Childhood friends Duggi and Montu, one a stage actor and the other a would-be filmmaker, both fall for Anjali when she returns from abroad, turning their friendship sour. Complicating things, two junk-trading brothers win a fortune and agree to fund a film and a play only if the leading lady marries them. With four men chasing one woman, the tangle spirals into farce before it sorts itself out.
Polam Pol arrived in February 2016 as part of the new-wave Gujarati comedy rush, a clean family entertainer from writer-director Tejas Padiaa. The story stacks four suitors around one woman: childhood friends Duggi and Montu, a stage actor and a wannabe filmmaker, both quietly in love with the returning Anjali, plus two lottery-winning junk traders who will only bankroll a film if its heroine marries them. The setup is farce by design, and the film knows it.
What it gets right is craft and cast. Reviewers singled out its production polish, the fresh use of Champaner and Ahmedabad's Jhulta Minara, and camerawork that made familiar locations look new. The performances carry it. Jimit Trivedi, fresh off Gujjubhai the Great, anchors the ensemble, and the theatre-trained supporting players bring comic timing that lifts even thin scenes. Jinal Belani drew notice as a heroine who felt natural on screen, a rarity the DeshGujarat review flagged approvingly.
The problems are length and laughs. At roughly two and a half hours the film sprawls, taking nearly an hour to reach its actual plot and lingering on scenes a sharper edit would have trimmed. For a movie sold as full-on comedy, the punchlines run thin, and the humour leans on the actors' spontaneity more than the writing. It borrows visibly from Anees Bazmee and Priyadarshan territory too. Still, it stays clean, never dropping to cheap double meaning, and lands as a pleasant one-time watch for families who want performance and warmth over belly laughs.
Verdict
A clean, good-looking Gujarati comedy that coasts on its cast's timing even as a bloated runtime and thin writing keep the laughs modest.
What works
- Confident, theatre-trained ensemble
- Clean family humour with no cheap double meaning
- Strong production polish and fresh locations
- Jinal Belani's natural screen presence
What holds it back
- Bloated at nearly two and a half hours
- Takes almost an hour to reach the plot
- Fewer laughs than the comedy billing promised
- Visibly borrows from Bollywood farces
Cast & crew
Writers: Tejas Padiaa
Music: Paresh-Bhavesh
Cast: Jimit Trivedi (Darshan (Duggi)), Ojas Rawal (Manish (Montu)), Jinal Belani (Anjali), Jayesh More (Mangilal), Prem Gadhavi (Bhikulal), Sunil Vishrani, Sanat Vyas
Producers: Gopal Dave, Sangeeta Milan Shah, Jatin Doshi, Nimesh Shah
Watch the trailer
Play the official trailer on YouTubeMore from Tejas Padiaa
More Comedy Gujarati films
Frequently asked
Is Polam Pol worth watching?
A clean, good-looking Gujarati comedy that coasts on its cast's timing even as a bloated runtime and thin writing keep the laughs modest. Kevu Che rates it 3 out of 5.
What is Polam Pol about?
Childhood friends Duggi and Montu, one a stage actor and the other a would-be filmmaker, both fall for Anjali when she returns from abroad, turning their friendship sour. Complicating things, two junk-trading brothers win a fortune and agree to fund a film and a play only if the leading lady marries them. With four men chasing one woman, the tangle spirals into farce before it sorts itself out.
What is the IMDb rating of Polam Pol?
Polam Pol (2016) holds an IMDb rating of 6.5 out of 10.