Fighting a lonely battle. Review on Akira

A determined fight for deliverance of a courageous girl who gets entangled in an organized corrupt criminal system.

‘Akira’ is the official remake of the tamil thriller ‘Mouna Guru’.  The only difference is the lead male protagonist in ‘Mouna Guru’ is replaced by a female in ‘Akira’.

I would love to watch a remake only if it is an improved version of the original. I recollect the Bollywood movie ‘Bang Bang’, though an official remake of the Hollywood ‘Knight and Day’, the former was a complete overhaul of the original where though the script retained the core concept, it was modified to wow the Indian crowd in true desi style.

‘Akira’ did try to alter the script a bit in the first half by applying sensibility and reasoning in the build-up of the character of the lead female protagonist by incorporating martial arts to counter male dominated atrocities.  The character of Akira is thus strongly developed making the screenplay very effective, providing assurance to the viewers and engaging them till the end.

Story:  Akira(Sonakshi Sinha), born and brought up in Jodhpur is the daughter of a school teacher who is specialized in sign language. To counter bullying and eve teasing, she is equipped with training in martial arts. Her brother who is married and settled in Mumbai requests his mother and sister to stay with him which would assist in babysitting his new born baby. ‘Akira’ enrolls in a college in Mumbai that provides lodging and boarding. An evidence of a ruthless crime committed by Mumbai's Assistant Commissioner of Police(Anurag Kashyap) and his colleagues finds its way to the girl’s hostel and mistakenly is in possession with Akira.  This results in her abduction and that of other witnesses with the intent to be eliminated by the cops in fake encounter.  Akira’s grit and valor gets the better of her adversaries with ‘good’ prevailing over ‘evil’.

Cast: Credit goes to cast selection. Sonakshi displayed great commitment to her character which seemed to be carved out just for her. Anurag Kashyap was stunning as a dreaded ruthless cop. Konkana Sen gave a matured performance as a cop investigating a murder.   The young school going Akira is a look alike of Sonakshi Sinha and hence was a brilliant pick. The other actors in supporting roles left their impact.

Pros: Sonakshi Sinha, Anurag Kashyap, Script, Direction, Camerawork, Editing and Cast Selection.

Cons: The second half was copy paste of the original and boring in bits.  Some of these scenes could have been modified / improved upon. The mental hospital torture of Akira and the police investigation was a drag. In the end Akira asking to be sedated so she could go to the mental hospital could have been faked as the Police was in the know of the truth and supported her. While Akira was fighting, running or exhausted, she was in full make-up at all times.

Direction: The film is co-Produced and Directed by A R Murugadoss who has earlier contributed to Bollywood with ‘Ghajini’ and ‘Holiday’ - both were remakes of South Indian hits. He has depth in his screenplay that engages the viewer emotionally. He is skillful and effective in displaying onscreen ruthlessness and excellence in fight choreography. The locales, lighting, camerawork and cinematography were praiseworthy. The songs were well written and suited the occasion.

Conclusion: ‘Akira’ is a brilliant film that promises entertainment and provides value for your time and money. The viewers, especially women will be inspired by Akira’s boldness, strength and grace while Sonakshi Sinha steals the show. Highly recommended for your family and friends this week.