Though Rani and the rest of the cast gives an entertaining though slightly over-the-top performance, the storyline and screenplay is quite weak and unimpressive

 

 

Meenakshi Deshpande (Rani Mukerji) is a middle class Maharashtrian girl staying with her eccentric family in Pune. While Meenakshi's family members are quite gung-ho about getting her married off, the lady herself, who is quite 'filmy', to say the least, wants a typical love story as is shown in movies.

 

While working as a librarian at an art school, she comes across Surya Iyer (Prithviraj), a mysterious and taciturn art student, who Meenakshi promptly falls for because she is attracted to the way he smells. Meanwhile, her parents finally manage to find a young man, who is ready to marry Meenakshi in an 'arranged marriage' scenario. How her real life and her dreams clash after this development is what director Sachin Kundalkar deals with through the rest of the movie.

 

 

Rani Mukerji as the deliberately melodramatic and filmy Meenakshi simply wins your heart with her performance, though at times, the audience might find it over the top. On his part, Prithviraj, the object of her desire, is used merely as a sex symbol and nothing more. Marathi actor Subodh Bhave, who plays Madhav Rajyadhaksha, the groom selected for Meenakshi, puts in a decent performance as the 'Average Joe' lover, whereas the rest of the cast, comprising Meenakshi's family members and her eccentric colleague Maina, seem to go out of their way to be absurd, which might seem funny strictly in a mere couple of scenes.

 

 

Aiyyaa Review - Direction-

The very first scene, where Meenakshi's character is introduced, has been dragged for so long that one wishes Sachin could get to the point already! Though the movie has its share of humour, the overall effect is marred because the director seems hell-bent on inserting absurd scenes (which probably is his idea of wakda). Moreover, the second half seems to drag on and on and the climax, where Meenakshi finally expresses her feelings for Prithviraj, is so ordinary that you might end up feeling disappointed, especially after the aura of mystery created about the way Rani's character chases Surya and tries every trick in the book to 'break the ice' with him.

 

 

With songs like Sava dollar, Aga bai, Dreamum Wakeuppum and Wakda, the music of Aiyyaa presents a pleasant blend of lavani, Western techno and Indian classical.

 

 

Fans of Rani Mukerji might enjoy the film, but if you are going with high expectations after watching the trailer (which seemed to promise more than what was delivered), you might be sorely disappointed.

 

Album blasts off with the first track Dreamum Wakeupum which is an interesting fusion of Southern masala music with even more interesting lyrics. The track takes off with an amazing unusual instrumental sound of atrumpet and as it moves, whacky lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya fuse well with sensual music by Amit Trivedi, hence resulting in an attention grabbing outing. Lyrics, which are a mix of English and Hindi with a Southern touch to them, are justified by the sensual and suitable vocals of Soumya Rao. A remarkable experiment, it fuses quite a few popular musical instruments from down South and is all set to do well with the masses.

 

The album moves from Southern India to a bit West and reaches the great Maratha land which is famous for its Lavni. In Aiyyaa that happens with Sava Dollar which starts with the play of dhols and becomes even more enjoyable as Sunidhi Chauhan vocalizes spicy expressions quite beautifully while bribing God. Lyrics are equally enjoyable as Amitabh pensdown the desire of a girl who wants to make it big in Hindi cinema. The track, which includes Marathi chorus, has been topped up well with some equally good music that would prompt you to free up your arms in air.

 

The next track, Aga Bai, has a very unusual start which resembles the sound of 90s. Amit Trivedi experiments again as he mixes Western techno music along with beautiful voices of Shalmali Kholgade and Monali Thakur, hence making quite an impression. One does feel though that Amitabh's lyrics are of usual variety and could have been more attention grabbing.

 

Soothing and soul touching music sets up the next track - Mahek Bhi. The charm of the music here creates an aura as it invites you and your loved one to come together. This time around Amit brings together shahnai with piano while conveying the feel of joy and happiness. A slow track on low notes which has been delivered quite well by Shreya Ghoshal, this composition, which is quite different from the previous three tracks, brings in another dimension to the album.

 

The album moves ahead with the next track What To Do with the onset of strings of sitar. The start here (Indian classical) is quite different when one takes into consideration the song's theme. Even as Sneha Khanwalkar and Amitabh Bhattacharya come behind the mike for this song which has lyrics that are quite crazy, somehow the overall impact is nowhere close to what it possibly could have been. This one is the kind of composition that could have been skipped from the album.

 

The last track Wakda, a Marathi word which means 'crooked', is another experiment by Amit Trivedi as he blends music from South with that of Western. This track symbolizes the joy and happiness while portraying marriage of a South Indian man with a Maharhastrian girl.

 

Overall, Aiyyaa is a nice work with blend of Indian classical and Western music enhances an overall charm. Album may not have chart busters in it but still has potential to do well with the film's narrative.