Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari Movie Review: Rating 2.5/5
Movie: Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari
Director: KR Chandru
Cast: Dheeraj, Pradaini Surva, Radha Ravi, Ajay, Dushara
Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari (BYBM) opens with an Alcoholics Anonymous-like rehabilitation meeting for drug Addicts. A couple of the members share their stories and in walks Karthik (debutant Dheeraj, who gets a mass hero-like introduction). He begins to narrate his story, which is a cautionary tale against taking drugs.
We see him as a young man who has everything going for him – a happy family that’s only going to get happier as he is about to get married to his sweetheart (Dusshara, promising). But then he gets that fateful call which takes his to his friend Roshan’s apartment. And what begins as a bachelor party involving friends takes a weird turn when Karthik ends up snorting a drug (one that’s is more potent than weed and cocaine, we are told) by accident. And Karthik’s perfect life begins to unravel in ways that he might have hardly imagined.
The premise has promise, but BYBM is undone by unimaginative writing and unaffecting characters. Karthik is written as a normal young man, but it is hard to identify with the character because Dheeraj’s performance is too stiff. The rest of the characters are perfunctory, especially the friends. There is a sub-plot involving a corrupt cop (Ajay, solid) and a journalist (Pradaini, a little conscious) who is trying to bust a drug ring, but even this isn’t effective.
There are alcohol and drugs involved. After a freakish snorting incident, we have a hero who has no recollection of the last five hours. Though Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari’s premise feels like the love child of The Hangover and Naduvula Konja Pakkatha Kaanom, the film has enough merit to stand on its own. However, the filmmaker’s reluctance to peg Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari into a particular genre becomes both the selling point and drawback of the film.
Is it a stoner comedy like the recently released Bharath-starrer Simba? Is it a labyrinthine crime thriller like Arulnithi’s K-13? Is it a hyperlink story about a drug syndicate, corrupt cops, and a group of friends who just wanted to get sloshed like numerous Venkat Prabhu films? Though the switch between genres, including horror, is bumpy, the film does manage to keep us invested. Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari works especially well in the second act, which is almost a chamber drama.
Director Chandru and screenplay writer Kathir Natarasan stage one impressive sequence after the other, and armed with the expository music of composer KP, almost pull off an audacious film. However, the third act is a misfire and a major downer. The tonal shift feels jarring and the overtly theatrical performances by the supporting actors don’t help either.
Dheeraj convincingly sells the stoner facet of the character, doing a decent job when reeling under the consequences of his drug-induced trip. However, most of the other actors, including supermodel-turned-actor Pradaini Surva, have very little to do. Kireedam-fame Ajay, as a hard-boiled cop, does stand out with his imposing demeanour. Though the makers have cleverly featured Bigg Boss-housemate Meera Mithun in the promos, she plays essentially a blink-and-you-miss role. Veteran actors like Charle and Radha Ravi too are wasted in inconsequential roles with unbelievably limited screentime.
In one of the initial scenes in the Bodhai Yeri Budhi Maari, bone-crunching gut-smashing violence is immediately followed by someone watching Tom and Jerry, and this contrast is enjoyable. The scenes blurring the lines between reality and hallucination are noteworthy as well; special mention to cinematographer Balasubramaniem for his work in these portions. There is intent, and it’s delivered with tongue firmly in cheek. It is such ingenuity, also seen in the lone song sequence, Virgin Stoner, which goes missing when the makers decide to deliver a social message. It rings false, and the ending almost nullifies the sharpness in the middle portions.
True to the film’s title, Chandru does take us on a mildly intoxicating ride and helps us reach a perceptible high. However, instead of letting us slowly waltz in the la-la land in our minds, we are crash-landed back to reality with a huge brightly-lit neon sign that says: ‘Drugs are bad’. Well, for the majority of us who knew that even before embarking on this ride on the high skies, the least they could have done is made the landing a bit smoother. I mean, who even likes to have a hangover?
