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Film: "My Friend Ganesha"; Director: Rajiv S. Ruia; Cast: Kiran
Janjani, Sheetal Shah, Upasana Singh, Ahsaas Channa and Aarya;
Ratings: ** A children's film need not be illogical and dull; it
can be smart, intelligent, educating and thoroughly entertaining.
And if it has animated characters, it can be all the more fun.
However, director Rajiv S. Ruia's offering "My Friend Ganesha" has
nothing of that.
The film revolves around a lonely child, Aashu, whose parents
are too busy to spend time with him. In school, too, there is no
scope for company because Aashu's classmates are bullies and
trouble him.
So, the only company he has is his maid Gangubai, who is a good
storyteller and a devotee of Lord Ganesha. One day she tells him
about Lord Ganesha and his pet rat.
The story brings hope to little Aashu and he asks his parents to
bring Ganesha home. The timing also coincides with the annual
Ganesha festival. Initially, his parents, who are going through a
crisis, refuse to oblige him, but they later fulfil his wish.
Once the idol of Ganesha is brought home, Aashu is elated. He feels
he now has a friend and he also solves various problems of the
family with the help of the god.
Child artiste Ahsaas Channa, a girl who is passed off as a boy in
films and played Shah Rukh Khan's son in "Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna",
is the saving grace. She gives the senior actors in the film a run
for their money.
The script is weak and everything seems overdone. While the film
does highlight issues like the loneliness and struggle of a single
child whose parents are working, the solution it provides lacks
conviction and practicality.
The success of "Hanuman" triggered off a trend of animation films
in India, but so far none could repeat its magic. The animation in
"My Friend Ganesha" is not so good and fails to enhance the
storyline.
The scenes with Ahsaas stand out but the rest of the film is
insipid. Upasana Singh in the role of the maid is too loud.
Overall, the film leaves you disappointed.
Indo-Asian News Service
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