Teen tale takes the familiar track

Gippi
Hindi (U/A)
Cast: Riya Vij, Jayati Modi,
Divya Dutta
Director: Sonam Nair

“Fat ugly loser!” And Gurpreet Kaur aka Gippi goes on to change the class’s perception about her.

No, it’s not a flab to fab tale. It’s all about being okay with who you are, silly. So the kilos stay on happily. Instead, Gippi parts with her fixation on being popular, which, her friends and roly-poly brother vouch, will come only with a hot body, good grades and a boyfriend.

The movie delves into those awkwardly funny growing-up years where a hairy leg is as great a topic for discussion as the new handsome chemistry teacher. There is the regular gossipy bunch and the beautiful bitch (Jayati Modi, “I’m the best, any doubt?”) There is also the geek who likes “fuller” girls and the swoon-inducing hunk who smokes away to glory. And inside the class, girls try to find what “horny” means while lessons about reproductive organs are drowned out by giggles.

The back-to-school saga sounds interesting. Sad, director Sonam Nair doesn’t have enough ammo for a surefire shot. The story lacks the freshness and spunk that its protagonist (Riya Vij, a good find) has in abundance. In the end, the teen movie ends up looking like its zillion cinematic cousins — so predictable, yet feel-good.

Mother Divya Dutta is a delight as the single parent who is in sync with her pubescent daughter (“Bras, boyfriend... you are a big girl now!)

Gippi loves to jive to Shammi Kapoor’s Junglee moves. The girl is a delight. But the movie is just an average dance floor for her.