Save for a few moments of inspired lunacy provided by Vinay Pathak, this is one bumpy ride you don’t need to take. I’m going with two out of five for director Shashant Shah’s ‘Chalo Dilli’. After some 36 hours on Rajasthan’s dusty roads, Lara Dutta doesn’t have one hair out of place or even a slight lipstick smudge. This is that kind of movie!

A sentimental climactic twist ends up being surprisingly not schmaltzy, and gives an interesting touch to ‘Chalo Dilli’. It could have been, though, shorter and crisper.

Two strangers on such a journey can make for one too many films: from Mr And Mrs Iyer, on the riots, to Jab We Met, a romance. This one falls into neither. It’s just banal, belaboured, contrived concoction that’s just not funny; certainly not fun.

See it if you adore either Lara Dutta or Vinay Pathak. Or else give it a miss.

Chalo Dilli strains hard to be uplifting and poignant but it doesn’t quite make it. I’m going with two stars.

Watch Chalo Dilli for its mildly interesting first half, but leave during the interval. If your company forces you to stay on post-interval, don’t be surprised if you find yourself praying for the sweet release of death.

On the whole, Chalo Dilli is an entertainer but with limited appeal. It will remain an ordinary fare at the box-office.

With lack of engaging moments, CHALO DILLI eventually turns out to be a tiresome ‘journey’.