Too many cooks spoil the broth, goes the old adage. Well, it's almost similar here with too many concepts and ideas stuffed into a single production. Cricket is an addiction in India and there have been many cricket-based films earlier too like 'Iqbal' and 'Victory' which were stories about the triumph of strong will and glorious dreams. 'Dil Bole Hadippa!' too uses the backdrop of cricket, but this time the writer tries packing in more than just one aspect into the story - from gender bias to patriotism and a lot more - thereby killing the pace of the film completely. That's what is 'Dil Bole Hadippa's' most prominent problem.
The other flipside of the film is to expect the audience to accept the drama of a girl acting like a boy, that too someone as petite as Rani! Even if you are willing to overlook the fact (something that is highly improbable) that guys actually don't figure out there is a girl amidst them despite hugging her after every "catch", Rani looks too cute to be a man with her incredibly feminine voice and girly mannerisms.
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Coming to the plusses, 'Dil Bole Hadippa!' is actually not as bad if you can close your mind to several fallacies in the production like the ones we mentioned earlier. The film manages to rock a laugh out of you at least when Rani is around, and up to her pranks, posing like a Sardar. Her expressions are simply hilarious as the tiny, naughty Sardar she is made out to be. She once again lives up to the reputation of being a fine actress. Shahid takes the backseat throughout the film, and is rarely accorded as much or more importance than Rani.
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There's hardly anything worth mentioning about the rest of the characters who end up as props in a Rani-centric film. The opening sequences when Rakhi Sawant is shown swinging to the 'Kajraare' number (and she has two dwarfs enacting the Bachchans in the song from 'Bunty Aur Babli') is definitely too loud. The film can be classified "good" on the technical front. It has been shot very well, especially the cricket match sequences. The film is bright and colourful enough to pep up your spirits.
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The end in one sense is superb with the Shahid-Rani romance in full bloom in the final sequences. However, at the same time it gets too preachy and didactic with its messages on gender bias, et al. Final word? 'Dil Bole Hadippa!' is an average fare which will have to face stiff competition from 'Wanted', which clearly has an edge due its huge appeal to the masses.
