Manju confuses

Tulika

Let's see now... what is Majnu all about?

There is this unnamed terrorist group, fighting for an unspecified cause, with its India-based cadres making constant mobile calls to someplace that looks suspiciously like the Kashmir Valley.

And for some as-yet-unknown reason, this group decides to take out four Members of Parliament, starting with MP Gajapathy (Raghuvaran) in Chennai.

The attempt fails, thanks to a fortuitous mobile call that takes the MP out of range of the bomb blast at the crucial moment. And by bizarre coincidence, a pretty young thing’s (Rinke Khanna) joke that she is carrying a bomb in her bag cues a manhunt.

She runs. And hides. And is discovered by handsome young boy (Prashanth) -- who, believe it or not, turns out to be the son of the MP in question.

So we have this piquant situation where there is this major hunt for Rinke Khanna, who is holed up in the home of the person she is accused of trying to kill.

Using a very handy storm as cover, Prashanth smuggles her out of his home, and puts her on a train to her native Kolkatta. "Keep in touch," she says as the train pulls out of the station. But the youth has forgotten her telephone number.

The girl, like smart modern girls are supposed to be, promptly whips off her dupatta, scribbles something on it and throws it with unerring aim so that it lands around the hero's shoulders.

He looks at the dupatta and finds -- not the telephone number he was hoping for -- but the line 'I will never forget you' neatly engraved on it.

The telephone number would have been more useful -- but then, if she had done that, the director would have no excuse for sending his hero off to Kolkatta, determined to tramp the streets till he found her.

And find her, he does. He also discovers that her brother is, surprise, surprise, the head of the terrorist cell intent on wiping out his dad.

If you think all that is confusing, wait till you see the rest of the film!

Harris Jeyraj's music is just about the only positive to come out of the film.

Prashanth goes through the motions. Rinke Khanna is ordinary in a less than ordinary role. Raghuvaran wastes his talents yet again in a role that has him making the same menacing faces he has made in most of his films.

Producer Dr Murli Manohar and director (not to forget his story and screenplay credits, please) Ravichandran have laid an outsize egg with this one.