Very early in Bhaskar Oru Rascal (the Tamil remake of a Malayalam film), Bhaskar (Arvind Swami) and his son are travelling in a car when the child chides him for not being patient. “When someone speaks on the phone, don’t keep nagging them. It isn’t manners,” he tells Bhaskar.
This is a school-going kid teaching his father etiquette. That’s because the father – Bhaskar, in this case – is a “rascal”. He is, essentially, a rowdy (he gets people to sign important documents using force) but calling him that would have given him a violent streak. But director Siddique writes his lead character in a way to fit the expression “likeable goonda.” Hence, rascal .
Bhaskar is exactly that. He likes picking up fights at the drop of a hat. He drives an expensive car and wields a costly mobile phone, but his language is essentially “local.” The company he keeps too is “local.”
But he’s cool and uptight with his son Akash (Raghavan), who is best buddies with Shivani (Nainika, now popular as the Theri baby). The kids get along well and want their parents to get along as well too. But Shivani’s mother Anu (Amala Paul as a single parent) isn’t too impressed with Baskar.
And the kids play Cupid. There’s some warmth in the scenes in which the two children plot to bring their parents together, making for a passable first half, before the flashbacks take over, ruining what could have essentially been a warm, fuzzy film. When there’s an unexpected adrenaline rush in the last part of the film — a conspiracy theory, bloodshed and lots of gunshots — you realise BOK isn’t heading where it ought to have.
Somehow, once the flashbacks get done, the story never manages to come back with a punch. There’s a duet involving Arvind and Amala that springs up on you…even before their chemistry has been established. The comedy works only in parts, and the music is just about functional. And the over-the-top fights are incredulous. There’s a gem that has Bhaskar plucking out a rowdy’s teeth using cutting pliers. If that wasn’t enough, there’s another in which he rides a bike inside a mall and zips across a gang of bad guys.
