It has struggled for quite a while in the cans, not being sure of when it will finally see the light of the day. Now, after a hard fought battle, it has finally come out. All those who were waiting to see the aggressive version of Sneha get their wish as Bhavani IPS is in theaters across the state.

The movie did gather more than a fair bit of attention even before its release because of the protagonist’s radical departure from what she had earlier done in her career. In fact, Sneha was one of the few heroines who has even shied away from the doing the modern and sophisticated kind of roles, keeping more to the traditional definitions of a Tamil heroine. Yes, her role in Goa was an exception, but quiet and homely are the best two words to describe her on screen disposition till now.

So, what was it that prompted her to take up the role of a cop, that too with lots of action thrown in? Well, everyone has a desire to break moulds and surprise people with their versatility; this is that kind of attempt from Sneha and the makers of Bhavani IPS.

No matter how different the cast or casting, it is the novelty in the plot and treatment that gets a film its ultimate success. Director G Kicha seems to have forgotten these basics while making Bhavani IPS. The desire to be different is very evident from the casting that he has undertaken, but that alone cannot make for a good movie. He has chosen a cliché ridden and overcooked tale of a honest cop and corrupt politician and about how good triumphs over evil in the end, with lots of fight, a bit of sentiment and jeopardizing circumstances for the protagonist at many instances. To cut the long story short; it is the same old good vs. evil stuff; the only difference being that what has been done by a hero all these decades has now been done by a heroine. If you are hell bent upon making the movie sound different, you could say that there is no ‘heroism’, there is only ‘heroinism’. Now, it depends upon you to decide which is the lesser of the two evils. Nowhere in the plot does it look like the moves and tactics carried out by Bhavani are that of an IPS officer. She flies around, bashes, bangs, cuts, kicks and in the end even kills, without any of it looking like an intelligent move.

If you would want to find the positives, it has to be in the performances department. Sneha has worked hard. It is a committed effort and she has given everything for the role. It is easy to understand the amount of risks that she took to complete the stunt sequences. But, sadly, those efforts have not come to complete fruition. That is partly because of the weak script wherein almost all fight sequences are contrived and overstretched. But, there has also been a below par effort in bringing out the fights effectively on screen. On the other hand, Kota Sreenivasa is his usual menacing self while Sampath makes a decent cameo.

Technically, there is very little that stands out in Bhavani IPS. The songs are wasted  and do not stick to your mind. There is the mandatory item number which only adds to the discontent amongst the audiences. All comparisons with Vijayashanthi IPS look completely unjustified. Yes, that kind of a movie was a trendsetter two decades back, but the same kind of stuff today looks pale and out of place. Bhavani IPS is a waste of a casting coup and the willingness of an actress to put her cozy image on the line for some risky stuff. Certainly could have been better with a more intelligent and less cliché-ridden script.

Verdict: Heroine replaces hero in cliché ridden masala!