Chandni Chowk to China

Welcome to the wonderfully twisted world of Chandni Chowk to China, a Bollywood spectacular that’s good enough to cross over to mainstream America. Here’s hoping that it finds the audience it richly deserves. The film stars Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar as Sidhu, a lowly cook in his father’s restaurant who is mistaken as the reincarnation of an ancient peasant warrior Liu Shengh by the representatives of an oppressed Chinese village. Armed only with the belief that he’s made for something better than life as a prep cook, and a potato bearing the image of the Hindu god Ganesha, Sidhu sets out to meet his destiny head on. What happens to him along the way is hard to explain, but a delight to watch. Those unfamiliar with the Bollywood style of filmmaking may have trouble understanding why the film switches genres so frequently. The actors can be in the middle of a heated discussion or an intricately staged action sequence and suddenly break out into an enormous musical number complete with Broadway-level choreography and costumes. But the great thing about Chandni Chowk to China is that you don’t have to know a thing about Bollywood to have a great time. All you really need to do is relax and let it happen. Don’t worry too much about the ‘logic’ of it all or over-think the story too much. Just let go of all your preconceived notions about what a movie should be and immerse yourself in what a movie can be.