Production: Pramod Films, Trident Arts Cast: Aishwarya Rajesh, Ditya, Prabhu Deva Direction: Vijay Screenplay: Vijay Story: Nirav Shah, Vijay Music:Sam CS Background score: Sam CS Cinematography: Nirav Shah Dialogues: Ajayan Bala, Vijay Editing: Anthony
A film on dance with Prabhu Deva in one of the lead roles — you know what to expect from it. Right from the word go, Lakshmi is exactly what you expect from a dance-based movie. It has some spectacular dance, okayish dramatic moments and a not-so-bad conflict.
Lakshmi (Ditya) is her mother, Nandini’s (Aishwarya Rajesh) apple of the eye. The latter enrolls her in a school, but the former’s world revolves around dance. Lakshmi loves dancing as if there is no tomorrow — she dances on the streets, inside the public bus, her classroom, almost everywhere. Though her teachers are irritated with her enthusiasm for dance, Nandini — who hates dance to the core — hardly knows about this.
With the help of Krishna (Prabhu Deva), a coffee shop owner, she gets enrolled in a dance academy, after which her life witnesses a new turn.
Lakshmi has almost everything that is required to keep the audience engaged. Ditya is the scene stealer of the movie — her grace in movements and ease in pulling off the role impresses one and all. A dance sequence by Prabhu Deva, which appears in the flashback portion, is a delight to watch. But the flashback sequence is weak and too predictable.
The supporting characters aren’t established properly. The likes of Kovai Sarala (as the school principal) and Karunakaran (coffee shop employee) evoke laugh at certain instances, and are OK. The mannerisms and screen presence of the other kids in the dance group are quite enjoyable. Salman Yusuff Khan’s dance, too, is a pleasure to watch, while Sofia is OK. Music by Sam CS and Nirav Shah’s
Lakshmi, along with other dancers at the academy plan to take part in a national dance competition in Mumbai for the Pride Of India competition, a reality dance show hosted by a television channel. Without her mom’s knowledge, Lakshmi travels to Mumbai to take part in the event. However her team gets disqualified as Lakshmi gets cold feet at a crucial moment in the dance competition. At this time Krishna steps in asks the organisers to give her another chance. The organisers recognise Krishna and put forward some condition that leads to the finale.
The first half of the film moves like a breeze and Ditya is undoubtedly the scene stealer with her terrific dance movements. This has the audiences rooting for her. It is post interval where the film starts losing its fizz as flashback scenes become a part of the back story involving Prabhu Deva and Aishwarya Rajesh. The story is hazy and there are a lot of unexplained portions to be filled up. The plus points of the film are Ditya and Prabhu Deva’s dance sequences. The peppy music of SamC and Nirav Shah’s camera adds to the richness of the film. Prabhu Deva puts his best foot forward; he is an ace dancer after all.
