What would you call a robot that can recharge invertors, double up as a ceiling fan, dance to your music, crack vulgar jokes with a straight face and above all protect you from a deadly villain? No prizes for guessing... It is Shah Rukh Khan.
One of the most eagerly awaited movies in recent times, both for the sort of monies that producer Shah Rukh spent on it as well as the hype that marketing genius Shah Rukh generated, the movie is all heart and no soul. And the heart that makes it tick is that of Shah Rukh Khan, the father of Aryan and Suhana Khan.
At just over two-and-half hours, the movie is definitely India's answer to the Super Heroes with a heart; something that Hollywood has specialized in for over five decades. However, unlike his western counterparts, G.One (euphemism for Jeevan or Life) turns to heroism only so that he can be his teenaged son's hero.
Click on and read our reasons for watching Bollywood's costliest movie and possibly giving it a miss...
Six reasons for watching 'Ra.One'
1. The first and foremost reason is the scale of special effects that the movie has. As part of the promotional program, Shah Rukh Khan had mentioned that the movie had more than 3,300 graphical interludes - substantially more than James Cameron's 'Avatar'.
2. More than the actual graphics it is the imagination used to produce the wow effect that needs to be applauded. Just like Shankar had Chitti (Rajnikanth) replicate himself in 'Endhiran' (Robot), Anubhav Sinha brings the house down with a scene that involves an electric locomotive breaking out of Mumbai's famous Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus.
3. Compared to the two other superhero movies from Bollywood ('Robot' and 'Krrish'), 'Ra.One' has its heart in the right place. It is aimed at children in the audience who can easily associate with the character of Prateek (Amaan Verma), the son of protagonist Shekhar Subramaniam (SRK).
4. Watch it for Shah Rukh's typical tongue-in-cheek humor like the scene where he reminds his Gujarati wife Sonia upset at all Hindi expletives targeting mothers and sisters that she is indeed Sonia Subramaniam and not Sonia Gandhi!
5. Director Anubhav Sinha has managed to weave the story of father-son love through the entire movie despite the fact that a major part of the film involves interaction between a robot and the geeky son who wants his father to create the ultimate video game.
6. As a special case, we're adding an extra reason for watching the movie. All Rajnikanth fans have their catcall moment when the superstar emerges from a super car and recognizes the new superhero.
Five reasons to avoid 'Ra.One'
1. If you have been completely overwhelmed by the publicity blitz and go into the auditorium expecting an emotional roller-coaster, you are likely to be disappointed as the movie is clearly aimed at children in the audience accompanied by their indulgent parents.
2. The movie is full of SRK-isms - something the Badshah Khan seems to have perfected ever since he and best buddy Karan Johar got together to poke fun at anything and everything in 'Kal Ho Na Ho', released a good seven to eight years ago.
3. Fans of Kareena Kapoor may find that she is wasted in a movie that is completely limited to a fight to the end between good and evil. Any other good looker could have fitted the bill. Of course, do not miss out on Kareena's nasty look in the scene involving an over speeding train.
4. At one point the villain Ra.One (Arjun Rampal) tells young Prateek that his existence is the result of our desire for evil. Looks like poor Arjun, who was kept out of the promos till the very last minute, has to be satisfied at playing second fiddle to the Good One! Shortchanged or what?
5. For those of us who are not into sci-fi, G.One appears as a pale shadow of the likes of real life superheroes like Chulbul Pandey of 'Dabangg'. No offense meant to the King Khan, but by the looks of it, the Desi audience may well prefer their Desi heroes.
My Verdict: A must watch for every diehard fan of Shah Rukh Khan. The movie spares no effort or money to provide for a wholesome superhero fare. If only 'papa' Khan had spent a few more minutes on the script, the audience would have eagerly waited for a sequel. For now, we think 'Ra.One' has no future as Ra.Two! For this is a movie made by a kid for other kids.
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