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Film journalist-turned-filmmaker Samar Khan makes his directorial debut with Kuchh Meetha Ho Jaye (Something Sweet), a bumpy comedy set in an Indian airport lounge. Starring a large ensemble cast headed by established Bollywood actors Arshad Warsi and Mahima Chaudhury, this comedy farce is best described as a kitsch cross between Love Actually and The Terminal - only with less in-flight entertainment value. What had the potential to be quirky romantic comedy instead nosedives into tragedy territory.

When flight TW 135 to Delhi is delayed, its passengers find themselves with plenty of time to browse duty free and examine their relationships. Starry-eyed teenage lovers, an Italian bachelor caught between two Indian cousins, and a pair of newlyweds squabbling their way to their honeymoon share space with the divorced and dysfunctional. Adding to the mix is wacky airport manager Saif (Arshad Warsi), more concerned with drowning his sorrow in scotch then tending to the travellers' queries.

"A TIRING LONG-HAUL FLIGHT"

With seven stories running simultaneously, there's plenty to see and hear. But instead of sensory overload, Kuchh Meetha Ho Jaye leaves you feeling you've sat through a tiring long-haul flight without reaching an exotic destination. Hammy performances and a collection of annoying and feeble characters don't do anything to relieve the feeling of air sickness. But it's not the cast's fault. The problem lies with Khan and Malhotra's lame dialogue and a fractured script which never really takes off. Even a special appearance by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan isn't enough to save this film from a crash landing.

Music: Himmesh Reshammiya

In Hindi with English subtitles.