'Hey! Sinamika': 5 takeaways from Aditi Rao Hydari-Dulquer Salmaan's film
What's the story
Dulquer Salmaan, who considers himself to be a "visiting actor" in Tamil cinema, marks his comeback there after two years with Hey! Sinamika.
The romantic comedy is also the directorial debut of ace choreographer Brindha Master.
Kajal Aggarwal and Aditi Rao Hydari round up the principal cast.
So, does it live up to the hype?
We list out our five takeaways from the film.
#1
Film attempts to bash gender stereotypes
Salmaan's Yaazhan is shown to be a househusband, who doesn't mind slipping into his wife's anarkali.
"When women can wear men's clothes, why not the reverse?" he wonders, leaving us amused.
The film's attempt at smashing gender stereotypes is appreciated and we get reminded of Hindi film Ki & Ka, which had started a dialog toward the same.
Hope, Hey! Sinamika does that, too.
#2
Mani Ratnam's influence takes away director's uniqueness
In a previous interview, Brindha had stated that the film is her tribute to her idol Mani Ratnam.
And, we find ample examples of the same. The only problem is there are just too many.
Starting from the costumes to locales, all reek of Ratnam.
And this has, sadly, not worked in favor of Brindha, as we fail to find her uniqueness.
#3
Rao, Salmaan perform well; Aggarwal fails
Now, coming to the actors.
Thankfully, Hey! Sinamika has well-sketched out women characters, who have a proper role to play in the film. Their lives are not revolved around Yaazhan only.
Rao Hydari and Salmaan are solid separately but there's a certain awkwardness when the two come together.
Meanwhile, Aggarwal fails to match their level and looks like a beautiful and mobile robot.
#4
Film's top crew members are women
Apart from having a female director calling the shots, Hey! Sinamika had female technicians on board for many top roles.
Like, the cinematography of the film was done by Preetha Jayaraman, who is the niece of acclaimed lensman PC Sreeram.
Also, the editing was handled by Radha Sridhar. This is definitely a welcome move and should be practiced more often.
#5
Disappointment: Almost no 'comedy' in this romantic comedy
Even though the movie has been pegged as a "romantic comedy," the "comedy" fizzles out in no time.
Also, its core plot is pretty unreasonable. Sample this: Mouna (Rao Hydari) wants her psychologist Dr. Malarvizhi (Aggarwal) to seduce Yaazhan, so that he leaves the former. Which professional psychologist does that!
The climax and ending (not revealing) are ridiculous and give a rather juvenile feel.