Shakuntala Devi (2020) is loosely (if the disclaimer at the beginning of the movie is to be trusted, very loosely) based on the life of author, astrologer and mental calculator Shakuntala Devi, popularly known as the Human Computer. It is the story of a fierce and fearless free spirit living life on her own terms, which can honestly be kind of terrifying.
Shakuntala is born into a poor Brahmin family in Bangalore, and from a very young age she demonstrates an amazing proficiency with mental mathematics. Her father (Prakash Belawadi) sees an opportunity, and soon Shakuntala is supporting the family by touring local schools and demonstrating her skills. Young Shakuntala (Spandan Chaturdevi) is particularly attached to her sister Sharada (Jiya Shah) and is devastated when Sharada suddenly dies. Shakuntala blames her parents for not taking her sister to the hospital, and grows up angry.
After a few misadventures (including shooting a guy), adult Shakuntala (Vidya Balan) moves to London, where she meets Spanish mathematician Javier (Luca Calvani), who helps transform spunky village belle Shakuntala into the confident and sophisticated Shakuntala Devi, mathematical superstar. And while the relationship with Javier fizzles out eventually, her career takes off; Shakuntala is wealthy and successful, touring the world to show people that she is good at math.
At a party, Shakuntala meets Paritosh Banerji (Jishu Sengupta.) They fall in love, get married, have a daughter, and settle down in Calcutta. Everything is wonderful . . for a while. Shakuntala decides that she misses performing, and heads back on the road, at first leaving baby Anu with Paritosh. She finds that she misses her daughter, and so decides to take her on tour, which leads to the marriage collapsing.
So Shakuntala and Anu travel the world together. But the trouble with free spirits who live life on theoir own terms is that sometimes they expect everyone else to live life on their terms as well. As she grows up, Anu craves a sense of stability; she wants to lead a normal life, but normal is not something that Shakuntala Devi, the Human Computer, is willing to consider. As an adult, a frustrated Anu (Sanya Malhotra) leaves to build her own life, but Shakuntala is willing to do anything to bring her back, even if that means they both end up in court.
As a performer, Vidya Balan has a light, effortless charm; I've seen her in a number of movies, and she is consistently delightful. That's a useful talent to have when you're playing a woman who is so often smug and selfish. Shakuntala is not always likable, but it's very hard to look away.
I'm not going to speculate about the actual Shakuntala Devi, who by all accounts built quite a life for herself, but movie Shakuntala reminds me of Shakespeare's sister. Not the pop group, and not William Shakespeare's actual sister Joan, but Judith Shakespeare, the hypothetical equally talented sibling from Virginia Woolf's essay "A Room of One's Own." Like Judith, Shakuntala is tremendously talented, but because of who she is, she's cut off from the traditional channels for that talent; she can perform at a school, but not attend one, appear before university maths departments and scholarly societies, but not join them. Shakuntala gets a much happier ending than Judith does, but I can't help but wonder if the life of Shakun Dev would have been less complicated.
Saturday, August 29, 2020
Saturday, August 22, 2020
A boy's best friend is his mem.
English Babu Desi Mem (1996) is not a romance. Yes, it was promoted as a romance. Yes, it was made in the Nineties, when romance reigned supreme in Bollywood, and yes, it stars Shah Rukh Khan, the undisputed King of Romace, and yes, the movie begins and ends with a wedding, but it is not a romance. It is a love story, however.
The Mayur family have been settled in England for generations, and they have made a lot of money. But while family patriarch Gopal (Shah Rukh Khan with grey hair and a silly fake mustache) is happy to be rich and English, oldest son Hari (Shah Rukh Khan with long hair and a different silly fake mustache) . . . well, his heart is Hindustani. He wants to embrace his cultural traditions and give money to charity, and the family has plenty of money to give to charity.
Gopal decides to deal with his wayward son by getting him married, but Hari flees to India . . . in a single engine prop plane, a plane which explodes in a burst of stock footage before reaching land. Hari survives and is nursed back to health by Katariya (Rajeshwari Sachdev). Since his family already thinks he's dead, Hari decides to stay and marries Katariya. They are blissfully happy for a couple of years, and then they are caught in a terrible fire and both die, leaving their newborn son to be raised by Katariya's much younger sister Bijuriya, who is only a child herself. (I think the young Bijuriya is played by Baba Brahmbhatt, but it's hard to tell.)
