Manikyakallu ..just about average

Kadha parayumbol fame director mohanan is back with this film which revolves around a school infamous for it's dipping success ration in SSLC . with no basic infrastructure , irresponsible teachers and a bunch hopeless students the school is one big mess .

here comes freshly appointed teacher , vinayachandran  (prithviraj)  to the village who is on a one man mission to elevate the school to next level and how he manages to do that wraps the film .the basic plot of the film is strikingly similar to satyan-sreeni cult doore doore oru koodu kootam which includes the characterization largely caricatures like a HM more seen on fields , under wear selling physics sir ,  over made up madam , politically inclined sir and so many.


the first half is pure mediocre what with  when prithviraj not busy preaching we are subjected to cliched humor , dialogues , scenes  and dumb sentiments . all blame to the screenplay  written by the director himself which is lame and refuses to be innovative  .

on comparison second half is likable as the serious scenes becomes bit effective making the proceedings engaging  and despite the climax being extremely predictable it might bring a smile or two on your face . but then again we cannot ignore unintentionally funny scenes like the saluting scene . lmao

as film maker mohanan fails the test as he lacks the X factor  quite evident the way he has handled many a scenes and agonizingly picturized songs .
and what's his strange fixation with school climax ...

all prithviraj has to do in the film is to preach making the scenes look like a doc and his role is quite larger than life making every one from a minister to DEO numb by his polished speeche . yawn
too bad that  he simply sticks to the contrived script rather than pulling it above the draft . samvrutha has a name sake role but she look gorgeous esp in the unwanted duet with prithvi  while rest of the characters fails to strike any chord .

songs by jayachandran are quite nice and though the night class song might trash your logic balls it made for a good watch .

on the whole manikyakallu is a film which has it's heart at the right place but a dismantled screenplay takes it just to the passing mark.

Chalo dilli ....breezy filmy ride

Two individuals as different  as chalk and cheese forced to be  together is not a fresh idea at all. from dil hai ki mantha nahi to jab v met  we have seen the same stuff quite a few times . when dealing with a tested formula what matters is the packaging where this film works to a larger extent .

so we have lara dutta , a hoity-toity banker who is also a cleanliness freak and on the other side there is vinay pathak , pan chewing -loud mouth average hindustani .  the duo might sound odd even as strangers but circumstances make them board a cab together  to delhi  from jaipur . what follows is a  few unexpected twists and turns and how the two standing on  two edges of a spectrum bond .

chalo dilli has a imitiz ali kind screenplay in it exploring small town regulars with a dash of humor on it .
there is array of character faces like the ever sleepy cabbie , usually named guddu the dabba boy , a bengali couple in general class , corrupt ticket checker , local goon and a small hotel which seems a replica of decent hotel in jab v met. while some of them leaves a mark rest just takes a pass .

though the ride comes across too filmy at times it manages to make up for a compelling watch mostly . as someone has said  real india lies in the core small towns of the country and that realization by the team gives the film it's moments .

sunrise in junglee dabba , chai in broken glasses , reddish basin in tomato hotel and of course the very genuine people is what brings a smile on the viewer . cinematographer has got ample scope to sweep the captivating beauty of rajasthan while the director has largely sticked to script with no much contribution 

lara dutta does her job well but it's not something to rave about  and vinay pathak gives a believable performance unlike in rab ne bana de jodi .

but on the down side film takes away your  interest as things become bit forced when  humor becomes dry and  turn predictable . also the climax is too stretched and cliched taking away the charm maintained till then .


chalo dilli is a film which could have been lovable had the makers been more careful about the overall appeal.



rating : 3/5  ..... above average