I

There are many films from the South which get dubbed in Hindi. While some films unfailingly hit the target, there are many others which simply go down the drain... only to find itself a place in non-prime time slots of TV channels later. This week's release I is 'made-in-Tamil-dubbed-in-Hindi' film which stars the southern sensation Vikram and is directed by Shankar, the very man who gave the cinegoers films like ROBOT, SIVAJI-THE BOSS and others. Does Shankar manage to hit the bull's eye with the Hindi version of I? Let's analyze.

Shankar, who wears his commercial tag like a medallion, has an addiction for making big commercial films. While he's been quite successful at it all these years, it has slowly started to have an adverse effect on his films to the extent that even the presence of a bankable star, say Vikram, doesn't add much value to the output. In his much anticipated film I, Shankar proves that only he can take a wafer thin story and turn it into something outlandishly beautiful yet complex, leaving you with an afterthought - "Why can't he ever make smaller films for a change?"

<strong>A terrific performance let down by an uninspired, exhausting movie</strong><br/>Is there another filmmaker as fascinated by the double role as Shankar? (Even the frivolous Jeans is riveted by the sight of twins.) Where others employ this trope as merely a means to magnify the hero - see two stars for the price of one! - or maybe to flesh out the separated-at-birth scenario so popular in the masala format, Shankar uses the device to split open the protagonist's psyche.

Director Shankar's formula is simple. He keeps you so spellbound with visuals and joy and craziness that you meekly accept the lack of logic in several places and yes, a bit of tackiness too. Lingesan aka Lee (Vikram in a super form) is a bodybuilder, who is working hard to achieve the Mr. Tamil Nadu title. Lingesan eats sprouts and boiled chicken, works out till he faints and some day hopes to win the Mr. India title. Things begin to change when he meets his crush, a successful model Diya (Amy Jackson, pleasant and sincere). Vikram's and Diya's growing closeness brings in a horde of enemies, which include a male model John (Upen Patel), an industrialist (Ramkumar) and a few others. The jealousy of his adversaries leads to the handsome dude Lee tragically and yes, dramatically turn into a hunchback monster.

Lingesan (Vikram) is a bodybuilder from a small town in Tamil Nadu, who dreams of winning the Mr India title for bodybuilding. Besides dumbbells, his only other love is supermodel Diya ( Amy Jackson). Life throws up a pleasant surprise to our sweet little simpleton. After winning the Mr Tamil Nadu contest for his perfect physique, he bags plum modelling assignments. Lo and behold, Lingesan gets a chance to model with Diya. How does he land this windfall?

<strong>Vikram's performance is the only redeeming feature of I </strong><br/>Spoiler alert! I is the name of a perfume and most importantly the virus which makes the dapper Vikram unrecognizable. But that's just for namesake. I is all about Vikram. In cinema, actors are especially conscious of beauty and physique. So it takes guts for an actor to step forward and become unattractive to the degree of looking sick and deformed. There is a willingness to look a fool such as when Vikram strikes multiple poses to show off his muscles to the tune of Jodhaa Akbar's "Azeem-O-Shaan Shahenshah"; do a fight sequence dressed only in black underwear. It's impressive to see Vikram push the limits and his committed act alone makes the film worth a watch.