Fanney Khan
- Director
- Atul Manjrekar
- Studio
- T-Series FilmsRakeysh Omprakash MehraAnil Kapoor
- Release Date
- 2 August 2018
- Running Time
- 130 min
- Language
- Hindi
- Country
- India
- Budget
- ₹38.00 Cr
- Box Office
- ₹16.73 Cr
Review
Atul Manjrekar's "Fanney Khan" arrives with genuinely noble intentions—a story about a father's love for his daughter and the music industry's cruel indifference to talent that doesn't fit conventional beauty standards. The film's heart lies in exploring how bullying and societal judgment can suffocate artistry, and there's merit in that central premise. Anil Kapoor brings his characteristic earnestness to Prashant, lending warmth to a father's desperation, while Rajkummar Rao provides comic relief with reasonable restraint. The bones of this story—a struggling musician's sacrifices, a young girl finding her voice—could have made for something touching and meaningful.
However, the execution falters significantly where it matters most. The kidnapping plot, intended as darkly comedic, lands awkwardly and never finds its tonal footing; it's neither funny enough to work as comedy nor sympathetic enough to work as drama. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is wasted in a underwritten role that demands little beyond looking exhausted, and the film squanders the potential chemistry between her character and Rajkummar Rao's. More critically, the story loses sight of Lata entirely in its third act, reducing the supposed emotional center to a plot device. The music, ironically for a film about singing, is forgettable, and the screenplay meanders when it should converge, turning what could have been a poignant underdog story into a muddled melodrama.
"Fanney Khan" wants to say something important
Storyline
So there's this guy named Prashant who performs as a part-time singer in orchestras, and he's got this huge dream of making it big in the music industry. When his daughter Lata is born, he names her after the legendary Lata Mangeshkar, hoping she'll follow in that musical footstep. Years later, Lata grows up with an amazing voice, but she gets bullied because of her weight, which really holds her back from pursuing her passion.
Things take an interesting turn when Prashant's factory shuts down and he becomes a taxi driver. One day, he picks up Baby Singh, who's actually a massive Bollywood singing superstar, but she's completely burnt out and exhausted from her life in the spotlight. Prashant gets this wild idea to kidnap Baby so he can help launch his daughter's singing career, and he convinces his best friend Adhir to go along with this crazy plan.
What's funny is that while Prashant and Adhir are executing this kidnapping scheme, Adhir and Baby actually start becoming genuine friends. Baby opens up to him about her real name and her tough past growing up in an orphanage, and she starts to genuinely enjoy her time away from all the craziness of being a superstar. But then things get complicated when the media catches wind of what's happening and the police get involved in the search.
