KARACHI: Put in some good-looking macho guys, gorgeous girls, raunchy dances, beautiful foreign locations, lots and lots of moolah, and oh yes, excellent shots, direction et al, mix all the ingredients well, and what you have is a masala film that the young people will go gaga over.

Well, that’s exactly what film Race is all about. Indian films are becoming the rage here and the audience can’t be blamed for it because one only sees English and Indian films on what’s left of the cinema screens in town these days. Urdu films are like a bad dream except for the rare ones that make an appearance now and then – Khuda Ke Liye being an example.

At Friday’s launch of Indian film Race at Nishat cinema, the invitees consisted mostly of young people who seemed to be in awe of the film with its multi-star cast, including Saif Ali Khan, Anil Kapoor, Akshaye Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Katrina Kaif and Sameera Reddy. The popularity of the actors could be gauged by the enthusiastic clapping of the excited audience when the stars made their appearance on the screen.

The film revolves around two brothers who own a stud farm and are into horse racing big time. The elder brother, Ranvir Singh (Saif Ali Khan), is a daredevil when it comes to sports, but at the same time he is a ruthless businessman who will stop at nothing to achieve his goals. On the other hand his younger brother, Rajeev (Akshaye Khanna), is laid-back and thoroughly spoilt by Ranvir. But underneath the happy surface lurks a hatred for his brother, which he tries to hide by drinking.

Shot in South Africa and Dubai, the film has so many twists and turns that the viewer tends to forget who is killing who and for what. The beginning of the first half appears to be frivolous in its content, making one wonder what the story is all about. But as the plot unravels there is much, much more to what meets the eye. And the jigsaw begins to fall in place.

There is good acting by all the heroes and nearly all the heroines. The flick, which has a slight mafia touch, gives one the feeling, now and then, that it has borrowed from some films from Pinewood and Hollywood as well. And Anil Kapoor as the private detective Robert D’Costa, whose constant eating of fruit gets on the viewer’s nerves, reminds us of detective Colombo with his deliberate deceptive air. Bipasha Basu outshines the other lasses with her natural style and glamour.

Most of the Indian films being brought here have a few things in common, such as foreign locations, lots of action and little reference to religion and the country, to make it more acceptable to viewers from other countries. Little wonder, then, that Indian films are becoming increasingly popular all over the world.

After the recent success of film Goal, distributors Eveready Pictures have now released Race. Since the Pakistan government seems to have softened its policy by allowing Indian films to be shown here, they are being imported regularly, although there has been stiff opposition from the film industry in Lahore. And though the films are popular, the audiences are not coming out in droves as was expected because the cinema culture is not what it used to be some years back.

Another reason for the more than half-empty cinema houses is the government’s failure to control piracy as DVDs of the latest films are available at video shops. So, rather than going and spending so much on tickets, the whole family watches the film in the comfort of their homes for much less.

Race, which has been directed by duo Abbas-Mastan, is being shown in other cinema houses simultaneously. All in all an entertaining film, if you are not the finicky and choosy type.