If you wonder why I am going for a comparison, there is a reason for it! On the face of it, this week's release, Hum Chaar, and last year's Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety feel two different species. Hum Chaar feels more old school, even though its characters love being on Instagram. Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, on the other hand, is more crowd-pleasing with a glam feel, chartbusting music and humour that appeases to the front benchers. And yet what they have in common is that they both claim to be an ode to friendship. Hum Chaar Movie Review: Rajshri’s Bitter-Sweet Tale of Friendship Is an Endearing Watch!

Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, starring Kartik Aaryan, Sunny Singh and Nushrat Bharucha, is about how a friend tries to save his bestie from a suspected honeypot. Hum Chaar, starring newcomers Prit Kamani, Simran Sharma, Anshuman Malhotra and Tushar Pandey, is about four BFFs who part ways after a bad incident only to reunite later to help one of them out. Both the films came around the same time in consecutive years; SKTKS came on February 23, 2018 and Hum Chaar on February 15, 2019.

Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety became the surprise hit fo 2018, earning more than Rs 100 crore at the box office. It also made a star out of Kartik Aaryan (and conveniently forgot the other two leads). It also has more entertainment value than Hum ChaarSonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety Movie Review: Kartik Aaryan-Nushrat Bharucha's Romcom Borrows The Spirit From Pyaar Ka Punchnama But Not The Flair.

Hum Chaar may not make a good impression at the box office, especially since it is releasing along with Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt's Gully Boy. But when it comes to which movies does better justice to the idea of friendship (and in turn, is a better movie overall), then Hum Chaar, even with all its flaws, has an upper hand.

Here are five reasons why Hum Chaar is a better movie about friendship than SKTKS.

Has Actual Feels of Friendship

SKTKS was less about friendship and more about male bonding, and ego battles. Hum Chaar keeps the focus of the dynamics on the friendly bonding between the lead characters. Even when the makers insert infatuation in the mix, the characters are not driven away by it, only by the repercussions over the curiosity over it. The movie holds their friendship over even the idea of family, which happens to be producer Rajshri's favourite trope.

The Characters Are Flawed But Arent's Selfish

The two male leads in SKTKS have their friendship tested when a girl walks into one of their lives, creating a sense of possessiveness and jealousy in the other. In the case of Hum Chaar, the three heroes may have been infatuated with the girl in the group, but they don't end part ways over this. Instead, they use each other's help to determine who the girl cares for the most. They aren't perfect, which is why a little tussle and a slap keeps them away for four years. Later, when the three of the leads get an opportunity to amend the wrongs towards the fourth one, they never hesitate to take out a month from their lives to help her out. You can accuse them of harbouring feelings for her, but the conclusion clears matters when it shows that all they care for was her friendship, but not before having a hug first.

Doesn't Revel in Female Bashing

One of SKTKS' biggest criticisms was that like director Luv Ranjan's Pyaar Ka Punchnama movies, it saw its female characters in a skewered vision. Manjari, the female lead in Hum Chaar, is shown as emotionally and mentally stronger than her male friends. She may be the centre of their attention, but she isn't swayed by their affections. Even her ire against her friends are more because they had a part, even if accidental, in ruining her medical career. In the end, it is she who gets to own the climax, saving her friends from getting insulted.

Doesn't Revel in Needless Glamourisation Over The Plot

Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety is a good-looking film, aiming to appeal the masses with an abundance of abs and curves, great production values, daaru-whisky songs and massy humour. Hum Chaar lacks these qualities which is exactly its undoing at the box office. Instead, the movie places its focus on just the friendship angle and not glamming it up with frills. The essence of dosti is stronger here because there is no soda to dilute it.

The Emotions Work Better

The sole emotional sequence in SKTKS comes towards the climax when the "Tera Yaar Hoon Main" song happens. However, since the movies don't spend much time on developing the friendship between the two male characters (instead getting on a gender battle), the sudden emotional change feels jerky. In the case of Hum Chaar, the emotions don't feel forced, especially in the climax, during the reconcilation because there had been no needless distractions to make them feel out of place. In SKTKS, you still feel Karti Aaryan's character does out what he does to massage his ego. In Hum Chaar's climax, when secret actions of a friend is revealed, you actually feel a sense of companionship there.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 15, 2019 06:31 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).