UNINTENTIONAL COMEDY
MOHENJO DARO Direction: Ashutosh Gowariker Actors: Hrithik Roshan, Pooja Hegde Rating:
It breaks my heart to say this because so much talent and sweat is involved, but Mohenjo Daro is a mess. The burden of carrying this leaden narrative proves too much even for Hrithik Roshan’s Herculean shoulders. I’m sure that director Ashutosh Gowariker started with a grand vision – a historical film set in 2016 BC, essentially Amar Chitra Katha meets 300 meets Baahubali but he has been utterly let down by his own writing. We are introduced to the noble and handsome Sarman, who can kill a crocodile. Sarman seems like a regular village hero, with a sidekick named Hojo. Except that he is desperate to see the big city – Mohenjo Daro. Soon he makes his way there. Before you know it, Sarman and Chaani, the priest’s daughter, are making eyes at each other. He saves her from horses! But Chaani is already booked – she has to marry Moonja, the glowering son of Mohenjo Daro’s prad- han, Maham. Between them, the murderous Moonja and Maham keep all the citizens of this town terrorised. This battle of good versus evil is interrupted by traditions like Milan Raat – basically a mass dating night. Sarman has already been identified as a troublemaker, so he participates in disguise – he puts two white lines on his cheeks and red paint around his eyes. And guess what – no one recognises him. I think the weight of all the headgear these people wear had probably addled their brains. When Sarman gets too problematic, Maham throws him into an arena with oversized, dreadlocked warriors called Bakar-Zokar. Their fight sequence is the highlight of the film. As is AR Rahman’s fantastic music. The rest of it veers between bewildering and bad. Ashutosh tries to bolster the story by tacking on larger lessons on greed, the price of progress and revenge, but it just doesn’t hold together. Debutant Pooja Hegde looks lovely but I hope she gets to do more in her next film. In an interview, Ashutosh had requested viewers to suspend disbelief when they see the film. I really tried. But, eventually, Maham’s horned headdress defeated me.