Monday, July 09, 2012

Naan Ee - The Buzzing Entertainer

Quoting Vidya Balan from The Dirty Picture, "Filmein sirf teen cheezon ki wajah se chalti hain... Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment". And that is what Naan Ee provides you. Entertainment to the core from start to end of the end credits. And the amazing fact is that most of it is delivered through a tiny little housefly (Ee), sans any big stars.

A man madly in love with a girl is killed by a business magnet who sets an eye on the girl. He reincarnates as a housefly to save his lover who is now in the danger of getting into the trap of his killer. As simple as the story and concept sounds, it could have been easily turned into a silly piece of crap by the likes of Ramanarayanan. Instead, SS Rajamouli has created an outstanding entertainer that caters to audience of all ages and keeps them glued to screen all through.

Nani plays a sweet lover and dies early in the film. The only duet featuring him and Samantha is too colorful and a delight to watch on screen. Besides looking pretty, Samantha performs well in a strong role as a micro-artist and social worker and both of these are vital to her characterization and used well in moving the film forward.

But, the film ultimately belongs to two characters. One is the "Ee" or the reincarnated Nani, which comes for almost three fourth of the film. Right from its birth from a pupa, till it burns itself in the process of killing the villain and saving the lady love from previous birth, the fly rules the film completely. On the other end is Sudeep, the strong villain yet who can't get rid of a housefly from his life. He grows more and more evil from beginning to end and at the end gets killed in revenge.

The scenes involving the two are so interesting to watch and most of them leave you in splits. The ways in which the fly keeps Sudeep away from Samantha are very natural and nothing more than what a fly does. The stunts even if exaggerated are not lengthy enough or even a bit boring. Santhanam in a miniscule role shines and other minor characters in the film have performed their best.

The film works big time because of two factors - a strong script and special effects. It is extremely difficult to hold audience for over two hours without any big stars and that too with the antics of a housefly. But the brilliance of Rajamouli's script and direction manages to do that. Even the smallest details are taken care like the view from the fly's compound eye, which is shown as many lenses. The power of its eyes is also used very well in the stunts.


The whole story happens in 3 weeks which is pretty much the average life span of a housefly. Samantha being a micro-artist justifies the mask and metal claws that the fly gets. She interacting with a dumb and deaf girl in a charity event helps her understanding of fly's actions make more sense. The fly in itself is designed with typical features of a male fly. Any other errors made are not significant when compared to the entertainment we get.

The special effects which are said to have cost 7 crore are worth every penny spent, because that makes the film more realistic and non-Ramanarayan type. And the time taken to ensure it comes perfect has really paid off. The first interactions of the fly with outside world in a park are extraordinary and the standard is then maintained throughout.

The outstanding camera work by K. K. Senthil Kumar and crisp editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao are a major plus for the film. Same goes with the music and background score by Keeravani, which keeps the mood and tone of the film intact throughout. Dialogues by Crazy Mohan are crisp, and funny too when required. An example is when Samantha feeds coffee for the fly in a saucer, the Coffee Day waiter claims sorry for having fly in the coffee and Samantha replies "No, No, Ee coffee kudichitu iruku".

The film has everything that is required for a commercial entertainer and is a winner in all aspects. Even the end credits are completely hilarious with Santhanam and Crazy Mohan making an appearance. A tiny housefly which could be a nuisance to us everyday has been made into a charming super hero and you can't just stop smiling when it says "I Am Back" at the end. We wish to say the same after entering the theatre for a second watch.

Naan Ee - Flying high