As Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal reunite for Welcome To The Jungle, here’s a nostalgic ranking of every film that brought Bollywood’s most beloved comic trio together.
Key Points
- Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal reunite for Welcome To The Jungle, marking their first collaboration in 17 years.
- The trio has appeared in seven films together, excluding their upcoming project and Shetty’s cameo in Welcome.
- This feature ranks the seven films that brought together Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal before their upcoming reunion.
We are not sure when we will get to see them wreak havoc as Raju, Shyam and Baburao Ganpatrao Apte, as Hera Pheri 3 once again seems to have slipped into limbo.
But fans need not feel disheartened.
For Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal are reuniting after 17 years for Welcome To The Jungle, an ensemble comedy directed by Ahmed Khan that releases on June 26.
Including Hera Pheri and excluding the upcoming Welcome To The Jungle, Akshay, Suniel and Paresh have appeared together in seven films (eight, if you count Welcome, where Shetty had a cameo playing himself).
Sreeju Sudhakaran ranks those seven films from worst to best (No surprises about which movie takes the top spot!)
7. Aan: Men At Work (2004)
Madhur Bhandarkar’s cop action-drama is notable for its exciting cast, featuring Shatrughan Sinha, Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Paresh Rawal, Om Puri, Raveena Tandon, Lara Dutta, Jackie Shroff, Ravi Kishan, Vijay Raaz and Irrfan Khan.
While the film does not make the best use of this collective talent, it remains engaging in parts largely because of it.
Unfortunately, if you are hoping to see the Hera Pheri trio work their magic here, that hope is short-lived.
Rawal’s character, who provides much of the film’s comic relief, dies around the halfway mark, while Shetty’s character is killed off before the third act.
Thankfully, Irrfan’s deadpan, scene-stealing sarcasm in the final stretch offers some compensation.
6. Phir Hera Pheri
Phir Hera Pheri was a bigger hit than Hera Pheri, but it is not a particularly good sequel.
The film certainly has plenty of funny scenes that work in isolation, but as a whole, lacks the cohesion and dramatic heft of the original.
Loud, farcical humour takes precedence, and there are simply too many supporting characters to keep track of.
It must also be said that while Hera Pheri gave almost equal prominence to all three protagonists, this sequel tilts heavily in Akshay Kumar’s favour (though it is still one of his funniest performances ever).
Paresh Rawal continues to be hilarious as Baburao Apte though he does go a little too loud at times, while Suniel Shetty’s Shyam is largely sidelined when it comes to delivering on the comedy.
5. De Dana Dan (2009)
Priyadarshan’s ensemble comedy sadly does not offer any scene featuring the trio, which is quite a miss for the Hera Pheri fans (except for the above still that appears in the song playing in the end credits).
Paresh Rawal’s track largely operates separately from the plotline involving the other two, even though the chaos eventually brings everyone together.
As an ensemble comedy, however, the film works better than the previous entry, with humour emerging more organically from situations rather than feeling like a collection of standalone gags. It is still a bit loud even for a Priyadarshan comedy though.
Akshay Kumar once again shows off his impeccable comic timing with a solid support from Suniel Shetty while Paresh Rawal is also quite entertaining as the greedy Chaddha.
De Dana Dan may not enjoy the iconic status of Hera Pheri, but as a reunion of the original team, it remains rather underrated.
4. Deewane Huye Paagal (2005)
Who knew Vikram Bhatt could make silly but entertaining comedies? This remake of There’s Something About Mary tones down the raunchiness and edgy humour of the original to create a more palatable Bollywood entertainer for the masses.
It is not a polished film. You can spot Akshay Kumar’s appearance changing from scene to scene.
Shahid Kapoor’s straight-man character is dull while Vivek Oberoi’s narrator quickly becomes irritating.
But the reason Deewane Huye Paagal still manages to work is the trio that made this list possible. Rawal, Shetty and Kumar are simply too good. Akshay, in particular, steals the show with his manic energy, wacky expressions and razor-sharp comic timing.
He is also responsible for inspiring quite a few memes, including the infamous ‘50 rupaye kaat overacting ka‘, even though that line is actually a product of the Mandela effect and never appears in the film.
3. Awara Paagal Deewana (2002)
Awara Paagal Deewana, which arrived before Deewane Huye Paagal, was actually the better Vikram Bhatt comedy featuring Kumar, Shetty and Rawal.
A remake of the Hollywood comic thriller The Whole Nine Yards, the film benefits from memorable characters with names like Guru Gulab Khatri, Yeda Anna, Manilal Patel and Chhota Chhatri.
At the time of its release, Awara Paagal Deewana was marketed more for its overdone action sequences, some of which were blatantly lifted from Hollywood films, including the famous lobby fight scene from The Matrix.
But it is the comedy that won the day when it came to the audience reception. The ensemble cast simply delivered big when it came to displaying excellent comic chemistry and near-perfect timing in delivering the zingers.
The biggest highlights are Paresh Rawal’s perpetually forgetful Manilal Patel and Johnny Lever’s stammering henchman Chhota Chhatri. Any scene featuring the two together is pure comic gold.
2. Mohra (1994)
Rajiv Rai’s action thriller is best remembered now for its chartbuster songs, including Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast, Tip Tip Barsa Pani and Na Kajre Ki Dhaar.
Mohra is an entertaining potboiler that pits Akshay Kumar’s honest cop against Suniel Shetty’s vigilante, who is manipulated into believing he is carrying out a righteous mission of revenge.
Paresh Rawal plays a corrupt policeman with a comic streak whose loyalties shift depending on where the power balance lies. Raveena Tandon looks stunning, while the great Naseeruddin Shah delivers the film’s most memorable performance as a ‘blind’ man with a secret.
Mohra is unapologetically a product of the 1990s, but that is also part of its charm. The eclectic cat-and-mouse game between the protagonists remains engaging throughout, while Shah’s negative performance elevates the material considerably.
1. Hera Pheri (2000)
Sorry, I am a boring man, which is why I have placed the most obvious choice at the very top. But can anyone really deny the iconic charm of Hera Pheri?
As a Malayali, I still prefer the evergreen brilliance of the Malayalam original Ramji Rao Speaking, which was inspired by the American television film See The Man Run.
Yet, I have to accept that Priyadarshan’s Hera Pheri remains one of Bollywood’s finest remakes which made the fans truly notice Paresh Rawal (who was mostly cast in serious or negative roles previously) can work wonders as a comic star.
Hera Pheri is not a perfect entertainer. Tabu deserved a far better role, and the film occasionally struggles to balance comedy and drama.
But once it finds its rhythm, there is no stopping it. The chemistry between Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal is effortless from the start and becomes even more enjoyable once the kidnapping plot kicks into gear.
More than two decades later, Hera Pheri remains the gold standard for Bollywood buddy comedies. Or even just comedies.
PS: If you check most of the comedies in this list, it is also important to note the crucial contribution of the late Neeraj Vora, who wrote the dialogues or screenplays of these films (except De Dana Dan) and even directed one of them (Phir Hera Pheri).
What’s even more intriguing is that Welcome To The Jungle has its story credited to him, which has certainly caught our attention.
Photographs curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff
