Singh is King (2008)

Directed by: Anees Bazmee | 135 minutes | action, comedy, romance | Actors: Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Om Puri, Kiron Kher, Ranvir Shorey, Javed Jaffrey, Neha Dhupia, Yashpal Sharma, Manoj Pahwa, Kamal Chopra, Sudhanshu Pandey, Sonu Sood, Ingrid Breitfelder, Scott Brewer, Avelino ‘El Rico’ Lescot , Brad McMurray, Chayan Sarkar

In the summer of 2008 the Bollywood film ‘Singh is Kinng’ reached a record number of cinemas in the Netherlands, the time has come to introduce Bollywood to the general public. King of action comedy Akshay Kumar and Bollywood beauty Katrina Kaif previously collaborated in ‘Welcome’ (2007); ‘Welcome’ director Anees Bazmee is also back to direct the popular actor and actress.

The story of ‘Singh is Kinng’ is not much. Happy Singh (Akshay Kumar) is sent out of his village to pick up old fellow villager and big criminal Lucky Singh (Sonu Sood) in Australia. First he accidentally ends up in Egypt. There he meets Sonia (Katrina Kaif), the woman of his dreams. When he eventually ends up in Australia with his friend Rangeela (Om Puri), he is accidentally chosen as the new “King” (king of the underworld). He decides to drastically change the way his criminal organization works. In doing so, he decides to help a woman whose daughter comes to Australia to marry her future husband. This daughter turns out to be Sonia and the love between the two slowly blossoms.

As always in Bollywood productions, ‘Singh is Kinng’ mainly revolves around the songs in the film. Striking is the use of western music. The soundtrack of ‘Singh is Kinng’ is a mix of traditional Bollywood music and rap, rock hard house and even a touch of Michael Jackson. American rapper Snoop Dogg also contributed to the soundtrack of ‘Singh is Kinng’, which is a distinct sensation during the end credits of the film. Thanks to its humorous approach, ‘Singh is Kinng’ is an entertaining film.

As is often the case with Bollywood films, the storyline of ‘Singh is Kinng’ sometimes seems bizarre to the western viewer, but those who can get over it will certainly enjoy ‘Singh is Kinng’. Akshay Kumar knows how to portray Happy Singh as a klutz, which you have to love. The jokes between him and sidekick Om Puri are especially worthwhile. ‘Singh is Kinng’ is pure entertainment thanks to the many jokes, the songs and funny action scenes. It would be nice if the film could indeed appeal to a larger audience in the Netherlands and thus open the way for more Bollywood films in the Netherlands.