Desi attempt to go Marvel way

Johnson Thomas

This prequel origin story for the intended 2025 biggie release of ‘Jai Hanuman’ starts off in great fashion. We see a chemically-engineered superhero looking to augment his superhero mantle through a lab setting. On the other hand, there’s this cool kurta-clad youngster, Hanumanth — a wastrel and ace thief in a remote village, fatalistically coming across a ‘mani’ that lends him superpowers during daylight. ‘Hanu Man’ is basically a desi attempt to go the Marvel way but the constant summoning of ‘Shazam’ here is of little help to those expecting complete originality and substance. Of course, there’s no doubt that this divine outreach, which coincides with the period in which the intended inauguration of the Ram Mandir is set to be performed, has market and religion-determined opportunism in its essay.

Hanuman, who is among the most beloved characters in Indian mythology, is the source of inspiration for our desi superhero Hanumanth (Teja Sajja), who finds the ‘mani’ containing the centuries-long preserved drop of blood that Lord Hanuman shed, and, therefore, is able to summon the Lord’s unassailable powers for himself. But it takes the untimely death of his beloved older sister (Varalaxmi Sarathkumar) to egg him on to a final confrontation with the dark superhero-turned-villain Michael (Vinay Rai) who wants to steal the mani and keep all power to himself.

The narrative begins with the backstory of the villain in his preteens who finds his aspiration to become a superhero gets emblazoned in guilt. Eventually, he manages to find a scientist smart enough to aid him in his quest, but the chemically-engineered powers being limited and experiments to reach the next level failing, Michael has no hope but to search for a source that is unassailable.

Hanumanth’s introductory sequence as a fluent thief reminds us of a similar scene in Mani Ratnam’s ‘Raavan’. But that association does not sustain for long as the script goes haywire trying to increase the emotional quotient with family and community-based drama. The romance is half-baked, even though it occupies a large amount of screen time. This should have been an action film largely, but the evolutionary impediments and constant hammering of the Hanuman Chalisa in bits and pieces initially, and then in a prolonged fashion towards the climax, makes it completely clear that this film is intended for the Ram and Hanuman bhakts and that the copious opportunism is obviously premeditated.

In spite of limitations in budget, ‘Hanu Man’ manages to provide us with great looking visuals. The saturated colouring allows for a comic book/graphic novel look. The camerawork is inveigling and the tech support in terms of the CGI, though crummy, can be glossed over. The narrative, though, gets a little too long and tedious as it navigates through plot elements that don’t seem all too necessary to the telling of this tale. The lack of cutting-edge action set-pieces is a huge drawback. The constant flagging of the tempo also puts paid to an overall positive outcome here. Teja Sajja is likeable as Hanu Man. But it’s his kurtis that catch the eye, not necessarily his acting talents. Varalaxmi Sarathkumar brings on the waterworks and Vinay Rai as the villain makes his a stylised rendition. The performances are obviously not great but bearable.

‘Hanu Man’ may not be a complete entertainer but it manages to ensnare the hopefuls with some intermittent excitement and obvious allusions to the divine.