Puri Jagan has been lying low with back to back flops in his career. His new film Ismart Shankar has hit the screens today and lets see whether it gives Puri his much needed hit or not.
Story :
Ismart Shankar(Ram) is a crazy contract killer who kills a very high profile politician. Cops fall behind him and Shankar leaves the town with his girlfriend(Nabha Natesh). On the other hand, Arun(Satyadev) is a high profile cop who is handling the same case. Just when he is about to nab the main culprit behind the murder, he gets killed. In a crazy situation, the cops transfer Arun’s memory to Shankar. Rest of the story is as to how the hyper Shankar turns into Arun and deals with the case.
Plus Points :
No one other than Ram would have done this role of Ismart Shankar. Ram’s transformation is just mind blowing and Puri showcases him in a never before seen manner. Be it his dialogue delivery, dances or mass screen presence, Ram is a treat to watch on screen and is very lovable in his role.
Nabha Natesh is very impressive as Chandni and provides superb eye candy for the masses. Her chemistry with Ram is also good as she did well in her limited screen presence. Niddhi Agarwal gets a very good role and does her best in the film. Ashish Vidhyarthi is good and so was Satyadev as the cop.
The film has full on mass elements which will be loved by the masses. The lead pair’s dialogues, songs and glamor quotient, Puri is spot on with these elements. Ram creates good comedy with his mannerisms and action. The first half of the film is decent and the interval bang of memory transfer is brought well.
Minus Points :
One of the biggest drawbacks is that the story of the film is the same old Puri mark cop story. The only difference here is that Puri has added a memory transfer concept and made the hero a cop once again. But sadly, he does not make use of it well.
There are many scenes in the second half which defy logic. Ram’s character lacks clarity and is showcased in a confusing manner. Also, the plot of family politics is age old and does not create any impact.
The screenplay goes for a toss in the second half as the film slows down in many areas. Climax of the film is also very routine. Every scene runs on Ram’s screen presence and if you omit that, there is nothing new that this film has to offer. The film has double meaning dialogues and lot of violence which will be a bit loud for family audience.
Technical Aspects :
Production values of the film are top notch as Charme has handled things in a superb manner. Every location and visual looks authentic and gives the film a rustic vibe. Music by Mani Sharma is the biggest asset of the film as all the songs provide good entertainment and have also been shot well.
Ram has been styled supremely well in the film. Editing is decent and so were the lyrics of all the songs. Coming to the director Puri Jagan, his strength has always been the characterization of his heroes and in this film too he is spot on. He showcases Ram in a superb manner and makes the film watchable only because of him. Story wise there is nothing new as the set up is old. If he had managed the memroy transfer concept well, things would have been a lot better for the film.
Verdict :
One the whole, Ismart Shankar is an unapologetic full on mass masala entertainer aimed at the masses. Ram’s crazy makeover will be loved by many. His one man show and good music make the very ordinary story and dull narration click in several areas. All you need to do is to just ignore the logics and go with the flow and enjoy the so called popcorn entertainment thrown at you.
