Today, when fundamentalism is one the rise, we need more films like Dharam Sankat Mein to remind us that harmony and tolerance are the need of the hour. That we are the same beneath the façade and that the stone I throw at my neighbour might boomerang towards my own house…

Dharam Sankat Mein had quite an uphill task of balancing comedy and the religious sentiments of its audience. It succeeds fairly well – the jokes are in good taste and the film presents the hypocrisy in blind belief, rather than faith per se. Both Hindu and Muslim customs, two polar opposite sides of the spectrum, are made fun of with equally measured, over-careful restraint. Gujarat’s ban on alcohol gets a subtle dig.

Dharam Sankat Mein has many, many flaws, not the least of which are incredible plot twists (particularly at the end) and the ghastly performances delivered by the actors playing Dharam’s wife and son. While it keeps the audience hooked until interval, the second half of the film meanders into listlessness and struggles to keep up the energetic pace it had initially.

…is a very dull fare and its business prospects will be no better.

Humorous in parts, the film tries too hard to strike home the point.