Kindly lawyer Madugar (Saeed Jaffrey) and many of the other residents of the colony promise to provide support, but Bijuriya basically supports herself and her nephew, first by performing odd jobs and selling balloons, and later, after she's grown up enough to be played by Sonali Bendre, by dancing at Banjo's Beer bar. She and her beloved nephew Nandu (Sunny Singh) are poor, but utterly devoted to one another.
Then Madugar sees a TV interview with wealthy but snobbish British industrialist Vikram Mayur (Shah Rukh Khan with a terrible English accent but no silly mustache) and realizes that Nandu is actually heir to a tremendous fortune. He tricks Vikram into coming to India and reveals the truth about Hari's fate and Nandu's existence. Vikram is delighted to learn he has a nephew, and is charmed by Nandu when he accidentally meets the kid. Bijuriya, meanwhile, is terrified that this English jerk is going to take her son away; Vikram is rich and respectable while she is poor and a bar dancer. There's no question that she would lose a custody case.
Vikram tries to impress Nandu with his wealth and privilege, along the way genuinely bonding with the kid, but he can't really compete with the only mother Nandu has ever known. But Madugar has clearly seen too many movies, and takes each of the feuding pair aside to suggest that they try being charming instead. It kind of works, and Vikram and Bijuriya start to enjoy one another's company. Unfortunately, Nandu assumes that that means they're in love, and makes arrangements for the wedding. When he tells Vikram it . . . doesn't go well.
Now, this is a movie. Of course Nandu gets what he wants in the end. But while Vikram and Bijuriya are clearly attracted to one another, there's never any point at which they seem to be in love. Instead, it's all about the kid. They both adore Nandu, and they're willing to do whatever it takes to make him happy, even if that means ending up together. Love, as they say, can come later.
The Mayur family have been settled in England for generations, and they have made a lot of money. But while family patriarch Gopal (Shah Rukh Khan with grey hair and a silly fake mustache) is happy to be rich and English, oldest son Hari (Shah Rukh Khan with long hair and a different silly fake mustache) . . . well, his heart is Hindustani. He wants to embrace his cultural traditions and give money to charity, and the family has plenty of money to give to charity.
Gopal decides to deal with his wayward son by getting him married, but Hari flees to India . . . in a single engine prop plane, a plane which explodes in a burst of stock footage before reaching land. Hari survives and is nursed back to health by Katariya (Rajeshwari Sachdev). Since his family already thinks he's dead, Hari decides to stay and marries Katariya. They are blissfully happy for a couple of years, and then they are caught in a terrible fire and both die, leaving their newborn son to be raised by Katariya's much younger sister Bijuriya, who is only a child herself. (I think the young Bijuriya is played by Baba Brahmbhatt, but it's hard to tell.)
Kindly lawyer Madugar (Saeed Jaffrey) and many of the other residents of the colony promise to provide support, but Bijuriya basically supports herself and her nephew, first by performing odd jobs and selling balloons, and later, after she's grown up enough to be played by Sonali Bendre, by dancing at Banjo's Beer bar. She and her beloved nephew Nandu (Sunny Singh) are poor, but utterly devoted to one another.
Then Madugar sees a TV interview with wealthy but snobbish British industrialist Vikram Mayur (Shah Rukh Khan with a terrible English accent but no silly mustache) and realizes that Nandu is actually heir to a tremendous fortune. He tricks Vikram into coming to India and reveals the truth about Hari's fate and Nandu's existence. Vikram is delighted to learn he has a nephew, and is charmed by Nandu when he accidentally meets the kid. Bijuriya, meanwhile, is terrified that this English jerk is going to take her son away; Vikram is rich and respectable while she is poor and a bar dancer. There's no question that she would lose a custody case.
