There’s no denying that 2000s Bollywood—the Golden Age of Comedy—is truly unbeatable. The humour was off the charts, and legends like Paresh Rawal, Om Puri, Rajpal Yadav, and of course, Akshay Kumar gave us performances we’ll keep cherishing forever. The comedy back then was raw and the comic timing unbelievably smooth that led to endless laugh-out-loud moments.
Sure, many of those jokes might now be considered borderline cancellable (you and I both know why). But what also deserves a shoutout is how pre-2010 comedy films, especially Priyadarshan’s, relied on good old situational, and comedy-of-errors plots. That style has mostly been abandoned today, which is probably why theatres are now re-releasing those hysterical classics and also because recreating that magic just feels downright impossible now anyway.
One such gem that truly sets the gold standard is Welcome. It is one of Akshay’s most hilarious films with a refreshing twist that saw him play the timid guy for a change, and he nailed it. The cast was stacked with brilliant performers, each bringing their A-game. And Nana Patekar’s iconic “Aloo le lo!” is forever etched into my mind.
If you're looking for more OG, timeless comedy films like Welcome, I’ve rounded up a bunch that are just as epic.
