'Toonpur Ka Superrhero' (Hindi, Animation, 2010)
Director: Kireet Khurana
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Kajol, Tanuja, Sanjay Mishra, Delnaz Paul, Mukesh Tiwari, Vivek Vasvani
If the genially-loopy Asterix characters acquired pan-Indian accents and wandered onto the sets of 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit', the result might be something like Kireet Khurana’s 'Toonpur Ka Superrhero'. Aditya (Ajay Devgn, cast opposite real-life wife Kajol, who plays his onscreen wife as well) is an action star kidnapped by the cartoon residents of Toonpur in order to decimate the resident villains.
The intent, apparently, is manic mayhem hewn to video-game rules, but the result is... Well, is there any point carping about a mix of animation and live action aimed squarely at kids?
But surely even films seeking to occupy children can strive to be more than just the blandly competent (and brightly coloured) fare that plays routinely on kiddie channels on television — pabulum for poppets! I suppose the one time I cracked a smile was when the Cacofonix character — a Bappi Lahiri look-alike — loses a blingy necklace and wails, “Chain bina chain kahan re.”
The well-placed PJ can enhance any experience — well, almost.