Vikram tries to impress Nandu with his wealth and privilege, along the way genuinely bonding with the kid, but he can't really compete with the only mother Nandu has ever known. But Madugar has clearly seen too many movies, and takes each of the feuding pair aside to suggest that they try being charming instead. It kind of works, and Vikram and Bijuriya start to enjoy one another's company. Unfortunately, Nandu assumes that that means they're in love, and makes arrangements for the wedding. When he tells Vikram it . . . doesn't go well.
Now, this is a movie. Of course Nandu gets what he wants in the end. But while Vikram and Bijuriya are clearly attracted to one another, there's never any point at which they seem to be in love. Instead, it's all about the kid. They both adore Nandu, and they're willing to do whatever it takes to make him happy, even if that means ending up together. Love, as they say, can come later.
Saturday, August 15, 2020
Hong Kong Family Theater
Like a lot of seventies Bollywood action movies, Lahu Ki Do Rang (1979) has a really complicated backstory to get through before the action starts in earnest; it's also a complicated family drama about a very complicated family. Here's the short version: In 1943 Hong Kong, Shamsher Singh (Vinod Khanna) has deserted from the British Army, instead joining Subhas Chandra Bose's revolutionaries in order to throw the British out of India by force. While fleeing from the dastardly Brits, he barges into the house of Suzy (Helen), and she shelters him for the night. And then another night, and so on. Six months later, it's time for Shamsher to return to India. Suzy is pregnant, but will not stand in his way, and he promises to bring her and their child to India once his work is finished.
Back in India, Shamsher explains things to his wife Ladjo (Indrani Mukkherji), then gets to work. In short order, he's betrayed and murdered by Shankar (Rajneet), who uses the opportunity to rob the bank and steal enough gold to fill the trunk of a car. Then Shankar is betrayed by his sidekick Mac (Mac Mohan, by far my favorite Bollywood henchman), who sinks the car in a lake before shooting himself in the knee and surrendering to the police.
Years pass. Mac is released from prison. Shekhar, now going by the name Devi Dayal, sends his stepdaughter/reluctant henchwoman Roma (Shabana Azmi) to collect him, and find out where the gold is. meanwhile, Shamsher and Ladjo's son Raj (also Vinod Khanna) has become a policeman, dedicated to finding his father's killer. And Shamsher and Suzy's son Suraj (Danny Denzongpa) has grown up to be a cynical street-smart martial artist and professional diver who will do anything to provide for his mother, even if it means going to work for some rich Indian jerk who needs him to a sunken car filled with gold.
And then things start to happen. Suraj is hired by some rich Indian jerk to locate a sunken car filled with gold. He does, but Shekhar/Dayal needs capital for the next stage of the plan, so Suraj is left to hang out in India for a while; he befriends Shabbo (Baby Shalu), an orphan, pickpocket, and easily the most competent character in the film. He also has time to fall in love with Roma, but can't work up the courage to say anything to her, despite Shabbo's coaching.
Meanwhile, Mac is murdered, surprising no one. But the killer leaves his wallet at the crime scene, which eventually leads Raj to Roma. He disguises himself as a photographer and basically stalks her until she falls in love with him. But while Raj gets the girl and valuable information, a heartbroken Suraj throws himself wholeheartedly into his henchmaning, believing that if he can't have love, he can at least provide for his mother in style.
"Long lost brothers, but one is a cop and the other one is a criminal" is a very common plotline in Bollywood, and there are no real surprises here. But while the plot is a bit predictable, it's executed well; the leads are charming, and while the story is complicated, nearly everything makes sense in the end. The Hong Kong setting is unusual, but I suspect it's mostly an excuse for Danny Denzongpa to do his best Bruce Lee impression. He's got the look, he's got the style, he's got the attitude, but it's mostly a visual homage. The movie throws in a tournament near the beginning to establish that Suraj has martial arts skills, and then he spends the rest of the movie not using them. The rest of the film is pure funky seventies Bollywood cop movie.
Back in India, Shamsher explains things to his wife Ladjo (Indrani Mukkherji), then gets to work. In short order, he's betrayed and murdered by Shankar (Rajneet), who uses the opportunity to rob the bank and steal enough gold to fill the trunk of a car. Then Shankar is betrayed by his sidekick Mac (Mac Mohan, by far my favorite Bollywood henchman), who sinks the car in a lake before shooting himself in the knee and surrendering to the police.
