Director Jijo Antony’s Pokkiri Simon is a bizarre film. It clumsily spoofs the films of a superstar whose filmography consists of movies that are inadvertent spoofs of one another. It claims to be a comedy, but the joke, for the most part, is on the film’s inability to deliver emotions right. The lead actors ham it up in every scene, and the technical departments aren’t of much help, either.
Pokkiri Simon is centred around a bunch of men in Thiruvananthapuram who are die-hard fans of Kollywood superstar Vijay. They are happily unemployed, and arrogantly irresponsible when it comes to matters that do not pertain to Vijay or his films. Their unofficial uniform is a chequered shirt worn over a t-shirt, a costume style that Vijay popularised. They mouth Vijay anna’s ‘mass’ dialogues time and again, irrespective of situations.
In case you are wondering if lack of education and employment opportunities are the reasons as to why youngsters subscribe to this fan frenzy, there is a retired ISRO scientist, played by Nedumudi Venu, who has resolved to spend his post-retirement life selling tickets at theatres screening Vijay films and working tirelessly for the superstar’s welfare. There is a lengthy, romantic dialogue that he mouths on why it’s better to idolise reel heroes than worship a conventional god because the reel hero does everything that a god does, and better, the former is visible and mobile, unlike the stone idols.
The titular protagonist Simon (Sunny Wayne) is the 27-year-old son of a police constable who seems to be proud of his son’s ingenious talent to dress up like Vijay. At one point, the young man takes his star-worship too seriously and fights off nasty villains in Vijay style, and becomes a saviour for the weak and the meek. Smitten by the star bug, Simon refuses to find a job, but agrees to find a girl and get married. One day, he spots a girl cheering and hooting inside a theatre during Vijay’s introduction scene. Mightily impressed, Simon decides to track her down and get her married to him. She (Prayaga Martin) is a well-educated rich danseuse. A song later, they are in love. Prayaga is an actor equally bad or even worse than Sunny Wayne, and the scenes that show them together are lethal.
Recommended
Saiju Kurup plays Gilli Naushad who refers to himself in the third person. His scenes with actors such as Baiju and Sarath Kumar lend some relief in this mess of a film. Pokkiri Simon is a trifle which attempts to cash in on the sentiments of star worshippers. It romanticises fan clubs through lines such as, “You can be sure that these young men will never abuse women for they are fans of Vijay.” But, in another scene, you see the fans ogling a woman jogging on a beach and complimenting her ‘figure’. Vijay anna doesn’t seem to have educated his fans enough on what pertains to abuse.
*****
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