In the opening credits, Sajid Khan pays tribute to Kishore Kumar, Jim Carrey and Peter Sellers. It takes barely a few minutes of “Humshakals” to find this claim to greatness by association both arrogant and audacious. The movie is best avoided.

Juvenile humour and racist remarks aside (which Humshakals has plentiful) this film assumes watching mentally unstable people and their loony behavior is entertainment. If it were, mental asylums would charge a price of admission. But Sajid Khan chooses to ignore any such argument. Because everything’s possible in slapstick.

…a boring, silly and infuriatingly long film. So, if you thought Sajid’s ‘Himmatwala’ was the worst movie ever in Bollywood, then you are wrong. The title has now been handed over to his latest attempt at slapstick comedy.

If you’re thinking of watching Humshakals, here’s a suggestion. Don’t do it. There are better things you can do with your money and being swallowed alive by a python is less excruciating than watching Sajid Khan’s latest attempt at making a movie.

Humshakals is funny only in parts and boring, by and large. Too farcical and repetitive and resting on an implausible premise, it will fail to make its mark at the box-office. Considering the investment of the distributors, it will entail them heavy losses.

Sajid Khan has declared in every available forum that his movies are for audiences rather than critics (whatever that means). The same audiences booed his last offering, Himmatwala, out of the cinemas. If there is something to relish in Humshakals, it is the opportunity to sharpen weapons and words. It’s been a while since there’s been a movie this hatchet-worthy. For that, the team behind Humshakals needs eternal gratitude and continued support.

Humshakals should set several online forums on fire, with topics ranging from “Is Humshakals Really Worse Than Himmatwala?” to “Saif Ali Khan’s Mid-life Crisis – Desperate For A 100cr Hit” to “Must Sajid Khan Get To Make Films Only He And His Friends Enjoy?”

If you plan to spend money on Humashakals, though, there’s a song created only for you: “Hum paagal nahi hai bhaiyya. Humara dimaag kharaab hai (no translation required).”

If you want to test your patience then there cannot be a bigger examination than this two and half hour of mindless comedy, (read ‘tragedy’).

If you are willing to suspend belief for nearly three hours, then this mad bunch may make your day. But for others, it’s just torturous. At some point in the movie, we saw a DVD of Himmatwala (Sajid’s recent box-office debacle) being displayed as a weapon of torture for mentally unstable inmates who break hospital rules. Shouldn’t Humshakals feature on that list too?