The hero falling for his brother’s fiancé has been thrashed in several Hollywood rom-coms like the Steve Carell- Juliette Binoche starrer Dan in Real Life (2007) and the Sarah Jessica Parker film The Family Stone (2005); closer home you can think back to the super hit Saajan or the super flop Mehbooba.

For a Hindi film, it’s a touchy, bold subject to take up. And director Onir (My Brother Nikhil, Bas Ek Pal) does a fabulous job of spreading out the story bit-by-bit, in a manner that the audience is encouraged to enjoy the forbidden love tale without making moralistic arguments.

We meet earnest, absent-minded Siddharth Mathur (Sharman Joshi), a scientist who’s working on a unique thesis that everything on the planet is animate. He stays with his parents (Boman Irani-Shabana Azmi): a lovely couple that’s always good-naturedly ribbing each other. A sudden phone call from Siddharth’s older Mauritius-based brother Harsh (Sanjay Suri) throws the family off balance. The call was to invite the family to his wedding; one for which he didn’t solicit their opinion or permission. When the Mathurs arrive in Mauritius, there’s tension immediately. Harsh’s fiancée Aaliyah (Chitrangda Sigh) seems a lovely girl, but mama Mathur isn’t too smitten. She gives Aaliyah a hard time and Siddharth helps her deal with the problem at hand. Meanwhile, Harsh is too involved at work, such that he postpones the wedding overnight for an important business trip. Aaliyah sees this as a heavenly sign to articulate her newfound feelings for Siddharth and to decide whom of the brothers she really wants to marry.

The main flaw of the story is that the reasons for Aaliyah falling for Siddharth in four days flat are not entirely justified. He is everything Harsh is not. He says `ui ma’ while tripping, loves jazz, making sand-castles with kids, and the simple life. She’s without agenda, studying, but ready to give it up for marriage. The only thing that they share in common is their love for the film Casablanca, and their joy at sliding down staircase railings. Agreed their temperaments match; but in a real setting, no one would break up a wedding over a few-days-old infatuation.

But the film is not so much about understanding the hows and whys. It’s about meeting these interesting characters and getting to know them. You simply love Mama Mathur played by Shabana Azmi. She’s the most innocent villain you know, and her battle against Aaliyah turns on its head when she realizes that both her sons are involved with her. Papa Mathur is the light-hearted vein in the family; the kind that cracks a joke at an awkward moment to break tension. The chemistry between Azmi and Irani is just crackling; their intelligence, talent and comic ability shining through ever so often. Unfortunately, the chemistry between the lead portraitists is rather thanda. While the Suri-Singh romance is unable to move us at all; the Joshi-Singh relationship at least has us rooting for them, albeit a bit guilt-fully.

Chitrangda is fabulously gorgeous and plays her part perfectly. Sharman Joshi, who has been suffering a spate of unsteady luck this year, is effortlessly good. One wishes Sanjay Suri’s role had more layers, but the actor is sincere nevertheless. Technically, the film is decent with good cinematography, styling and music.

Despite the far-fetched plot, Onir does manage to suck you into the story and get you involved with the characters’ lives. For a few lively moments in the film, and for the charming performances, Sorry Bhai! is an above-average watch.

Rating: Two and a half stars