Jun 26, 2026 9:39am IST
‘Welcome to the Jungle’ Review: This Akshay Kumar-starrer is Cheesy, Slapstick, Even Silly and It All Works
Brand “Welcome” (2007 & 2015) has stood the test of time and is still one of Akshay Kumar’s funniest franchises. Anees Bazmee directed the previous two films, while Ahmed Khan helms “Welcome to the Jungle” (“WTTJ”). Everything else remains unchanged. A huge star-cast, madcap situations, and lines/scenes that may not be designed to offend, but in all probability, might. And yet make you laugh, while all the time questioning your reaction.
“WTTJ” is Borat, minus the satire and the message. There, Sasha Baron Cohen is trying to make a mockumentary; here, the dozen or so characters are trying to shoot a film. There are jokes on black people and senior citizens. A character with weak eyesight, another with speech impediment – they all exist as material for the jokes. Often coarse and infantile, penned by the late Neeraj Vora, “WTTJ” doesn’t take itself seriously, and expects nothing less from its audience. Here is a film that’s absurd, outrageous and lowbrow. It caters to the basest denominator, while alienating anyone looking for logic and sense, and yet makes you laugh out loud.
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The premise is preposterous, but the film’s plebeian charm is inexplicably irresistible. At any given time, there are so many characters on screen that you can’t possibly keep track of actors who go missing mysteriously, only to appear later. Akshay Kumar plays a deliciously ridiculous character – a flop actor trying to make a comeback. He is redefining what a Hindi film hero should look and act like – while surrendering completely to the role of a has-been with gusto. Suneil Shetty and Arshad Warsi more than make up for the missing Majnu Bhai and Uday (Anil Kapoor and Nana Patekar) in the franchise. Shetty plays his part with crazy conviction. Warsi, Johny Lever, Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda and the gorilla are in their natural habitat; but the curious case of Daler Mehndi in this Jungle can’t be questioned enough. Baddie Jackie Shroff with crazy eyes is winning.
The leading ladies have ‘pretty’ little to do. Jacqueline Fernandez does a fine job of impersonating Katrina Kaif from “Tees Maar Khan.” To highlight that she is dumb, she is also a blonde. And to underline the low character’s low IQ, she is frequently addressed as “Dumb Blonde” more than a few times. Disha Patani’s contribution is grooving to three songs. Lara Dutta Bhupathi comes for a few scenes and disappears without warning. Raveena Tandon gets a well-defined part and she makes the most of it.
Tusshar Kapoor shines as Akshay’s secretary/manager. The two highlights of the film are Farida Jalal and Kiran Kumar. Their bits are so funny that despite being stretched and overused, it’s still somehow effective. The Mahabharat scene is a huge highlight. There was spontaneous applause in my theatre.
The tagline of this film could well be: Don’t think, just laugh. Ahmed Khan got the memo and he managed to pull off this crazy adventure with an enormous cast, while maintaining the film’s tempo and madness.
“WTTJ” is the best dumbass comedy I’ve seen in a while. It’s intentionally immature and clunky. I skipped the media screening and saw the film with the ‘ticket-paying’ audience, who were all laughing throughout the film.
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