<p>Item dance “performer” Rachna Maurya can stop pouting over being labelled an item girl.<br /><br />“Gubbi” director Vijay and music director Arjun give the dancer one of the gems of Kannada film music, “Neerinalli aleya ungura” (“Bedi Bandavalu” -1968, starring Kalyan Kumar and Chandrakala and penned by late R N Jayagopal), to shimmy to, along with better clothes. <br /><br />Some ‘creativity’ indeed, when Bhyrappa’s “Aavarana” is referred to as a “piece” (dialogue: Malavalli Saikrishna)!<br /><br />Arjun’s had tremendous fun with his instruments, going so far as to be ‘inspired’ by another old number. <br /><br />Another person who’s also enjoyed his work is cinematographer M R Seenu, whose cameraplay delights the viewers, specially the mandatory patho song. <br /><br />But “Gubbi” moves beyond formula, mainly thanks to the treatment and narration. Going into a lengthy flashback, Vijay tells the audience why five college-goers are pursuing don Magadi Naidu, stopping at nothing to kill him. <br /><br />The sequences are plausible - a huge plus, and except for a couple of scenes, the actors seem to be under restraint, Rangayana Raghu more so. The Ajith-Reema pairing <br />is fresh and interesting, considering they have just one song between them.Vijay is <br />also to be credited for not going overboard with emotions, unlike his mentor director Prem. <br /><br />The screenplay slackens a bittowards the end and turns an excellent effort into something little more than passable. <br /><br />Still, “Gubbi” is the better offering of the two released this week.<br /></p>
<p>Item dance “performer” Rachna Maurya can stop pouting over being labelled an item girl.<br /><br />“Gubbi” director Vijay and music director Arjun give the dancer one of the gems of Kannada film music, “Neerinalli aleya ungura” (“Bedi Bandavalu” -1968, starring Kalyan Kumar and Chandrakala and penned by late R N Jayagopal), to shimmy to, along with better clothes. <br /><br />Some ‘creativity’ indeed, when Bhyrappa’s “Aavarana” is referred to as a “piece” (dialogue: Malavalli Saikrishna)!<br /><br />Arjun’s had tremendous fun with his instruments, going so far as to be ‘inspired’ by another old number. <br /><br />Another person who’s also enjoyed his work is cinematographer M R Seenu, whose cameraplay delights the viewers, specially the mandatory patho song. <br /><br />But “Gubbi” moves beyond formula, mainly thanks to the treatment and narration. Going into a lengthy flashback, Vijay tells the audience why five college-goers are pursuing don Magadi Naidu, stopping at nothing to kill him. <br /><br />The sequences are plausible - a huge plus, and except for a couple of scenes, the actors seem to be under restraint, Rangayana Raghu more so. The Ajith-Reema pairing <br />is fresh and interesting, considering they have just one song between them.Vijay is <br />also to be credited for not going overboard with emotions, unlike his mentor director Prem. <br /><br />The screenplay slackens a bittowards the end and turns an excellent effort into something little more than passable. <br /><br />Still, “Gubbi” is the better offering of the two released this week.<br /></p>
