The Guru

PëRMBLEDHJE

Satirising New Age mysticism and the excesses of the Bollywood musical, this appealing romantic comedy marked the first leading role for British actor Jimi Mistry (East Is East), who more than holds his own alongside Hollywood actresses Heather Graham and Marisa Tomei. Mistry plays Ramu Gupta, an amiable dance instructor who moves from India to New York in search of Broadway success. His bubble quickly bursts and he stumbles into a career as a guru to gullible socialite Tomei, dispensing second-hand sex advice gleaned from porn actress friend, Graham. This colourful diversion from Working Title (who produced Notting Hill and About a Boy) holds neither surprises nor much in the way of depth. However, there's a winning sweetness to Mistry's character and the film is consistently bright and amusing, particularly in a couple of delightful fantasy musical sequences.