Starring: Sudeep, Naani, Samantha (and the fly)
Directed by S.S. Rajamouli
Rating: ***
Take the age-old reincarnation theme of Indian films, add a dash of fantasy and sci-fi and a moral more implicit than overt and what you get is a winsome film. Makkhi begins a little awkwardly. A rich baddie has eyes for a good girl who is into micro art and charity. While the good guy is willing to even lay down his life for her. He does, only to be reborn as a fly. Things are tepid till such time as the little Makkhi enters the scene. And then the film turns into one of the most enjoyable rides of the year.
There is one delightful sequence after another. The fly’s extended adventure beneath the villain’s shoes, among water bubbles and with a cricket ball tickles the imagination. As does the long chase with two giant birds hot on his heels. Another scene has Makkhi wreaking vengeance on a giant of a villain by just buzzing in his ears and reducing him to a pitiful mess in a sauna.
The tiny braveheart is strong enough to take the villain to the verge of a fatal accident and make an utter fool of himself at a crucial business presentation. All along the audience applauds in glee and rolls in laughter. The revenge of the fly has us all rooting for it. When was the last we ever felt strongly For a fly. Go Makkhi Go!