Going by his recent description, the Saif Ali Khan-starrer sounds a lot like the 2011 dramedy
Bryan Durham (DNA; March 3, 2017)

By his own admission, Saif Ali Khan is celebrating his love for Mumbai in his next, Akshat Varma’s Kalakaandi. But peel off that marketing spiel and take a look at the brief synopsis he offered in a recent interview and you have a somewhat sketchy idea of what the slice-of-life film is about. And it sounds a lot (though not entirely) like this Joseph Gordon-Levitt film called 50/50, which also starred Seth Rogen.

Young man in a boring job who doesn’t even smoke, but gets cancer anyway? Check! 50/50 did that as early as 2011. The Joseph Gordon-Levitt film is also about Adam, a good guy who is flabbergasted to discover he has spinal cancer with a 50/50 chance of survival. Ditto with Saif’s Rileen in Kalakaandi.

Tries drugs for the first time and it affects his perspective on life? Check! JGL’s Adam tries out medical marijuana for the first time and begins to ‘see’ and ‘understand’ things differently. We know that Rileen pops acid (aka LSD) at his brother’s wedding party. And has a night to remember.

Two guys who matter to the story somewhat? Check! In 50/50, two cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy with Adam, ply him with medical marijuana. In Kalakaandi, Deepak Dobriyal and Vijay Raaz play two mafia guys who Rileen hobnobs with.

Depending on what else is revealed in the Kalakaandi trailer in the days ahead, it’s entirely possible that there will be a best friend’s role announced, just like Adam has in Kyle (Seth Rogen).

So, here’s the thing. We’re not saying Kalakaandi’s an out-and-out copy of 50/50, but an early description of the Saif-starrer, ahead of its April 21 release (and in the absence of a trailer) sure makes a case for the comparison with the JGL-starrer.

There will be marked differences between the two films, as is to be expected, but there’s also no denying the similarities staring you in the face, is there?

HIGHLIGHT
You could argue that Kalakaandi is like Breaking Bad, except Saif’s Rileen consumes and doesn’t deal in drugs, Bryan Cranston’s Walter White does the opposite