Where’ve all the S’s gone
Shahid Kapur’s latest speech defect in Kaminey has made lisping cool

By Meha Mathur
F is the latest S! Believe it or not this is the latest buzz doing the rounds and anyone who has seen Shahid Kapur’s recent hit flick Kaminey will know what I am talking about. With Spiderman becoming Fiderman, the new rage of pronouncing words which have the alphabet ‘S’ has hit one and all. So much so, that Shahid Kapur has been rechristened as Fhahid Kapur and Vishal Bhardawaj, the director of the film, as Vifhal Bhardwaj by many.

Jab We Met famed Kapur who created a huge fan following with the film starring opposite Kareena Kapoor has been acclaimed for his flawless acting, both as a ruffian who lisps and a simpleton who stammers. You can’t doubt about his speech defect problem when he says “Main Fa ko Fa bulata hun” (I pronounce S as F) while he meant “Main Sa ko Fa bulata hun”!

While many parents might not have taken their kids to the theatres for this film as it is not meant for certain age group, the word’s already out that stammering and lisping are nothing to be ashamed of now. You have your favorite star, our very own chocolate boy turned macho man, Shahid as the icon. Whether it is the bad boy in the film who races against stallions or the good one, it’s the dialogue delivery throughout the film that has got great reviews and caught the attention of the film lovers and critics alike.
In an interview to a TV channel, Shahid disclosed how difficult it was during the shooting to maintain that lisping. One mistake and it meant retakes. And as someone quoted him as Bollywood’s new maverick, this young star in the acting world is sure to go places. It is his effortlessness, near to perfect portrayal of characters and not to forget his looks that has swept the audience off their feet once again.

Priyanka Chopra, the female lead in the movie also plays a girl who stammers but it’s only a pretension to woo the simpleton Shahid. A girl from the marathi heartland talking in the language, Priyanka has her share but is shadowed by Shahid’s dual characters.

Bhardwaj’s latest attempt has been doing well at the box-office too, a not-so-common-a-phenomenon, considering his efforts have been lazy propositions when it comes to doing business. While Makdi, Maqbool, The Blue Umbrella and Omkara were critically acclaimed they failed to rekindle the same flame at the box-office.

The music of the film, composed by the brilliant director himself, has been getting great response from the music lovers, especially ‘Dhan Tan Tan’ which is on the verge of becoming an anthem among youngsters.

The nonconformist director who is high on realism reportedly said that since pub songs make no sense to him and he is uncomfortable with them, Shahid and his friend lip sync the song in the movie as it is already being played in the pub. He has also said that the score ‘Dhan Tan Tan’ was originally for some tele film. Considering it’s all about catch-phrases these days, this score has already set a mark for the coming times.

While some may call the movie as a dark comedy full of action and violence with tinges of humour, all thanks to Shahid’s speech problem, the film has got recognition due to the superb acting of the lead artist and the music.