RAGINI MMS REVIEW

Ekta Kapoor's new offering is making noise for the right and wrong reasons... The stand-off between the real Ragini and Ekta, angry locals pulling down hoardings of this film, even blackening the faces of the lead pair on its posters, usage of a popular song from JEWEL THIEF, censors finding a few scenes very explicit, the threesome party hosted by Ekta a few days ago... RAGINI MMS is the most discussed film of recent times.

Cast:
Ragini [Kainaz Motivala], Uday [Raj Kumar Yadav]

Storyline:
The quintessential couple, Ragini and Uday, set out to have a dirty weekend at a friend's farmhouse on the outskirts of Mumbai. The weekend getaway quickly changes gears as they find themselves in a house that has been rigged with cameras in Bigg Boss style. The cameras that were meant to capture love-making are witness to something that is beyond the realm of human understanding... something metaphysical...

Within the confines of this house, Ragini and Uday are now at the mercy of an unexplainable paranormal force. With sundown approaching, what will the new entrants of the house do?

Along with the horror genre, there is a certain emotional aspect in the story as well, which shows how the guy lures the girl under the pretext of love in order to take a video clip of her and sell it.


What worked:
What works in favor of RAGINI MMS is the fact that first-time director Pavan Kirpalani chooses a scandalous, real-life story and garnishes it with sex and horror. Not All of RAGINI MMS is sex and scandal. There's a 'third person' watching the act as well, plus there's a story behind this haunted mansion. However, it's terrifying enough to make you jump on your seat.

The director as well as the DoP [Tribhuvan Babu] ensures that the hand-held camera footage as also the cinematography in general is in sync. There's no scope for songs in the film and portions of the songs, inserted at places, are well juxtaposed in the sequences. However, the background score [Faizan-Agnel] is more than just throbbing music, digitized screams and high-pitched shrieks.

Both Raj Kumar Yadav [seen in LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA] and Kainaz Motivala are truly wonderful. Shedding all inhibitions aside, the actors deliver striking performances.

What didn’t:
On the flipside, the film stagnates for a few minutes in the post-interval portions. Though the film is short in duration, with a running time of approx 100 minutes, you still feel that things could've been spruced up towards the middle of the second half. Also, the card at the end, which shares vital info on the characters and the conclusion, could've had a longer stay for it to register well.

Overall:
RAGINI MMS amalgamates components of horror, paranormal and sex seamlessly. The lethal combo of sex and horror should entice not just the average moviegoer, but also Gen X and the more evolved audience that values and embraces innovative themes and new genres of cinema.

Mumbai Masti Ratings: 3.75/5