There was a time when critics half-heartedly reviewed Hindi remakes of Hollywood films. But now, there are more remakes than original stories in Bollywood. So, one just has to sort of ignore the references to the original and watch the new version as a standalone product.
But Leena Yadav's Teen Patti heavily borrows from 2008's Kevin Spacey-starrer 21, which in turn was based on a book, Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions by Ben Mezrich.
Amitabh Bachchan plays Mathematics professor Venkat Subramaniam who is invited by another great mathematician and magician, Perci Trachtenberg (Sir Ben Kingsley) to a casino in London to discuss his thesis. The film moves into flashback.
Subramaniam, a teacher at B.I.T., does not get along with his dean (played by theatre guru Barry John) and is on the verge of losing his job as his papers are not being published. Dejected, Subramaniam is trying to put his mind back to work, when a pop-up on his computer entices him to play a game of teen patti or black jack.
Subramaniam soon realises that if he applies some math, and knows the cards of any one player, he can predict the winner. He decides that this 'theory of probability' will be the topic of his next paper. He tests it again with a young prof Shantanu Biswas (Madhavan) and a group of students comprising Aparna (Shraddha Kapoor), Siddharth Bajaj (Siddharth Kher) and Bikram (Dhruv Ganesh).
Shantanu convinces Subramaniam to test it on real situations. And so the gang plots and plans their strategy. Each member takes on a different name and disguise for safety. Soon, they start trying out the theory at dingy gambling dens.
But after getting caught in several dangerous situations, Subramaniam decides to put an end to it all. It's a phone call from a blackmailer that makes him continue playing and winning.
Meanwhile, richie rich classmate Abbas Sheikh (Vaibhav Talwar) follows the group. He shows them more money and takes them to high society gambling dens. Caught in the web of their habit, the gang has no option but to keep it on. It's not about the professor and his theory anymore.
Things get murky from then on. Everybody suspects the other, and greed, lies, fraud and betrayal take over their lives. Each of the players gets involved in his or her alternate identity to such an extent that their real identity is lost. This leads to more complexities and tragedies.
The film suddenly turns a bit abstract in between, which takes it a bit off track. Like the relationship between Bikram and his roomie, bordering on the homosexual. Is that for the firang audience? Or just to show Bikram as the most emotional of the lot?
It's strange that basic morals and the voice of one's conscience are ignored by these 'needy' young folks. Kind of hard to digest that these bright, young students are only after money. Aren't most students on scholarship or paying off loans? Don't most belong to the middle class?
Siddharth Kher and Shraddha Kapoor are likeable as Sid and Apu aka Bonnie and Clyde. Both actors are to watch out for. Shraddha especially was cool, and could do well if groomed by her dad Shakti Kapoor and aunts Padmini and Tejaswini Kolhapure. The other newcomers, Dhruv Ganesh and Vaibhav Talwar are also good. Vaibhav displays cool confidence, required for his rich guy character. Raima Sen as Shantanu's fiancé hardly has a role. Madhavan as the young prof with grey shades is at his best.
Bachchan as Subramaniam is cool as the dejected ol' prof, who talks to Albert Einstein's picture every time he's in distress. His character is positive as against the grey of Kevin Spacey in 21.
But the chemistry between Sir Ben Kingsley and Bachchan leaves a lot to be desired. No powerhouse performance together here. Also, we would've loved to see a game or two between the two geniuses in the end.
The special appearances of Ajay Devgan, Shakti Kapoor and Jackie Shroff add nothing to the film. Also, at one point, Devgan calls Bachchan 'Krishnamurthy'. He is Subramaniam.
Teen Patti starts with English dialogues, and ends with them. It's a stylish film, though it goes wrong in the end. It's made for urban, multiplex audiences but even those might not be able to appreciate the good points if the proceedings don't engross them. How much it'll be appreciated abroad is tricky, too – people will not want to see another 21, which was an average film by any standard. Amitabh Bachchan and Ben Kingsley are the only ones to pull the crowds in, who will be disappointed.
Verdict: A stylish attempt definitely, but it goes wrong horribly towards the end. Such big money and great actors are not put to optimum use, thanks to a flawed script.
Rating: 2.5/5 (extra 0.5 for style)
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