Years pass. Mac is released from prison. Shekhar, now going by the name Devi Dayal, sends his stepdaughter/reluctant henchwoman Roma (Shabana Azmi) to collect him, and find out where the gold is. meanwhile, Shamsher and Ladjo's son Raj (also Vinod Khanna) has become a policeman, dedicated to finding his father's killer. And Shamsher and Suzy's son Suraj (Danny Denzongpa) has grown up to be a cynical street-smart martial artist and professional diver who will do anything to provide for his mother, even if it means going to work for some rich Indian jerk who needs him to a sunken car filled with gold.
And then things start to happen. Suraj is hired by some rich Indian jerk to locate a sunken car filled with gold. He does, but Shekhar/Dayal needs capital for the next stage of the plan, so Suraj is left to hang out in India for a while; he befriends Shabbo (Baby Shalu), an orphan, pickpocket, and easily the most competent character in the film. He also has time to fall in love with Roma, but can't work up the courage to say anything to her, despite Shabbo's coaching.
Meanwhile, Mac is murdered, surprising no one. But the killer leaves his wallet at the crime scene, which eventually leads Raj to Roma. He disguises himself as a photographer and basically stalks her until she falls in love with him. But while Raj gets the girl and valuable information, a heartbroken Suraj throws himself wholeheartedly into his henchmaning, believing that if he can't have love, he can at least provide for his mother in style.
"Long lost brothers, but one is a cop and the other one is a criminal" is a very common plotline in Bollywood, and there are no real surprises here. But while the plot is a bit predictable, it's executed well; the leads are charming, and while the story is complicated, nearly everything makes sense in the end. The Hong Kong setting is unusual, but I suspect it's mostly an excuse for Danny Denzongpa to do his best Bruce Lee impression. He's got the look, he's got the style, he's got the attitude, but it's mostly a visual homage. The movie throws in a tournament near the beginning to establish that Suraj has martial arts skills, and then he spends the rest of the movie not using them. The rest of the film is pure funky seventies Bollywood cop movie.
Wednesday, August 12, 2020
Two divided by Zero.
When Shah Rukh Khan was trying to break into the Bollywood film industry without the benefit of family connections or industry contacts, he took practically every role that was offered to him. And it worked. Khan didn't just become a star, he became the star, King Khan, and he reigned over the film industry for many years. I'm not sure he ever quite broke the habit of accepting as many parts as possible, because he's done a lot of weird movies over the course of his career. And that's good! I like weird movies! On the other hand, it also means he's starred in some stinkers. And then there's Zero (2018).
Khan plays Bauua Singh, a little person from a wealthy family in the city of Meerut. Bauua is supposed to be a good-natured scamp, but we don't initially see much of his good nature; he spends most of his time dreaming of Bollywood actress Babita Kumari (Katrina Kaif) and spending money on his assorted hangers on, including his trusty sidekick Guddu (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub.)
It's only a minor plot point, but Bauua also has a special gift: with a flick of his finger, he can turn any star into a shooting star. This is intended as a charming bit of magical realism, so nobody realizes that he possesses a destructive power that would make the Dark Phoenix weep with envy, a power that operates over interstellar distances and (given the speed of light) possibly through time.
Despite his incredible cosmic power, Bauua is still a bachelor. At a matrimonial agency he sees a photo of Aafiya Yusufzai Bhinder (Anushka Sharma), a beautiful and brilliant scientist and mathematician who works for that famous American space agency, the NSAR. (NASA? Never heard of it.) It's not until he arranges a meeting that he realizes that Aafiya has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. They fail to hit it off in spectacular fashion, ending with Bauua being bodily thrown out of the school she's speaking at. Humiliated, Bauua crashes another of her speaking engagements, makes a scene, and is thrown out and humiliated again.
So Bauua changes tactics. He mounts a full-fledged "played by Shah Rukh Freaking Khan" charm offensive, and manages to win her . . . friendship, initially. But the relationship develops over the course of a few months, until they finally spend the night together. And then he drops her.
