MIMI

Missing those masala entertainers from the late 90s & 2000s? ‘Filmy log, filmy situations or tum bohot filmy ho…’ why do we say that is because Hindi cinema is melodramatic & the masala Hindi film is the only type of cinema that is irreplaceable by any other language films for us. Here is Mimi, a film that fits into that category completely…

Welcomes with a Treat!

After ages, I saw an intro song for the protagonist done to give a vibe of the character unlike the forced remake songs made just to mint money. Param Sundari is a treat at the start. This song has good music, very well sung by Shreya Ghosal and some fabulous choreography by Ganesh Acharya.

Kriti Sanon surprises pleasantly, she is as graceful & confident as we used to have heroines back in the day (almost reminded Aishwarya Rai in this one). It’s rare to see a heroine with so much grace in today’s films when star kids are struggling to move properly & some just doing gymnastic types, this one has proper Bollywood style dancing. Yes the lyrics start with cheesy lines ‘Bikaneri chokri, santre ki tokri’ because it’s a masala Hindi film & very shamelessly remains so throughout.

The plot & its problems…

The song & the next scene establish the plot, Mimi is the most good-looking & graceful dancer of Bikaner wanting to join films. The ambition looks believable for the dance has proved it to you that she is. Although no other focus was on Mimi doing an acting course or even rehearsing much apart from flirting with a Ranveer Singh poster.

Realistically seeing it, she has a local Marwari accent she hasn’t worked on yet & wishes to join films just because she knows some Jolly Bhaiyya from Mumbai calling her who seems like a fraud ripping off small towners but they never cared to reveal that truth. However, we shouldn’t think so much, told you it’s a masala Hindi film.

The rest of the plot is her taking a surrogacy offer for money to make a portfolio & them fleeing away while Mimi is stuck with the pregnancy (watch the trailer & this is all covered). Now what would she do & how these paid surrogate babies are abandoned shall be the focus & was a strong message which the film just touched & left. Maybe they thought ‘picture dull hojayegi’.

The climax too had a regressive approach for an ambitious female protagonist which could have been fixed easily. Laxman Utekar who previously directed Luka Chuppi showed how he can be insensitive & illogical to these things again. Perhaps the good message which Mimi has is because it’s a remake of a Marathi film ‘Mala Aai Vhhaychy’.

The positives

The pluses are the performances & the humour. The casting is done right; Pankaj Tripathi has proven yet again why he is a gem, Manoj Pahwa & Supriya Pathak add well as veterans too. Sai Tamhalkar is pretty good as the perfect ally to Mimi. Kriti Sanon too surprises this time, this is the best performance of hers to date. Each scene is done with conviction by her & she shoulders the responsibility well of a film without a star hero.

The film entertains for most of the part; it has quirky comedy, some emotional scenes & fairly good performances. A.R. Rahman’s music perhaps isn’t his best but the background score throughout is soothing & adds the seriousness the scenes require.

Oasis for entertainment seekers!!

Mimi as a character entertains for most parts. The problem with this one is they had a good topic wasted just because the focus was on making an entertainer. Clearly, this one was made with an attempt to be a theatrical blockbuster (& could have done well) but Covid brought it to Netflix.

It’s still an oasis in the latest Hindi releases on OTT as most of the current thrillers disappoint, Arjun Kapoor & Parineeti Chopra movies were never a hope for us & even Hungama 2 was underwhelming. Mimi is a one-time watch if you are a Masala film fan.

Verdict – 3*** of 5

(One star added for entertaining without a male superstar)