It's important, first. to recognise who the narrator of this story is. In Bha Bha Ba (short for Bhayam Bhakti Bahumanam), there is more than one, each with their own way of narration and a vivid imagination to boot, embellishing it in any way they see fit, with all the necessary flavours, colours, sound effects, music, and atmospheric details. So, it's only fitting that the film — led by Dileep, Vineeth Sreenivasan, and featuring an extended cameo by Mohanlal — employs the devices of gonzo filmmaking whenever and wherever it sees fit. Not all of it works together. When it works, it works really well. The inverse scenario? Draining.
Bha Bha Ba is many things, but when distilled down to its very essence, it's a revenge story in the same vein as the Kamal Haasan-fronted Chanakyan, directed by TK Rajeev Kumar, that echoes the same high-spirited and quirky filmmaking sensibilities of Lijo Jose Pellissery (only Double Barrel), Adhik Ravichandran (Good Bad Ugly, Mark Antony), the early Priyadarshan capers, and... well, there's a bit of Omar Lulu too in there. It's the Omar Lulu-reminiscent segments that don't work — the segments that get the strong urge to keep reminding that they're watching a movie, instead of trusting the audience to put two and two together.
And Bha Bha Ba is a movie that does this often. To an extent, the approach is effective, lest somebody asks where the logic in this movie is. That it has "no logic, only madness" is established early on. Here's where I once again bring up the point mentioned in the first line. It's established that the story is being told primarily by one group of kids who are separated from their rivals by class, caste and everything else. Naturally, their story will be presented to us in a larger-than-life canvas. It reminded me of a time in my childhood when I knew only popular entertainers and consequently always imagined “real-life” events on a big canvas with lots of fire, smoke, and bright lights. It means that, say, when a grenade is thrown in an action sequence, the targets will be flung into the air in the same trajectory — and also revealing, if you look closely, the wire work facilitating this endeavour.
About this urge to constantly remind us that this is a movie... There are places where the meta, self-aware nature feels like overkill. At one point, someone tells a story which we initially assumed to be real, but then another character breaks the bubble by revealing that it's the story of an iconic, superstar-making Mammootty character. Those like me, who thankfully grew up in the 90s on a steady diet of the best of Mammootty and Mohanlal films instead of their later pale imitations, will instantly recognise the reference. So it's a bit off-putting to see an explanation of its origin. Perhaps the makers found it necessary to include it for those in the current generation, whose first Mammootty movie might have been The Great Father (or worse: Pullikkaran Staraa).
But that's not all. There's also its tendency to rely too much on self-deprecating humour (or, in popular Malayali parlance: self oo**u). I enjoyed some of it, especially the ones that draw from Vineeth Sreenivasan's Chennai connection and his brother Dhyan Sreenivasan's viral off-screen persona. There are many more references, including musical choices, which require a strong familiarity with Malayalam and Tamil cinema of the past. (I imagine it would be difficult to explain all these to a non-Malayali who decides to check it out for the first time.)
I went into Bha Bha Ba with low expectations, because I was never a Dileep fan. I've always struggled with his movies, with the only exception being Kammara Sambhavam. It was the last Dileep movie that, despite its imperfections, had some substance. Since that Murali Gopy-scripted political satire, which came out eight years ago, Bha Bha Ba is the only Dileep movie from which I got the most fun. The revenge element is weak, which I’ll get to later. It primarily works, in fits and spurts, as a competent parody of the mass masala entertainer that's been dominating the "pan-Indian" market lately.
A particular instance has a kid asking, "What do you think this is — KGF?" We do get a tiny KGF-style version of it when Mohanlal's character is introduced, and during the tour of his "kingdom", Dileep remarks, "Everything is cinematic here, no?" And that's purely the intention of debutant writer-director Dhananjay Shankar, who directs this movie with the same enthusiasm as someone who suddenly learns about a pocket-friendly all-you-can-eat buffet and stuffs everything they lay their eyes on. There's a delirious pre-interval, 1980s-style disco-themed fight sequence that's one of the most entertaining things I've witnessed in cinema this year. It's the ultimate moment in the entire movie.
You might wonder if this sequence involves Mohanlal. No. Unfortunately, his extended cameo works more like an awards show where a superstar is asked to perform his signature moves by members of the audience. (Remember that cringe-inducing "stylish" stage entry of Mammootty on a motorcycle?) I'm not implying Mohanlal's presence is similarly detrimental, but if you ask me if it’s better than (or as good as) his entry in Nelson Dhilipkumar's Jailer, I would say no. (While on Nelson, he is better at this genre than anyone else currently, because even when some of his movies don't fully work, at least each character has a unique identity. A Nelson alum even appears briefly in Bha Bha Ba.
Naturally, whenever a buffet and lots of stuffing are involved, a bit of bloating is expected. Speaking of, Bha Bha Ba begins with someone desperately wanting to visit the loo for a bit of Number 2, a scenario which we learn was all part of an elaborate plan. As for the motive, it's where the movie falters. Of course, one can acknowledge the fact that Dileep is quite convincing in his reasons for undertaking a crazy vengeance trip such as this — because there exist people who do some of the wildest things for reasons that may seem relatively insignificant in the larger scheme of things — but, as far as I'm concerned, this failed to connect. It also doesn't help that the events that caused this man so much are presented when all the noise and smoke-and-mirrors attempts are about to wind down. It would've probably worked if they had been placed much earlier, but I doubt it.
A second part is expected, with a delightfully unexpected cameo, from a huge South Indian name, in this one that has likely sealed a deal of a follow-up with him as the principal antagonist. But when the first story isn't compelling enough, it naturally engenders the question: Why, though? Overall: Technically outstanding lukewarm storytelling.
One thing is for sure: Dileep is tailor-made for spoofs, provided he is in the hands of a filmmaker with a solid enough grasp on the genre — a filmmaker willing to break all shackles to step out of the comfort zone. And for that characteristic alone, I would say Dhananjay Shankar is a filmmaker to look out for. I just hope that the sequel — or whatever he is about to make next — has stronger material.
Film: Bha Bha Ba
Director: Dhananjay Shankar
Cast: Dileep, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Mohanlal, Baiju, Balu Varghese, Ashokan
Rating: 2.5/5