A month later, Bauua returns home to find Aafiya's parents, there to arrange his and Aafiya's marriage. Bauua's parents are naturally thrilled, and before the kids can really object, the match is fixed. On their wedding day, after a tense conversation with Aafiya, Bauua runs away, and winds up in the entourage of his idol, Babita Kumari, who turns out to be deeply troubled and trapped in a life of meaningless excess, as well as a dysfunctional relationship with Bollywood star and smug jerk Aditya Kapoor (Abhay Deol.) Bauua helps Babita with her issues, and she helps him realize what a colossal jackass he's been, so it is now time for the "win Aafiya back" portion of the movie.
Winning Aafiya back means travelling to America and interrupting yet another one of her speaking engagements. She tells him to go to hell, and Bauua can see that a musical number is not going to cut it this time, so instead he volunteers for the upcoming manned mission to Mars, because as everybody knows, astronauts are selected through an open audition process.
Zero was a box office disaster, but it's really not the worst movie I've ever seen. It's not even the worst Shah Rukh Khan movie I've ever seen! Instead, it's a bit of a curate's egg - good in parts. The cast is fantastic, especially Sharma, who clearly poured her heart and soul into this role. While the relationship between Bauua and Aafiya is definitely unhealthy, it is actually easy to tell what they see in each other. The movie has one really good song. And representation matters, even if it's this clumsy.
But that leads me to the biggest flaw in the movie. There is no reason for Shah Rukh Khan to be in this film. His performance is fine, mind you, but there are many actors in India who are little people, and without the pressure of star casting this could have been a life-changing role for any of them. Perhaps because of the pressure of being a Shah Rukh Khan movie, Zero keeps striving for epic, when the actually interesting part is the real human connection between two flawed but compelling people who don't look anything like your typical Bollywood couple.
Saturday, August 8, 2020
Fortunately, anyone can be told precisely what Srivalli is.
Srivalli (2017) is a science fiction thriller about artificial reality and multiple levels of consciousness. It is also a sleazy erotic thriller about an obsession which spans multiple lifetimes. And it is occasionally a Lifetime drama about a woman who has had enough and is ready to fight back. Genre boundaries are more like guidelines, really.
Valli (Neha Hinge) is returning to India after twelve years in the US, accompanied by her little brother and their father, Ramachandra (Ranjeev Kanakala.) Her incredibly devoted childhood sweetheart, Gowtham (Rajath Krishna), is waiting for her. And everything is great! At least until the car accident that kills Ramachandra and puts Valli's brother in a coma.
That's not the end of her problems, though. Andrea, a classmate of hers from America, has followed her to India. Andrea is obsessed with Valli, and resumes her unwanted sexual, advances. When Gowtham finds out, he tracks down Andrea and brutally beats her to death in a jealous rage. (The Andrea subplot is nasty and unpleasant and perpetuates some horrible tropes about predatory lesbians.)
Since Valli doesn't know that Andrea is dead, Gowtham gets to keep hanging around and playing the Caring Friend Who Wants To be More. Valli doesn't have time for romance, though - she's fascinated by the work of Doctor Verma, who is hoping to harness the power of brain waves in order to treat addictions and mental illnesses. Valli agrees to have her brain waves mapped (a process that requires her to be naked, because it's that sort of movie), and she is thrilled to learn that the process can be used to help her comatose brother. And then Verma leaves for America.
After the professor leaves, Valli is haunted by strange dreams about a mysterious man named Manju (Arhaan Khan), who appears every night at midnight to seduce her. (I say seduce, but it is strongly implied that there is supernatural coercion involved.) When she finds Manju's bracelet in her bed one morning, Valli realizes that Manju is no dream. He claims to be the spirit of her lover from a previous incarnation, but he might be a side effect of Verma's device, or Andrea's vengeful ghost, or just a symptom of Valli's mental decline.
For much of its running time, Srivalli is grimy and unpleasant. It does improve somewhat when the movie stops trying to be sexy and Valli stops being so passive, but it never rises to the level of a good movie. Even without the sleaze, it's hard to maintain a sense of mystery about who the true villain is when the audience has already seen one of the characters brutally beat a woman to death because she threatened the object of his obsession.
