Mehbooba- a sloppy weepie

Mehbooba, which has just been released, is a sloppy story where the talented cast and technical crew has been wasted in an inane plot that bores you to death.

The story borrows heavily form Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Saajan but still cannot hold a minute of interest. It stars Sunjay Dutt , Manisha Koirala and Ajay Devgan in a love triangle and apparently has taken nine years in the making.

The story is a typical emotional drama. It revolves around one Karan (Ajay Devgan) who constantly dreams of a female face and is obsessed by it. By providence, he traces her in Budapest and she (Manisha Koirala) is Payal who reveals that she has a sad past when she was used and abused by a cruel man. But she finally responds to Karan’s advances and they agree to get engaged in India. Cut to India and what else, but Karan’s brother Sunjay Dutt (Shravan) turns out to be the man who abused but is now in love with her.

What follows is melodrama, sacrifice, weeping and wailing. There follows the standard sacrifice story between siblings on who will forego the girl and who will gain her. Each one tries to outdo the other in surrendering, till the point that the heroine claims she has never seen such love amongst brothers before. As per cinematic laws, one brother has to die in the climax.

Mehbooba is a movie out of place in our times. Its heavy melodrama is suited more to the 80’s potboiler. Watching it now, one cant help giggle at the thin , predictable plot with its heavy dose of melodrama and its constant refrain of “ mehbooba” in the songs as well as dialogues that tends to irritate.

What is sad is the waste of talent. Manisha Koirala looks ethereal. Sunjay Dutt and Ajay Devgan emote as well as the plot lets them. Ashok Mehta’s (No Entry, Waqt, Gaja Gamini) cinematography is crisp, and captures Rajasthan and Budapest beautifully. Art direction by Nitin Desai (Devdas, Jodhaa Akbar, Munnabhai), is gorgeous. Music by Ismail Durbar is haunting. But Afzal Khan the director totally lets us down.

In sum, it is a boring film with an inane plot and with a lot of fine talent wasted.

Dasavatharam movie

Actors: Kamal Haasan, Asin, Jayapradha, Mallika Sherawat, Napoleon, Santhana Bharathi, M S Bhasker
Direction: K S Ravikumar Production: V Ravichandran
Art director: Prabhakar Music: Himesh Reshammiya
Cinematography: Ravi Varman Dance choreographer: Brinda

Kamal Haasan pens the story, screenplay and dialogue apart from sporting 10 different looks in his new film, ‘Dasavatharam’. Playing the female lead is Asin, with Jayapradha and Mallika Sherawat in crucial roles. The cast also includes Napoleon, Santhana Bharathi and M S Bhasker. The film introduces to the Tamil arena Himesh Reshammiya, the popular music director of Hindi films. The film is directed by K S Ravikumar.

The story, not much of which is revealed out, seems like a travel back in time. One of the roles has Kamal playing Rangaraj Nambi, the episode set in the 12th century. Sharing frames with him here is Napoleon as Kulothunga Chozhan. The Chidambaram temple, horses, elephants, and the set all added to the ambiance. The scene depicted Nambi’s distress when Chozhan throws the idol of the Lord into the sea.

Yet another role has Kamal playing a scientist, the episode set a few centuries back, in America. A set of a laboratory was designed by art director Prabhakar, where the scientist does his research. The episode includes the lab being destroyed in an accident, paving way for the next adventure.

A sizzling dance number was picturised on Mallika Sherawat at different locations and night spots in Malaysia. Accompanying Mallika were 20 dancers from the US, and choreographing the number was Brinda.

The shots were canned by cinematographer Ravi Varman. Produced by V Ravichandran for Oscar Films Pvt Ltd, ‘Dasavatharam’ is a film awaited with great anticipation by the audience.