What is the story about?
Cast: Adarsh Gourav, Shanaya Kapoor, Parul Gulati
Director: Bejoy Nambiar
Language: Hindi
Will crocodiles and humans ever get along? Rekha tried with Khoon Bhari Maang but failed and got her body mauled. Akshay Kumar and Riteish Deshmukh tried too in
Housefull 2 but the latter got his rear side torn apart. Hrithik Roshan tried twice over- Yaadein and Mohenjo Daro. Both sank without a trace. The creepiness of the creature is what creates palpable tension as it crawls towards its prey to rip the flesh apart. The reptile’s new victims are Adarsh Gourav and Shanaya Kapoor. The film is aptly titled Tu Yaa Main. Will only one of them survive? It’s a remake of the Thai film The Pool. Again an appropriate title. The pool which will turn red from blue. The director for the Hindi adaptation is Bejoy Nambiar. This is a filmmaker who knows how to whip intense emotions and sequences.
It’s always a pleasure to watch filmmakers ditch their staple theme songs and go with a fresh background score that justifies the story they have chosen. Karan Johar and Aditya Chopra did that with Agneepath and Befike. There was no Kuch Kuch Hota hai title track or Lata Mangeshkar’s iconic voice. Aanand L Rai does the same with Tu Yaa Main. Don’t expect Raanjhanaa’s vibrant and pulsating background score. It’s creepy and chilling that quickly establishes a sense of impending doom. We first meet our actors stuck inside an empty swimming pool, screeching for help. Now we have to figure out how these two got here. A flashback is inevitable. Who are these people that are trapped in the claws of death? And how did they get here? How could destiny deal such a cruel hand?
Tu Yaa Main is about two influencers who come together for a collab. The obnoxiously omnipresent term is what kicks in the conflict of the narrative. A shape shifting Gourav shares breezy chemistry with Kapoor (who fares much better here than her debut in that dopey romance). The scenes move at a visceral speed and brim with both intrigue and innocuousness. The spirit of Mumbai is captured with alacrity by Lakhan Rathore. The vastness of the city is reduced to a claustrophobic space where these two individuals and influencers are letting their hair down. Until IT arrives. There are references of the aforementioned Rakesh Roshan thriller the moment we first see it. At first, we are supposed to be amused before the film’s tone changes gears. Survival is no laughing business.
It has been reported the crocodile was a real one. The makers steer cleared of CGI and VFX. That’s more than half of the job done to jolt the viewers. It’s a one liner that has been made into a 2 hour and 25 minute feature film. The lingo and the language could be reminiscent of Gully Boy. We meet people from the streets and on the streets, unapologetic about their impoverished being and driven by their passion for singing. This film is also about the free spiritedness of music and not just the hideous creature. It’s more than just a survival drama. Survival in this film has more connotations than one. Imagine an influencer trying to survive without a blue tick on Instagram or followers on ticktock. There’s a juicy idea with potential of being kitsch right there! But Nambiar has different ideas.
He likes to make his characters suffer in both miseries and melancholy. We all saw how the lives of those debauched friends spiraled into a web of despair and chaos in Shaitaan. The people he created for David were driven by unpredictability too. And Taish was basically friendships and relationships on steroids where anything could happen. His two central characters here battle nothing metaphorically but something that can shock the living daylights out of you. Either escape or be eaten alive. Will Tu Yaa Main have long legs at the box-office? It’s tough to say given the obscure taste of the audience. But it does have moments of surprise and shock, both before and after that giant of an animal makes an appearance. It’s the longest you’ll see that creature on the big screen in a Hindi film. And actors continue to fail being friends with it. Maybe next time!
Rating: 2.5 (out of 5 stars)
Tu Yaa Main is now playing in cinemas
Director: Bejoy Nambiar
Language: Hindi
Will crocodiles and humans ever get along? Rekha tried with Khoon Bhari Maang but failed and got her body mauled. Akshay Kumar and Riteish Deshmukh tried too in
It’s always a pleasure to watch filmmakers ditch their staple theme songs and go with a fresh background score that justifies the story they have chosen. Karan Johar and Aditya Chopra did that with Agneepath and Befike. There was no Kuch Kuch Hota hai title track or Lata Mangeshkar’s iconic voice. Aanand L Rai does the same with Tu Yaa Main. Don’t expect Raanjhanaa’s vibrant and pulsating background score. It’s creepy and chilling that quickly establishes a sense of impending doom. We first meet our actors stuck inside an empty swimming pool, screeching for help. Now we have to figure out how these two got here. A flashback is inevitable. Who are these people that are trapped in the claws of death? And how did they get here? How could destiny deal such a cruel hand?
Tu Yaa Main is about two influencers who come together for a collab. The obnoxiously omnipresent term is what kicks in the conflict of the narrative. A shape shifting Gourav shares breezy chemistry with Kapoor (who fares much better here than her debut in that dopey romance). The scenes move at a visceral speed and brim with both intrigue and innocuousness. The spirit of Mumbai is captured with alacrity by Lakhan Rathore. The vastness of the city is reduced to a claustrophobic space where these two individuals and influencers are letting their hair down. Until IT arrives. There are references of the aforementioned Rakesh Roshan thriller the moment we first see it. At first, we are supposed to be amused before the film’s tone changes gears. Survival is no laughing business.
It has been reported the crocodile was a real one. The makers steer cleared of CGI and VFX. That’s more than half of the job done to jolt the viewers. It’s a one liner that has been made into a 2 hour and 25 minute feature film. The lingo and the language could be reminiscent of Gully Boy. We meet people from the streets and on the streets, unapologetic about their impoverished being and driven by their passion for singing. This film is also about the free spiritedness of music and not just the hideous creature. It’s more than just a survival drama. Survival in this film has more connotations than one. Imagine an influencer trying to survive without a blue tick on Instagram or followers on ticktock. There’s a juicy idea with potential of being kitsch right there! But Nambiar has different ideas.
He likes to make his characters suffer in both miseries and melancholy. We all saw how the lives of those debauched friends spiraled into a web of despair and chaos in Shaitaan. The people he created for David were driven by unpredictability too. And Taish was basically friendships and relationships on steroids where anything could happen. His two central characters here battle nothing metaphorically but something that can shock the living daylights out of you. Either escape or be eaten alive. Will Tu Yaa Main have long legs at the box-office? It’s tough to say given the obscure taste of the audience. But it does have moments of surprise and shock, both before and after that giant of an animal makes an appearance. It’s the longest you’ll see that creature on the big screen in a Hindi film. And actors continue to fail being friends with it. Maybe next time!
Rating: 2.5 (out of 5 stars)
Tu Yaa Main is now playing in cinemas
