PremiumDhoom Dhaam review: Yami Gautam and Pratik Gandhi’s chase film runs out of breath
Yami Gautam and Pratik Gandhi-led Dhoom Dhaam is a wild ride that starts with promise but ends in a whimper.
Last Updated: 01.43 PM, Feb 14, 2025
Dhoom Dhaam story:
While hunting for the elusive Charlie, a shy momma's son (Pratik Gandhi) and a courageous wild child (Yami Gautam Dhar) embark on a night of wild adventures as they escape from vicious goons on their wedding night. They discover love and turmoil along the way.
Dhoom Dhaam review:
How do you define a modern Indian woman? Around two decades ago, Saif Ali Khan's character in Hum Tum believed that modern women drink coffee. However, a few years later, Konkona Sensharma's character defined modern Indian women in Laaga Chunari Mein Daag as entrepreneurs, career-defined females, ambitious, and a lot more.
Back then, people labelled women who drank alcohol and smoked cigarettes as having a bad character. In today's times, the narrative of a modern Indian woman has been defined as what we used to call a woman with "bad character" earlier. A rebellious woman with a modern outlook is someone who lies to their parents and parties, drives cars fast, fights men, can drink a bottle of wine in one go, and always carries a pack of cigarettes.
Movies have transformed the way society views women from a commercial perspective. On the one hand, a film such as Mrs. portrays a modern Indian woman who tries her utmost to challenge patriarchy but ultimately fails due to the rigidity of her family members, prompting her to leave her environment. Then, on the other hand, we have the character of Koyal, played by Yami Gautam Dhar in Dhoom Dhaam, who gets married to a coy Veer (Pratik Gandhi) only to show him on the day of the wedding that she is a rebellious woman who sneaks out at night and also has a wild bachelorette night while informing her parents that she is attending a Mata Ki Chowki.
These are starkly opposite women who have the same ideology: to survive in a mean world ruled by men, all you have to do is strive harder to be yourself without being judged and accepted in every possible way. But do we always need a monologue to do so? Wasn't America Ferrera's rant in Barbie enough for people to understand the frustration of modern women globally?
Well, this is my subtle rant before beginning the review of Dhoom Dhaam. The film, which is way shorter in length, shows a quick succession wedding between two opposites, Koyal and Veer, who don't even get a chance to talk to each other until they are left alone in a room post-wedding. Her sister interrupts them on a voice call, asking her vet husband for help with her pet dog.
However, this is just a minor hiccup compared to what comes in at large when two men barge into their hotel room and ask about "Charlie." Well, once you get to know the real identity of Charlie, which comes just a few minutes into the film, you will be smacking your forehead and then continue watching it.
To be honest, the premise of the film is quite intriguing and it did draw me in enough to watch it wholly. However, the incessant chase sequences will make you just say what Kareena Kapoor Khan says in Jab We Met, "Bohot ho gaya Babaji, ab boring bana do iss raat ko."
Koyal and Veer traverse the entirety of Mumbai in a single night, travelling from the suburbs of South Mumbai to the Powai area and ultimately arriving in Vithalwadi, located in the Thane district. Indeed, we observed that Mumbai was littered with broken roads and construction sites, to the extent that at one point I was concerned that it might start to rain. Thankfully, I managed to escape that other threat!
Rishab Seth helmed Dhoom Dhaam with a screenplay and dialogues penned by Aarsh Vohra and Aditya Dhar. The trio brings a story of chaos where the just-married couple keeps on running while they are chased by good and bad cops over "Charlie" without even knowing the intention behind it.
The chase rarely stops for the couple or viewers to catch their breath because it breaks continuity in many sequences. There are moments when these chasers turn up randomly and it's not even explained how they even get to know where Veer and Koyal are hiding. Did they put some tracker on them? Indeed, they could have made an attempt in some capacity.
In the journey, Veer discovers Koyal and her "real" identity, which he begins to judge until the rant comes his way from her. How can you judge when you never met your wife alone before your wedding? The film tries to make patriarchy the main focus instead of subtly presenting it.
While the film necessitates a deeper understanding of the relationships between the married strangers, the excessive use of alcohol, strip dancing, and the ex-boyfriend appear to be contrived, only serving to highlight a woman's backstory and elicit occasional reactions from the aloof man. Well, if there's a goody-good man, maybe we could also have gotten a glimpse of his backstory rather than making Gandhi the face of society who gets shocked by the mere presence of a rebellious woman.
Yami Gautam being the face of today's modern woman shows her wild side but with certain limitations. The actor gives borderline vibes of the iconic character Geet, which certainly has become a template for female characters. Well, we should just get over it! The fun she supposedly has is all about the reaction to "Why should boys have all the fun?" rather than bringing in some individuality per se.
On the other hand, Pratik Gandhi's constant reactions will crack you up instantly and that's what is expected from the actor of his calibre. But haven't we seen that back-to-back in 2024 with Madgaon Express and Do Aur Do Pyaar? Well, here we have the weakest character arc of all; it just becomes a role where he has offered nothing new and his incredible performance just couldn't save the film.
The supporting characters, including Mukul Chadha, Eijaz Khan, and others, are so negligible, just like how the lead characters run away from them, and they keep on popping up on screen with the same dialogues as if the tape recorder is stuck.
Dhoom Dhaam brought in a lot of potential and it does have laughable moments. I won't lie when I say I didn't laugh out loudly. But at the end of the day, it just became an "LOL," which has lost its importance in the world of texting anyway.
Dhoom Dhaam verdict:
Dhoom Dhaam sets off like a firecracker but fizzles out before the finale, leaving behind more smoke than spark. The film itself runs in circles—literally and narratively.