Valli (Neha Hinge) is returning to India after twelve years in the US, accompanied by her little brother and their father, Ramachandra (Ranjeev Kanakala.) Her incredibly devoted childhood sweetheart, Gowtham (Rajath Krishna), is waiting for her. And everything is great! At least until the car accident that kills Ramachandra and puts Valli's brother in a coma.
That's not the end of her problems, though. Andrea, a classmate of hers from America, has followed her to India. Andrea is obsessed with Valli, and resumes her unwanted sexual, advances. When Gowtham finds out, he tracks down Andrea and brutally beats her to death in a jealous rage. (The Andrea subplot is nasty and unpleasant and perpetuates some horrible tropes about predatory lesbians.)
Since Valli doesn't know that Andrea is dead, Gowtham gets to keep hanging around and playing the Caring Friend Who Wants To be More. Valli doesn't have time for romance, though - she's fascinated by the work of Doctor Verma, who is hoping to harness the power of brain waves in order to treat addictions and mental illnesses. Valli agrees to have her brain waves mapped (a process that requires her to be naked, because it's that sort of movie), and she is thrilled to learn that the process can be used to help her comatose brother. And then Verma leaves for America.
After the professor leaves, Valli is haunted by strange dreams about a mysterious man named Manju (Arhaan Khan), who appears every night at midnight to seduce her. (I say seduce, but it is strongly implied that there is supernatural coercion involved.) When she finds Manju's bracelet in her bed one morning, Valli realizes that Manju is no dream. He claims to be the spirit of her lover from a previous incarnation, but he might be a side effect of Verma's device, or Andrea's vengeful ghost, or just a symptom of Valli's mental decline.
For much of its running time, Srivalli is grimy and unpleasant. It does improve somewhat when the movie stops trying to be sexy and Valli stops being so passive, but it never rises to the level of a good movie. Even without the sleaze, it's hard to maintain a sense of mystery about who the true villain is when the audience has already seen one of the characters brutally beat a woman to death because she threatened the object of his obsession.
Saturday, August 1, 2020
Yama: Endgame
After a month spent exploring the Yama Cinematic Universe, I am impressed with just how versatile a character Yama is; he can fit easily into a political sketch comedy, or a sincere exploration of the fragility of family ties, or, as in Yamadonga (2007), a bombastic romantic action-comedy.
Raja (Jr NTR) and Mahi (Priyamani) met briefly as children, and while she was impressed enough to give him Chekhov's Locket, their lives developed in very different directions. Mahi grew up to live the life of a fairy tale princess - specifically Cinderella. While she is the heir to the family fortune, her greedy relatives force her to toil as a household servant. Worse, they are planning to marry her off to her loathsome cousin so that they can seize control of the family fortune. Mahi suffers in silence, dreaming of the day when her handsome prince will carry her away on a winged horse.
Raja, however, is no prince. He's a thief and a conman and (because this is a South Indian Mass movie) fantastically skilled at beating people up. While Raja and his partner Sathi (Ali) are very good at taking other people's money, their fence, the lovely Dhanalakshmi (Mamta Mohandas) is even better at taking theirs, so the pair are hoping for one big score.
They get their chance when Raja is hired to recover a lost dress (it's complicated.) Naturally, Raja succeeds, inadvertently rescuing Mahi from a gang of kidnappers in a spectacular action sequence involving a giant hamster ball. Unfortunately, the happy client drops dead just before he can sign the check, leaving Raja even deeper in debt. An angry and drunk Raja curses Yama, swearing vengeance for the poorly timed grim reaping.
Unfortunately, at that very moment, Yama (Mohan Babu) is showing the other gods just how much the people on Earth fear and respect him. (The trickster sage Narada (Naresh) suggested the celestial show and tell, meaning once again everything is Narada's fault.) Yama is so angry and humiliated that he orders Chitragupta (Brahmanandam) to alter Raja's entry in the Bhavishyavaani, changing his date of death from "in seventy five years" to "in ten days."
Back on Earth, angry drunk Raja throws Mahi out of the house. In the morning, though, he watches the news and discovers that she is a missing heiress, so he finds her (not hard since she's right outside the front door), charms her, and makes arrangements to ransom her back to her family. However, Raja is betrayed and murdered before he can collect the ransom, meaning he's sent straight to Yamalok. And then things get complicated.
