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Comedy unlimited

Comedy has always been Kamal Haasan's forte. And he proves that yet again in 'Mumbai Express' - a journey filled with pure and clean comedy.

'Mumbai Express' is about chaos and confusion and the comical scenes that it can trigger, very much the genre of movies like 'Kaadhala Kaadhala', 'Panchathantiram' and 'Tenali'.

Avinashi (Kamal Haasan), an innocent bike rider with a circus troupe, is forced to kidnap a boy. With a well-etched plan worked out by him, Chidambaram (Pasupathi) and Johnson (Vayapuri), he kidnaps... the wrong boy! What happens after this, and how chaos and confusion muddles the whole affair forms the rest of the plot.

'Katradhu Tamizh' Ram's next Diwali in Suburbs Rajini Still In A Dilemma! அஜீத் பேட்டி? ராம் இயக்கத்தில் சேரன்? கமல் பாராட்டிய டைட்டில்்

Kamal plays his part with ease, and has taken a lot of efforts for the chase sequences. His foray into dialogue writing is commendable, but nothing like the 'Crazy' (Mohan) effect - someone Kamal would have missed sorely in this movie. After a convincing portrayal as villain in 'Virumaandi' and some other movies, Pasupathi proves his excellence in comedy. Vayapuri, Ramesh 'insoorance' Aravind and Baazigar add to the general mirth.

Manisha Koirala does a decent job. The always under-rated Nasser churns yet another very good performance as the frightened cop, and Santhana Bharati as the rich Chettiar is apt. But, the heart-stealer of the whole show is Laddu (Hardhik), the chubby and cherubic Mumbai schoolboy who speaks Tamil as good as you and me.

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Ilayaraja's re-recording and background score match the quick pace of the movie. 'Poo Poothathe...' is a lovely melody sung beautifully by Sonu Nigam and Sreya Ghosal. The other numbers that one heard in the album do not find a good place in the movie - they are just played often in the background. Siddharth's camera needs special mention; the scene when Kamal walks dangerously on the crane has been shot excellently. I've definitely forgotten someone, and he's the most important man in the movie - director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao. He has channelised Kamal's enthusiasm in the right direction.

Though Kamal's claim that this movie is 'Michael Madana Kama Rajan - 2' cannot be agreed, 'Mumbai Express' reveals the story of a kidnap gone wrong in a comical manner, with the chaos and confusion on screen leaving you in splits.

Srinivasa Ramanujam
Published on April 20^th, 2005

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