Krishna for the kids

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Krishna Aur Kans

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Krishna Aur Kans is pretty much what most Indians already know. Kansa is the evil King of Mathura. When he finds out that his newly wed sister’s eighth child will bring his downfall, he captures her with her husband and kills seven of her children.

As the legend goes, when the eighth child, i.e. Krishna, is born, his father takes him to Yashoda. Krishna begins to show his godly powers at a young age, killing Kansa’s demons one after another. While Kansa dominated the first half, Krishna takes over in the second half.
Krishna grows into a mischievous kid, known for his pranks, but he is also the village’s favourite kid. After 10 years of beating all of Kansa’s demons, he goes to Mathura and beats Kansa, thus freeing his parents and Kansa’s father, King Ugrasena.
This is pretty much what the film is about. Director Vikram Veturi has essentially made a children’s film. And while as adults, you may want to tear the screen, it would appeal to the kids, but for a few problems. There are a few things that the makers of the film could have avoided or paid attention to, Krishna Aur Kans could have been far more enjoyable.
Can we ever do without an item number?
Are you kidding me? Of course not! Do you have any idea how many nine-year-olds must have been looking forward to watching the all-sexed-up and glamorous Putna (the witch who kills babies) dancing around in short tights? Her patli waist would give even Katrina Kaif a run for her money. And why wouldn’t she, I mean, she would be the first villain in a religious saga like Krishna Aur Kans to get her own item number. Besides, if heroes can take re-birth and take revenge of their death on celluloid, why can’t you sex up a mythological witch who kills babies
What is it with the 3D mania?
Reliance’s 3D effects are cheap. And when I say cheap, I mean it. How could I expect to be wowed for Rs 90? Duh! The 3D imaging in Krishna Aur Kans is another aspect where the makers of the film have failed to create any wonders. Throughout the film, I had this weird feeling that the 3D holograms that used to come with school textbooks were more impressive than the effects in Krisha Aur Kans.
Mahashay, aap kahan ke purush hain?
Hindi is my mother tongue, but I couldn’t understand half of the dialogues in the film. There seems to be a huge generation gap between the makers of the film and the Pogo-loving, Batman-inspired kids, who will be watching the film. If this was part of the Hindi school curriculum, I wouldn’t mind, but really I don’t want to explain to my kids what “Stan mere vish bhare/ Pran ke pakheru Udd jate hai!” means. Not that I have one, but still no!

Last words: The film, however, establishes some of the views harboured by Indian animation filmmakers such as, there’s not much you can do with a religious saga like Krishna Aur Kans. But there are a few moments of brilliance in the film like the portrayal of Kansa killing seven of Devaki’s children. The play of light and shadow and the representation using lotus was the only scene that I enjoyed in the entire film. Krishna Aur Kans tells you that Indian animation can do really well if we want it to. The standards aren’t as good if you compare it to films like Ice Age, but it won’t be wrong to say that we are slowly getting there.