After finding out where he is, Raja gets to work. He tricks Chitragupota into handing over Yama's magic noose, his "Life Extractor" as the subtitles call it, and because there's no pesky "if he be worthy" clause, he is granted the power of Yama. Original Yama also has the powers of Yama, of course, so there is a problem. Narada pops up long enough to suggest settling the dispute with an election, and the two Yamas agree. Classic Yama has experience and a loyal populace on his side, but New Yama grew up on Earth, so he is armed with the power of dirty politics and a lot of empty promises.
Yamadonga is about three hours long, which means that I have only scratched the surface of the plot, and it jumps genres more than once. Whenever the complicated plot starts to drag, though, the movie gives you a big elaborate action scene or an even bigger dance number. And because the movie is so long it can act as a sort of "Yama's Greatest Hits" compilation, prominently featuring the book of destiny, gods descending to Earth, a mortal causing trouble in Yamalok, an election in the afterlife, a mortal soul on parole, and a scheme lifted directly from Bugs Bunny. The only thing that's missing is ice cream. Maybe in the sequel.
Raja (Jr NTR) and Mahi (Priyamani) met briefly as children, and while she was impressed enough to give him Chekhov's Locket, their lives developed in very different directions. Mahi grew up to live the life of a fairy tale princess - specifically Cinderella. While she is the heir to the family fortune, her greedy relatives force her to toil as a household servant. Worse, they are planning to marry her off to her loathsome cousin so that they can seize control of the family fortune. Mahi suffers in silence, dreaming of the day when her handsome prince will carry her away on a winged horse.
Raja, however, is no prince. He's a thief and a conman and (because this is a South Indian Mass movie) fantastically skilled at beating people up. While Raja and his partner Sathi (Ali) are very good at taking other people's money, their fence, the lovely Dhanalakshmi (Mamta Mohandas) is even better at taking theirs, so the pair are hoping for one big score.
They get their chance when Raja is hired to recover a lost dress (it's complicated.) Naturally, Raja succeeds, inadvertently rescuing Mahi from a gang of kidnappers in a spectacular action sequence involving a giant hamster ball. Unfortunately, the happy client drops dead just before he can sign the check, leaving Raja even deeper in debt. An angry and drunk Raja curses Yama, swearing vengeance for the poorly timed grim reaping.
Unfortunately, at that very moment, Yama (Mohan Babu) is showing the other gods just how much the people on Earth fear and respect him. (The trickster sage Narada (Naresh) suggested the celestial show and tell, meaning once again everything is Narada's fault.) Yama is so angry and humiliated that he orders Chitragupta (Brahmanandam) to alter Raja's entry in the Bhavishyavaani, changing his date of death from "in seventy five years" to "in ten days."
Back on Earth, angry drunk Raja throws Mahi out of the house. In the morning, though, he watches the news and discovers that she is a missing heiress, so he finds her (not hard since she's right outside the front door), charms her, and makes arrangements to ransom her back to her family. However, Raja is betrayed and murdered before he can collect the ransom, meaning he's sent straight to Yamalok. And then things get complicated.
After finding out where he is, Raja gets to work. He tricks Chitragupota into handing over Yama's magic noose, his "Life Extractor" as the subtitles call it, and because there's no pesky "if he be worthy" clause, he is granted the power of Yama. Original Yama also has the powers of Yama, of course, so there is a problem. Narada pops up long enough to suggest settling the dispute with an election, and the two Yamas agree. Classic Yama has experience and a loyal populace on his side, but New Yama grew up on Earth, so he is armed with the power of dirty politics and a lot of empty promises.
Yamadonga is about three hours long, which means that I have only scratched the surface of the plot, and it jumps genres more than once. Whenever the complicated plot starts to drag, though, the movie gives you a big elaborate action scene or an even bigger dance number. And because the movie is so long it can act as a sort of "Yama's Greatest Hits" compilation, prominently featuring the book of destiny, gods descending to Earth, a mortal causing trouble in Yamalok, an election in the afterlife, a mortal soul on parole, and a scheme lifted directly from Bugs Bunny. The only thing that's missing is ice cream. Maybe in the sequel.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)