- Director: Shashank Khaitan
- Cast: Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Rohit Saraf and Maniesh Paul
- Genre: Romantic-Comedy Drama
- Runtime: 135 minutes
In an era when Bollywood keeps trying to revive the charm of its 2000s rom-coms, Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari feels like a recycled wedding invitation — overdesigned, overwritten, and utterly forgettable. Shashank Khaitan’s latest outing attempts to blend romance, family drama, and slapstick comedy, but delivers none of them convincingly. The result is a hollow, confused film that hides its lack of substance behind gaudy sets, loud songs, and a desperate nostalgia for an era that doesn’t need repeating.
Plot
Sunny loves Ananya. Tulsi loves Vikram. Ananya breaks up with Sunny. Vikram breaks up with Tulsi. The families of Ananya and Vikram arrange their marriage. Sunny and Tulsi pose as a couple to rile their exes and thereby win them back. What happens next is the story you see on the big screen.
Performances
Varun Dhawan’s performance is painfully one-note — a mix of shouting, exaggerated facial expressions, and dated slapstick. It feels like he’s stuck in a loop of playing the same hyperactive lover-boy since Main Tera Hero. Janhvi Kapoor tries to rise above the material, but even her better moments are buried under a screenplay that treats depth like a distraction.
Sanya Malhotra, criminally underused, is reduced to a caricature of the “other woman,” and Rohit Saraf’s role barely registers. The supporting cast exists solely to fill up dance sequences and spout forced one-liners that don’t land.
Direction
Shashank Khaitan, who once gave us the charming Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, seems to have lost his touch. There’s no emotional center, no coherent arc, and no attempt at originality. The film seems more interested in referencing Bollywood classics (from DDLJ to Chak De India) than creating anything of its own.
Verdict
Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari is a textbook example of style over substance. It has the ingredients of a fun rom-com but forgets to add the soul. It plays like a parody of better films, stitched together with Instagram aesthetics and TikTok humor. For all its gloss, the film is ultimately empty. A forgettable affair that will fade from memory faster than the credits can roll.
Final Rating: 1.5/5
Watch it only if you’re a die-hard Varun Dhawan fan — or need a long nap in air-conditioned comfort.
