As Cocktail 2 approaches, we take a look at Director Homi Adajania’s slim but intriguing filmography.
Key Points
- Homi Adajania is a choosy filmmaker, having directed only five feature films and one web series in over two decades.
- Cocktail 2, which releases on Jun1 19, features Shahid Kapoor, Kriti Sanon and Rashmika Mandanna in the lead cast.
- Homi made his debut with the 2005 black comic thriller Being Cyrus; his biggest hit has been Cocktail.
Homi Adajania is quite a selective filmmaker.
Despite having over two decades of experience behind him, the director has made only five feature films and one web series (Saas, Bahu Aur Flamingo) to date, with another film arriving in theatres in the coming days. Perhaps he simply enjoys taking his time, alternating between his two passions: Filmmaking and deep-sea diving.
Or perhaps he is waiting for the right story to lure him back onto a set.
Which is why there is considerable curiosity is us around Cocktail 2, and what prompted him to make a follow-up to his 2012 hit Cocktail with an entirely new lead cast comprising Shahid Kapoor, Kriti Sanon and Rashmika Mandanna.
Before we get our answers on June 19 when the film releases, Sreeju Sudhakaran dives into the highs and lows of Homi Adajania’s compact filmography and ranks his films from weakest to strongest.
5. Murder Mubarak (2024)
Where to Watch: Netflix
Murder Mubarak is a whodunnit based on Anuja Chauhan’s novel Club You To Death.
The murder mystery revolves around an elite club where the body of a gym instructor is discovered, turning every member and employee into a potential suspect.
The film boasts an impressive ensemble cast including Pankaj Tripathi, Dimple Kapadia, Karisma Kapoor, Sanjay Kapoor, Vijay Varma and Soha Ali Khan among others, and most of them shine in their respective roles. For a while, the movie balances black humour and suspense in a reasonably engaging manner through the dual investigative tracks.
Unfortunately, a weak third act undoes much of that goodwill. The reveal never feels entirely convincing, particularly the motive behind the crime, while the performance associated with the culprit further weakens the impact.
‘Killer’ climax, this ain’t!
4. Cocktail (2012)
Where to Watch: Z5
Cocktail marked an intriguing collaboration between screenwriter Imtiaz Ali and Director Homi Adajania.
The film represented Adajania’s departure from the black comedy space that defined his debut and his move towards more mainstream storytelling. As a romantic entertainer tackling themes that some audiences found surprisingly mature, Cocktail is breezy and entertaining in its first half before becoming more conflicted and predictably melodramatic in the second.
For a film that initially appears eager to challenge conventions, it eventually falls back on familiar tropes involving the ‘wild girl versus homely girl’ dynamic, with the hero predictably choosing the latter.
Saif Ali Khan felt somewhat miscast, Diana Penty went too low-key but the undisputed star of the film was Deepika Padukone as the free-spirited, convention-breaking Veronica.
Pritam’s superb soundtrack remains one of the film’s greatest strengths.
It will be interesting to see what Adajania has concocted with Cocktail 2, especially with a screenplay by Luv Ranjan.
3. Angrezi Medium (2020)
Where to Watch: JioHotstar
Angrezi Medium became the final theatrical release of the great actor Irrfan Khan before he sadly passed away a month later.
In what effectively serves as his big-screen swansong, Irrfan is immensely endearing as a middle-class father determined to fulfil his daughter’s dream of studying abroad.
The effortless way he navigates both the comic sequences, alongside a splendid Deepak Dobriyal, and the emotional moments with a spirited Radhikka Madan almost makes you forget that this spiritual sequel never quite reaches the heights of its predecessor, Hindi Medium (2017).
The film is also less effective as a social satire. Kareena Kapoor Khan’s heavily publicised casting feels under-utilised given the limited material and screen time allotted to her, though her scenes with Dimple Kapadia possess genuine warmth.
Yet for all its flaws, Angrezi Medium leaves behind one of the most poignant final images in recent Hindi cinema: Irrfan smiling softly out of the open window of his car, eyes closed in contentment. We miss you, Irrfan.
2. Finding Fanny (2014)
Homi Adajania has explored romantic dramas and commercial entertainers, but black comedy remains the genre where he appears most at home.
The ‘home’ is also where his characters effortlessly switch between Hindi and English without it ever feeling forced.
Finding Fanny (how that name got overlooked by the Censor Board is a comedy in its own right) is a delightfully eccentric road-trip comedy about a motley group of individuals who set out to reunite one of their own with the lost love of his life.
Along the way, they make mistakes, confess long-buried secrets, mend broken relationships, rekindle old emotions and even accidentally kill someone.
Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia and Pankaj Kapur are outstanding as the older members of the group, particularly Kapur as the shrewd and manipulative artist Don Pedro. Deepika Padukone and Arjun Kapoor also hold their own alongside the veterans. And keep an eye out for Ranveer Singh’s blink-and-miss cameo.
1. Being Cyrus (2005)
For all the selective choices he has made over the years, Homi Adajania’s finest work remains his wonderfully offbeat debut.
Being Cyrus is a black comic thriller centred on a mysterious young man who becomes entangled in the lives of two interconnected Parsi families.
The film is packed with sharply written characters, deliciously dark humour and several unexpected twists. There is even an undercurrent of psychological surrealism as the narrative gradually ventures into the protagonist’s troubled psyche.
Saif Ali Khan delivers one of the most restrained performances of his career, deftly capturing the deceptively timid yet deeply dangerous nature of Cyrus. The supporting cast is equally impressive, featuring superb performances from Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia, Boman Irani, Simone Singh and Honey Chhaya.
Here’s hoping that the director returns to his fave genre after Cocktail 2. Of course, even if that means we have to wait for five more years.
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff
