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Review: Indian Rupee is entertaining

Paresh C Palicha writes Indian Rupee is a story of contemporary Kerala society told in a most interesting way. Post YOUR reviews here!

The mixture of reality and fantasy can create entertaining cinema, and director Ranjith proves this with his new film Indian Rupee. He narrates how youngsters are lured to make a fast buck by getting involved in the booming real estate business.
Jayaprakash aka JP (Prithviraj) is one such youngster with stars in his eyes, who along with his friend CH (Tini Tom) is scouting for a deal. He is working under a senior agent (Mamukoya) but wishes to break free as soon as possible. JP is a school drop-out and in love with his cousin Beena (Rima Kallingal) who is a doctor.

JP's first couple of independent deals come a-cropper, but they also mark the entry of a couple of interesting characters into the narrative. One of them is Achutha Menon (Thilakan), who becomes the guide for the youngsters in their dealings, and the other is Sheela Koshy (Revathy) in a cameo as Beena's teacher in the medical college.

The

narrative has a humorous streak throughout. It will not be wrong to say that Ranjith has used the classical mould of the Sathyan Anthikad-Mohanlal team of the eighties and replanted it in today's scenario where the hero can be morally ambivalent and does not mind using crooked ways to achieve his goals.

The hero of yesteryear wanted a job with a decent salary that would help feed his family and get his sister married. Today's hero shuns the responsibility and goes into hiding when there is ant talk of wedding plans. His dreams are bigger.

Prithviraj's performance inspires us to repose our faith in him as an actor. It is encouraging that veteran Thilakan has a parallel role to the hero and his presence is towering, to say the least. Tini Tom should be eternally grateful to the director for discovering the actor in the mimicry artist, best known as a Suresh Gopi clone.

Rima has a vital part in the story other than just being the mandatory love interest to the hero.

Indian Rupee should be seen by people who think that good stories have vanished from films. Ranjith has just told the story of contemporary Kerala society in a most interesting way.

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