PK (2014) Review: An Alien's Innocent Questions About God

Is PK worth watching?

Yes. PK is one of the boldest mainstream Hindi films of its decade, a broad comedy that smuggles a sharp critique of organised religion into a story built for the whole family. Rajkumar Hirani’s gift is making difficult ideas feel friendly, and Aamir Khan’s wide-eyed alien is a perfect vehicle for questions most blockbusters would never ask. The reservations are its length and a tendency, in the second half, to state its message rather than dramatise it.

What is PK about?

A visitor from another planet lands in the Rajasthan desert to study Earth, and within minutes the device he needs to contact his spacecraft is stolen. Stranded, without language and with no understanding of human customs, he drifts to Delhi in search of it. Everyone he asks tells him only God can help, so he sets out to find God, and quickly discovers there are many to choose from, each with their own rules, rituals and middlemen.

His quest collides with Jaggu (Anushka Sharma), a television journalist nursing a heartbreak from her time abroad, who realises this strange, earnest man with his endless questions might be the story of her career.

PK is directed by Hirani, who co-wrote it with Abhijat Joshi. It is an Indian film in Hindi, runs 153 minutes, and stars Aamir Khan in the title role, with Anushka Sharma, Sushant Singh Rajput, Sanjay Dutt, Boman Irani and Saurabh Shukla in support. It was nominated for Best Film and Best Actor at the Filmfare Awards and became one of the biggest box-office hits in Hindi cinema.

An outsider’s eye on everyday faith

Hirani’s device is simple and effective. Because PK takes everything literally, the ordinary machinery of belief suddenly looks strange: offerings, dress codes, holy men who promise answers for a price. The comedy works because the character has no malice. He is not mocking anyone; he is genuinely confused, and the film lets the audience notice the contradictions for themselves.

The script is careful to spread its scrutiny across several faiths rather than singling one out, and its real target is narrower than religion itself: the gatekeepers who profit from fear. That distinction is what lets PK be pointed without being cruel, even if it still drew protests on release.

Aamir Khan’s physical comedy carries the idea

Khan commits fully to the role. With his unblinking stare, jutting ears and stiff, puzzled walk, he makes PK convincingly other, and the physical comedy of the early scenes, as he learns language and social codes by trial and error, is some of the funniest material in Hirani’s career. Beneath the gags, he gives the character a loneliness that lands in the quieter moments.

Anushka Sharma is a lively, grounded partner, and her scenes with Khan give the film its warmth. Sanjay Dutt makes a welcome, big-hearted cameo-sized turn as a bandleader who befriends PK, and Saurabh Shukla is well cast as a smooth, powerful godman whose certainty is everything PK is not.

When the satire turns into a sermon

The film’s weaknesses are Hirani’s usual ones, magnified. At over two and a half hours it is long, and the second half leans on televised debates and speeches that spell out the argument the first half made so deftly through comedy. The romance subplot relies on coincidence, and a few songs slow the pace. The heart is always in the right place; the storytelling is sometimes less agile than the message.

Who should watch PK?

It suits anyone who enjoys crowd-pleasing Hindi comedy with something on its mind, and it is a strong starting point for newcomers to Hirani’s work. Families can watch together: the humour is mostly clean, apart from some early innuendo and brief non-graphic nudity played for comedy, and a short burst of violence. Viewers with strong religious sensitivities should know the film questions rituals directly.

If it lands for you, three good follow-ups:

• 3 Idiots, Hirani and Khan’s earlier hit, which applies the same mix of comedy and critique to India’s education system.
• Bajrangi Bhaijaan, another big-hearted crowd-pleaser about an innocent man crossing religious and national lines.
• Laapataa Ladies, a gentler, more rural satire that shares PK’s affection for its characters.

The verdict

PK is a rare mainstream entertainment that is both hugely funny and genuinely provocative, and Aamir Khan’s alien is one of the great comic creations of recent Hindi cinema. It runs long and sometimes preaches, but its warmth, courage and big laughs earn it a place among Hirani’s best.

Rating: 4.5/5