I saw Dostana on a cold, rainy Thursday afternoon in December. As some of you know, the resident Indian movie theater is the ImaginAsian. This little refuge of mine is all the way across town but not far enough to justify taking a taxi. There is no direct subway route either, so walk I must. All of the horrid walking conditions were easily forgotten within the first few minutes of Dostana.You see, the opening song is "Shut Up and Bounce" starring a Miss Shilpa Shetty. She is always a delight and she definitely sets the screen on fire. But she is not the hottest thing the song has to offer. Oh, no, SUAB is an ode to the gloriousness that is John Abraham. Dostana pretty much made the ImaginAsian a sauna during its first two minutes and keeps the momentum going.
Starring John Abraham, Abhishek Bachchan and Priyanka Chopra, and with guest appearances by Boman Irani, Kirron Kher and Bobby Deol, Dostana is a rather racy comedy directed by Tarun Mansukhani With hit-and-miss music by Vishal & Shekhar, the movie has lyrics by Vishal himself, Anvita Dutt Guptan and Kumaar.
Kunal (Abraham) and Sam (Bachchan) are two bachelors living the easy life in Miami, meaning meaningless one-night-stands and mooching off friends for a place to live. When they're both evicted from their respective accomodations, they come to look at the same apartment. Except the landlady (Sushmita Mukherjee) says it's off-limits to them. Her niece lives there and she doesn't want her niece living with two men. So, they decide to pretend to be a gay couple, figuring who cares what the landlady and her niece think? Well, the niece turns out to be Neha (Chopra) and both guys start crushing on her while also keeping up the facade. The three become inseparable friends. But when Neha starts dating her boss Abhimanyu (Deol), Sam and Kunal try to wreck that relationship while also trying to woo Neha. 
Ladies and gentlemen, let me present to you one of the funniest movies of 2008. The situations in which these characters find themselves are ridiculous but not in an unbelievable way. The film is a lot of fun. Everyone looks like they're having the time of their life. Not only that, but the film is big on heart. That Neha, Kunal and Sam are best friends forever is totally understandable. The lead trio have a sizzling chemistry both in the fun scenes and in the dramatic ones. I got a little jealous of them. I would have loved to insert myself in Abhishek's place. Living with John and Priyanka? Whoa. I don't know what I would do with myself. Abhishek Bachchan gives a career-redeeming performance. He is funny and surprisingly good in the dramatic scenes. After a lacklustre 2007 and 2008, Bachchan closes out the year delightfully. A lesser actor would have been overshadowed by Abhishek but John Abraham holds his own. He has an electric chemistry with both his co-stars. One of my favorite scenes in the film belongs to the two of them. The Kuch Kuch Hota Hai scene is very romantic.
Priyanka Chopra shows us once again why she is the coolest of the cool. She's beautiful, funny and just a great performer. Bobby Deol is surprisingly good in this film. At first I wondered why he was chosen but his character could not have played without the breezy charm of Bobby Deol. The three older actors do well also. Sushmita Mukherjee is excellent as the eccentril Aunty. Boman Irani gives the caricature of the flaming queen some heart. But Kirron Kher gives a showstopping, downright hilarious turn in this film. She gives the film its must-see status.
The music of this film is okay but onscreen they look great. "Ma Da Laadla" is superbly funny and gives Kirron Kher the material she deserves. "Shut Up and Bounce" is sexy until Abhishek ruins it. "Jaane Kyun" shows the bonding process of the 3 friends very well. "Khabar Nahin" and "Kuch Kum" are well-done montages of love and sadness, respectively. But my favorite video is "Desi Girl" which is a well-choreographed dance video. Priyanka looks stunning in her sari.
Dostana is one of the hottest movies in the winter season and not just because of the glorious John and the marvelous Priyanka. This movie is a must-see comedy with good intentions. The title means "friendship" and I guess underneath all the homoerotic comedy, this movie is really about the importance of having good friends in your life. Dostana rates a 9/10. 
