'Mumbai Matinee' (2003) Review | A Good Indian Sex Comedy?

Sex comedies, when done right, can be worth the hype. Unfortunately, Indian cinema does not have a great track record in that regard.

Most Bollywood films just go overboard and use crass humour for cheap laughs, much of which doesn’t even make sense. These movies are pandering to a certain mentality at best and make for an awful travesty at the worst.

But when I saw Mumbai Matinee, I breathed a (small) sigh of relief, even though it isn’t a trailblazer, and here’s why.

Mumbai Matinee — Review at a Glance

Story — 4/5
Acting — 3.5/5
Direction — 3/5
Music — 2/5

Must Watch: Not Really…

One-Time Watch: Yes

Mumbai Matinee Review — A Deep Dive

The film is quite unapologetic about sex and its implications in a society like India’s. It features a whole array of characters and viewpoints — from an old uncle to a gay sex worker — to tackle the spectrum of sexuality. However, it is the virgin, Debu, who takes centre stage.

Unlike most Indian sex comedies that are crass and overtly sexual without the story needing it, Mumbai Matinee is a breath of fresh air for a few reasons.

Sure. It does have the token “sexy lady” character that you’ll find in Indian films, and her presence definitely feels a bit forced — and maybe a few other cliches of the genre sprinkled throughout — but the overall plot and comedy are still better than various other Bollywood sex comedies from that decade.

Debu sets out on a journey to finally have sex after 32 years of being alive, and he really doesn’t know what he is getting himself into when he comes across Baba Hindustani and film producer Nitin Kapoor.

The interactions between these three characters are very funny and well-scripted. Plus, the casting of Rahul Bose, Vijay Raaz, and Saurabh Shukla — with support from Asrani, himself a legend in Hindi cinema — is pure genius.

The music isn’t really anything to write home about, but that’s okay. There’s not much of it in the movie.

Somehow, Mumbai Matinee also feels like a time capsule that takes you back to the Bombay of the early 2000s, be it in terms of ideologies or technologies. I must confess, in one of the early scenes, Asrani swipes a card on paper with some machine that I swear I have never seen (and I suppose this is indicative of my millennial existence).

The dynamic in Mumbai Matinee is very interesting because, as the audience, you are likely to be quite aware of the potential fraud and pitfalls of the journey Debu is about to embark on. However, the film will reward you with its unconventional story despite relying on some cliches or odd scenes.

Honestly, this is probably the only Indian sex comedy I have seen that doesn’t make me want to shoot my brains out. It’s quite enjoyable and will make for a fun watch anytime, as long as you can sidestep some moments rife with cringe.

Having said that, I do wish there was more focus on overall character development. While Debu, the Baba, and Nitin are interesting, it sometimes feels like the films jump from one scene to the other without a proper segue.

In some scenes, it also feels like some of the jokes could have been fleshed out better. For instance, there is a whole scene where potential sexual assault is the basis of some very poor comedy.

All in all, Mumbai Matinee has a very interesting story, but its story could have been executed better. It does have some quirkiness — such as using Star Wars references for vague sexual analogies — but it definitely feels like this film had some potential left untapped.

Mumbai Matinee Plot Overview

Set in the bustling city of Mumbai, the movie follows the story of the virgin Debu (played by Rahul Bose), a shy and introverted man in his thirties who works as a copywriter in an advertising agency. Debu leads a mundane life — devoid of any excitement or romance.

But all of this changes when he meets Baba Hindustani, and by a stroke of fate, Debu ends up becoming a sex icon. How he deals with the fallout of all this is what forms the rest of the plot.