Willing suspension of disbelief is a mindset we often adhere to when viewing a superhero film or a commercial masala film in languages other than Bengali. When it comes to our mother tongue most urban viewers look for reason, logic, intellect and breaking of norms. For the masses, however, sentimental family stories have an attraction that is eternal.
In recent times the Bengali films released have had a decent run. They have been a merry mix of relationships, both new world and old, thrillers and biographies.

Boomerang, a Bengali film, is a digression from the usual fare, both good and bad. Sauvik Kundu has now delved into the world of make-believe with modern technology as his tool both in perception as well as execution. And within this, he has added romance, sentiment and a good dose of comedy, both situational and slapstick. The visual effects created have a finesse that is appreciable.

As the brilliant yet impractical scientist Samar and his inhuman mechanical alter ego Amar, Jeet has excelled himself! His comic timing, as well as his clever quips, have the power to evoke laughter and kudos! For those who expect a fight and superhuman feats from Jeet, they too will not be disappointed. While appreciating the hero one must also remember the director’s contribution in making the unbelievable look and feel real.

Boomerang is not just Jeet’s film. The heroine Rukmini Maitra as Isha and Nisha is to be reckoned with! Be it comedy, ire or mechanical interpretations, Rukmini once again proved to be a competent performer who can hold her own. She has emerged as a mainstream heroine who is also capable of realistic portrayals. Sauvik’s earlier film Switzerland revealed one face of Rukmini; Boomerang has two faces.

A host of competent actors — Kharaj Mukherjee, Rajatava Datta, Ambarish Bhattacharya and Saurav Das — have been well utilised by the director to provide squeals, thrills and giggles.

The story of an unmanageable talented scientist who builds a life-like robot moulded on the look of his lady love and the consequences there of gives rise to situations that invariably tickles the funny bone of the audience, especially the massage sequence with the father-in-law or the pranam sequence is delightfully choreographed by the maker.

At this juncture, one needs to acknowledge Shyamal Chakraborty and Jhulan Bhattacharya’s (as the hero’s parents) extremely normal acting in totally abnormal situations. Ayesha Bhattacharya as Baisakhi the inquisitive house help and Deb Chandrima as Tina, a suspicious girlfriend, prove once again that no role is small if done competently. Their acting made them stand out.

Sauvik was most competently aided by Manas Bhattacharya his DOP and Ananda Auddya the production designer. The 3D Superbike or the virtual phone are gimmicks that are new to Bangla cinema. The background score is extremely evocative at times: Take a bow Sanjay Salil Chowdhury!
Nilayan Chatterjee’s songs followed the set commercial pattern and were utilised to bring in a breather at certain points. One expects more variation from him in future.

As expected in mainstream cinema, there are the thrilling moments: saving a child hanging by his collar from a multistoried building or the nick of the time entry of the superhero Amar (Jeet) evokes spontaneous appreciation through whistles and claps from the audience.

Sauvik has managed to get the audience to go into a suspension of disbelief mode, and at the same time has taken recourse to science to keep the audience from cynical disbelief. His thought process and execution keep changing with each film that he makes. He is not satisfied with being put in a slot.

Boomerang is a healthy comeback into the world of imagination and pure entertainment, with a smack of science fiction thrown in. In these times when mainstream entertainment is somewhat floundering, Sauvik Kundu’s Boomerang is a refreshing change. His inspiration may have similarities in thoughts with some others but the presentation and the sentiments expressed, the comic relief and the jokes are grounded and original.

To round off one needs to appreciate the hero Jeet, not only for his performance but also his acceptance of a heroine whose presence in the script is in no way less than his. Rukmini is a performing heroine whose screen space sharing and scope of expression are almost at par with that of Jeet.

Despite the abundance of situational comedy that the script cleverly evoked, the director could not avoid some gross slapstick. Probably this is a drawback that Sauvik will overcome in days to come. In this instance, however, he has managed to avoid the returning shots of the boomerang!