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| Edited By: Aishwarya Vasudevan |Source: DNA webdesk |Updated: Nov 09, 2020, 11:25 PM IST
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Kiara Advani, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Sharad Kelkar, Tarun Arora, Ashwini Kalsekar, Manu Rishi Chadha, Rajesh Sharma and others
Director: Raghava Lawrence
Duration: Two hours 21 minutes
Where to Watch: Disney+ Hotstar
Critics' Rating: 2.5/5
Aasif's (Akshay Kumar) belief in logic and science shatters when he gets possessed by a transgender's ghost (Sharad Kelkar). What starts as a comical journey soon unearths a dark secret.
One who doesn't believe in ghosts get the taste of it — a popular formula done before and not dusted yet. Yes, Laxmii cannot just be dusted off as it's the official Hindi remake of Tamil horror-comedy flick Kanchana. Akshay Kumar stepped into the shoes of Raghava Lawrence, who not only played the lead but also helmed the original film. When the trailer was dropped we got to see everything but not who the actual transgender was, the role originally played by R. Sarathkumar in Tamil film.
The plot starts with Akshay Kumar and his wife Kiara Advani being called by her mother to pay a visit for the 25th wedding anniversary. Her parents' anniversary and Kiara's elder brother's role is played by Manu Rishi and wife Ashwini Kalsekar (Ummm... something to think about). Akshay plays the role of Asif, a Muslim guy who finds it hard to get accepted by Kiara's family. But that wasn't an important element at all. He comes, he conquers their hearts and gets possessed by a transgender's spirit in no time.
It is a visual treat to watch Akshay turn into Laxmii as those were the most enjoyable moments of the film. His expressions, dialogue deliveries and the walk, show that he can go to any length to get into the skin of his
The initial build-up of showing spookiness can be scary for a minuscule number of people who are not into horror movies at all. The film tries to become a comedy flick with over-the-top acting by the cast and not-so-funny one-liners. Well, Kanchana was also all about that!
Raghava Lawrence forayed into Bollywood with his forte of horror-comedy but Kanchana is a decade-old formula. Bollywood redefined horror-comedy with Stree released in 2018 which set a high benchmark for the genre. The film's only X-factor is Akshay Kumar and watching him in a different space. The female lead Kiara Advani has nothing much to do but her cherubic look and subtle face bring calming moments in the film.
The biggest surprise of Laxmii is Sharad Kelkar, the OG Laxmi! He will leave you amazed and impressed from the word 'go'. The actor once again proved that he is an underrated gem. We wish there was some more screen space for Sharad and his strong act as Laxmi.
Dialogues play an important role in a horror-comedy flick with punchlines and one-liners and Farhad Samji is the mastermind behind Laxmii. But we have seen better of him in many blockbusters.
Talking about songs, 'Bam Bholle' is highly energizing and Akshay is a cherry on the top. The five-minute-long sequence is well shot and deserves a theatre watch.
Kanchana, however, the content was highly enjoyable for its slapstick approach but Laxmii lacks in it.
Not so horrific, not so comic maketh Akshay Kumar the only saviour of the not-so-ticking bomb!
