Rechipo Review

Among the few things that will put you off of a plate of tandoori chicken is if you're being bribed with a free screening of Rechipo for eating it. The villain of the film goes one step further - he serves his business partner the severed head of a flunky who's betrayed him.

But food decoration classes are the least of the mafia's problems. Because our hero, Shiva (Nitin), is all set to enter their world now. Shiva, a Robinhood kinda thief, has just masterminded the robbery of the Home Minister's illicit money, that was got by dealings with the mafia. The mafia, we are told, is into heavy cricket betting, and is based out of a hotel room that's being passed off as the Middle East.

Currently, Shiva is at a random wedding in a random village, trying to feel up a babe called Krishnaveni (Ileana). The merriment slows down a bit when Krishnaveni is kidnapped by some thugs, but the romance blossoms weedishly, making way only for a few songs and cheesy comedy.

To nobody's shock and surprise, it is revealed that Krishnaveni is the daughter of the Home Minister (Ahuti Prasad) that Shiva stole from. To nobody's shock and surprise, the wedding party is soured when everyone comes to know that loose in their midst, are people who ought to be behind bars - the makers of Rechipo. To nobody's shock and surprise, Krishnaveni is heart-broken when Shiva's hobbies are revealed. And to everybody's shock and surprise, we've only come down as far as the interval.

Krishnaveni is angry with the now-arrested Shiva, and judiciously decides to vacation in Dubai, making things convenient for our mafia and for our 'script'. One more round of kidnapping later, the Home Minister pleads with Shiva to work things out and save his child.

Shiva then lands in sandy, windy Dubai, and even rescues Krishnaveni. But to fool the goons, they must catch the India-bound flight from a distant airport, for which they must cross the desert. This gives plenty - and plenty it is - of time for the film to catch up on comedy, songs and navels, and for the audience to catch up on some sleep.

You'd have to be hopelessly Ileana-struck if you were to head for this flick. Rechipo has nothing that we'd recommend, not if you want to watch a real film. The comedy doesn't work, the romance is bland, the suspense - or whatever it is that was intended - is non-existent, and every actor gets to mouth at least a few tasteless lines once in a while.

Nitin needs a good director, and simply cannot beat Ileana in the acting department. Ileana, by the way, is so good we're sure the makers wanted to cast her as the hero as well, but decided against it and boosted up her role by several notches in the second half. Everyone else is quite ordinary, and the dialogues aren't helping.

Technical values aren't admirable, and the desert sequences are quite boring. There are way too many songs - all mediocre fare - and lots of impressive choreography that's wasted on an exhausted audience.

Well, Rechipo is fun if you've brought a pillow and a blanket along. Happy napping!