You might want to check this week's late-riser for the crackling and hissing chemistry between the lead pair.

As a couple that finds its dreams of romantic togetherness ruptured by the demands of a joint family, Salman Khan and Shilpa Shetty put up a spirited show. Shilpa is especially effectual in putting across the dilemma of a newly married woman who must adjust to her husband's joint family.

The characters, though garish, do provide some moments of unbridled entertainment. The dialogues are sometimes crisp and cutting.

Watch the sequence where Salman quietly explains to his obstinate wife why she mustn't come down in the family hall in her nightclothes. "Because the doodhwala and the servant have only one thing in mind - sex," Salman drawls.

The moments between the couple frequently ring true. And when Shilpa flashes her eyes in domestic defiance, she even does a drunken song at a party to humiliate her husband and his family, you know this woman means business.

The theme of the pampered bride's coming-of-rage in her in-laws' family isn't novel. We've seen Jaya Bhaduri do it in "Kora Kagaz" and we've seen Shilpa attempt the role in "Dhadkan".

At the end of day, however, "Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar" suffers a congenital fatigue induced by a huge time lapse between launch and release.

To his credit, director Adhiyaman does have his own take on marriage, trust and joint-family problems. We saw him do the domestic-skirmish theme with pulpy élan in "Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam".

Things don't fall apart in this marital drama. But they barely hold together. And there's no reason to see this film unless you are a diehard fan of the lead pair who instil a shred of believability into their dangerously unidimensional characters.

The supporting cast is strictly cardboard -- from the heroine's ultra-snobbish mother (Supriya Karnik) and henpecked husband (Shakti kapoor) to the woman's divorcee friend (Kunika) and the unintentionally hilarious judge (Shoma Anand), who gives the divorcing couple some reprieve.

Since the wife is pregnant during divorce, the husband is allowed to be with her until the baby is born.

Stork value.