Movie Review ‘Inji Idupazhagi’: Film lacks some dearly needed authenticity

Cast: Anushka Shetty, Arya, Prakash Raj, Urvashi

Direction: Prakash Kovelamudi

Rating:  Two stars

Soundarya aka Sweety (Anushka Shetty) is an obese working woman. But she isn't depressed by her overweight status: she is always cheerful and full of energy. Her mother, Rajeshwari (Urvashi), has deep concerns about her weight. Every time a prospective groom rejects Sweety, the rejection is felt more by Rajeshwari than by her daughter. On one of those bride-seeking ceremonies, just to vent out her anger, Sweety says ‘no’ to Abhi (Arya) even before she could realize what was in store.  But Abhi likes her for her optimistic and compassionate nature. After a while, Sweety also starts falling for Abhi, a fitness freak who by then is already interested in another slim and svelte girl Simran (Sonal Chouhan).

Now, Sweety, on persistence from her mom, joins a popular obesity clinic Size Zero owned by Sathyan (Prakash Raj). Things go awry when Sweety realizes how the instant weight loss techniques are really harmful to one's health.  One of her friends who aspire to take part in Miss India pageant ends up at a hospital when a fat burning drink served at the clinic results in a failed kidney. She starts a campaign against Sathyan’s business. With the help of Abhi and Simran, Sweety insists that fitness has to be achieved only through exercise and diet and not through shortcuts. The rest is how she gains society’s confidence and whether she wins over Abhi or not.

The film is Anushka all the way! Being the natural performer that she is, Anushka's feat comes across as effortless. Thanks to Prakash Rao’s characterization of Sweety, he has stayed clear from the Tamil film cliché of fat woman being ridiculed for their so called 'ugly' image. Instead, Sweety comes across as a happy-go-lucky girl brimming with self-assurance and confidence. Arya deserves credit for taking part in such a film where feminist ideals are the norm. He is just about adequate. Both Prakash Raj and Urvashi’s characters are stereotypical and they do their part as usual.

The biggest issues arise from a cast consisting primarily of Telugu actors. With largely dubbed dialogues, their lip sync goes for a toss and doesn't really meld with the audio. It feels as if like watching a Tamil dubbed Telugu movie. Some of the characters are so superficial that we don’t really empathize with them. Cinematography by Nirav Shah is colorful and appealing. Keeravani’s music is functional. Though the concept is very universal, Inji Idupazhagi seems to lack some dearly needed authenticity, perhaps owing to the compromises mentioned above.