Sema movie review: This GV Prakash film is a laidback entertainer

Sema
Director: Vlikalanth
Cast: G.V Prakash Kumar, Arthana Binu, Yogi Babu, Sujatha and Mansoor Ali Khan
Rating: 2.5/5
If you have committed to G V Prakash’s Sema by buying a ticket and walking into a theatre to watch it, you don’t nitpick. It is just that kind of film. This rural comedy directed by Vallikanth, which features Yogi Babu in a terrific form throughout with his wisecracks, never takes itself seriously and expects you to do the same. As a result, you walk out with the memory of sporadic laugh out loud moments, even though the predictable plot and uninteresting screenplay has nothing new to offer.

The plot revolves around Prakash who, despite being rejected multiple times by prospective brides, is hopeful of finding a life partner. He’s told by an astrologer that if he doesn’t get married in the next three months, then he has to wait for six years to tie the knot. So the hunt begins for the suitable girl and the events that follow form the crux of the story.

Sema treads a very familiar path of romantic drama, which is set against the backdrop of an instantly relatable mother-son relationship. Sujatha is an underrated actor and though she’s slightly over the top at times in her performance, she owns the mother’s part. Halfway into the film, when an important character proposes to the heroine and she rejects him, citing reason that she likes someone else, most of us would know how the film will end. There’s no surprise in how Vallikanth treats this angle in the story.

Prakash has been seen in similar roles over the years. After his deeply affecting performance in Bala’s Naachiyaar, he goes easy in Sema, playing a character he’s most comfortable with, which is the boy-next-door. Yogi Babu plays his friend and, boy, it’s a joy to watch him on screen. He is the film’s biggest saving grace and he nails his part with his one-liners. Arthana Binu is decent in her part but sadly has nothing to offer apart from looking pretty on screen.

Sema is what you could call a laidback entertainer, because as a film, it is exactly what it expects from its audience - to sit back, relax and laugh at the jokes or with the jokes.

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