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Rediff.com  » Movies » Bhagavan is tardy

Bhagavan is tardy

By Paresh C Palicha
May 18, 2009 14:06 IST
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We have a habit of deifying megastars. In films he is hailed as the people's avatar or saviour and sometimes, a whole film is just devoted to reiterate this point. And this is what happens in the Malayalam film Bhagavan starring Mohanlal and directed by newcomer Prasanth Mambully.

The USP of this film is that it was shot in a record breaking seventeen hours flat. But the end result, to put it plainly, is disappointing. Shots are repeated time and again with slow motion and split screens happening quite often. The vigour you expect from such an effort is missing; instead it feels tardy to the core.

The filmmaker starts by thanking all and sundry for helping him accomplish this ground breaking feat (which take away few precious minutes and the worst part is that he gives away the plot in the process).

The plot is inspired by the 26/11 siege of Mumbai. Our hero gynaecologist Dr Balagopalan is in the thick of things from the beginning itself.

The film starts with a voiceover announcing that God's Own Country may face Mumbai kind of attacks. The very same day, our doctor gets a VIP patient (Home Minister's wife) for delivery and terrorists take the minister and his baby hostage demanding the release of one of their comrades.

The rest of the film shows how the gynaecologist almost single handedly takes on the terrorists and finishes them even before the NSG commandos land there. Not only that, he also averts their plans to blast other important places in the state.  All this while he humbly refuses the offer to recommend himself for a bravery award by the Chief of the Anti-Terror Squad.

Horror of horrors is that the word Bhagavan is used innumerable times referring to the doctor.

Mohanlal looks jaded in the film. Maybe, the pressure of finishing the work in a few hours had taken its toll. No other actor has got any prominence to be mentioned here.

All in all, Bhagavan has nothing going for it except for the record breaking effort gone into making it.

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Paresh C Palicha