Inkaar
Hindi (U/A) ¬¬1/2
Cast: Arjun Rampal, Chitrangda Singh, Deepti Naval
Director: Sudhir Mishra
They joke, wisecrack and make jingles to sell toothpastes and condoms alike. Both Chitrangda Singh and Arjun Rampal are the cream of an ad agency where every great idea fetches a higher perch on the career ladder.
Chitrangda turns out to be a good climber and reaches within sniffing distance of her mentor and CEO Rampal.
Then she cries sexual harassment by him. The colleagues can't digest the allegation, as the two hotshots were an item once and had made some rustle under the sheets that got amplified as office gossip.
Sudhir Mishra's take on workplace ethics and egos makes the right noises in the beginning, but strays from the main issue of harassment as its two good-looking protagonists spend more time reigniting old sparks and inventing smarter innuendos.
The "probe" panel led by a social worker (Deepti Naval — all sarees and stern talk, making full sense) tries to link all hell and fury to a woman scorned, while Chitrangda sticks to her guns, blasting "consensual" theories being whispered around. The events unfold in flashbacks and, for a change, the songs respect the narrative.
Chitrangda is a real knockout as the "ambitious bitch" while Rampal excels as the alpha male oscillating between the victim and tormentor.
Inkaar doesn't take sides. Good. It would have been better had it entertained too.