Plot:

Two crooks, Mamujan (Naseeruddin Shah) and Babban (Arshad Warsi) who are also uncle and nephew are on the run after they succeed in duping their boss Mushtaq (Salman Shahid). They seek refuge at a friend's widow Krishna Verma’s (Vidya Balan) house, who turns out to be as crooked as them. How the 3 people who are not concerned about morals hatch a plan to get rid of each other and take all the booty is the film all about.

Overall Synopsis:

Mamujan (Naseeruddin Shah) and Babban (Arshad Warsi) who are also uncle and nephew are on the run after they succeed in duping their boss Mushtaq (Salman Shahid). They seek refuge at a friend's widow Krishna Verma’s (Vidya Balan) house. Though Mamujan is a hardened thief who knows what to do and when, if it is like falling on his would-be assassin's feet for mercy, but falls for a wily widow, Krishna Verma mesmerized by her seductive song and guile. Babban, who doesn't want to be left behind tries to match him as rival in love in trying to charm Krishna. Krishna on the other hand flashes her eyes, sucks thumbs and details a kidnap plot with unbridled glee, to keep both of them at tenterhooks. The film setting that depicts the badlands of Eastern UP, with its characteristic gun culture, caste wars and edgy lingo is of special mention.

Performances:

As the surprise of the film Vidya Balan truly deserves another wow after her scintillating show in ‘Paa’ and ‘Parineeta’, who plays the men like an organ. Naseeruddin Shah is always a master in method acting as an old-world romantic, while Arshad Warsi is good in patches as a sexually aggressive man. Salman Shahid is okay in his limited role.

Technical Values:

Debutant director Abhishek Chaubey tells his story with a panache in telling the tale of a wicked trio who have nothing to lose. The film falters only in the end in execution. Cinematography by Mohana Krishna and earthy music score by Vishal Bhardwaj is the highlight. Of special mention are 2 chartbusters songs with their earthy feel, ‘Ibn-e-Batuta’ and Dil To Bachcha Hai. The dialogues used in the film as in other Vishal Bhardwaj movies is full of slang that even ruffled the censor boards feathers.

Conclusion:

Ishqiya is completely desi but the dramatics are Hollywoodish. But of the slipshod end of the story the film is pure delight. Both in terms of the narrative and in terms of performances the film seeps into viewers as a slow intoxicant.