreams never come true as he doesn't have enough money to bribe the 'babus'. To make matters worse, the new municipal commissioner turns out to be his ex-girlfriend Ganpule Madam (Trisha), who now hates him.
"It's my first Hindi film and I can't expect to have everything that appeals to me. It's definitely not a film where I am singing and dancing around trees. But it's good enough for a launch and Priyan has projected me very well. Akshay's comedy would be the highlight of the film," Trisha had told IANS.
The movie has had its share of controversies too. Akshay found himself in the midst of a furore after he visited the ailing Laxman. Some believed it was a promotional tactic for his film. But Akshay later clarified saying he was invited by Laxman's family.
Khatta Meetha has also made headlines over a controversial song titled Bullshit, which takes potshots at corrupt politicians. However, the actor said, "We are not taking names of any individual or political party in the track. We are just commenting about corruption."