Film
scripts
are
like
rubber
band.
Try
stretching
the
band
beyond
a
point
and
it's
sure
to
give
away.
The
script
of
Anamika
suffers
for
this
reason!
Director
Ananth
Narayan
Mahadevan
presents
every
sequence
with
utmost
care
till
the
intermission
point.
You're
hooked,
you're
transported
to
the
world
of
Mrs.
Anamika
Sisodiya,
the
character
who
continues
to
haunt
everyone
in
this
film,
even
after
she's
gone.
You
eagerly
look
forward
to
the
twist
in
the
tale.
Alas!
What
eventually
unfolds,
though
filmed
with
the
same
sincerity,
lacks
conviction.
It
also
fails
to
surprise
you
because
midway
through
the
journey,
you
know
what
the
outcome
would
eventually
be.
It
doesn't
keep
you
guessing.
And
that's
bad
news
for
any
thriller!
Frankly,
a
suspense
saga
works
only
if
it
is
backed
by
a
solid
climax.
In
Anamika,
the
tension
gradually
builds
up
till
the
climax,
but
the
end
is
so
tame,
so
contrived
that
you
exclaim,
'Gosh!
What
was
that?'
As
a
storyteller,
Ananth
almost
gets
it
right
he
has
handled
the
complex
theme
like
a
pro,
even
extracted
convincing
performances
from
his
set
of
actors,
has
worked
hard
on
maintaining
the
mood
of
the
film
from
start
to
end
but
he's
letdown
by
the
writing
in
the
second
hour.
Anamika
tells
the
story
of
an
escort
Jia
[Minissha
Lamba],
who
gets
married
to
Vikram
Sisodiya
[Dino
Morea]
after
a
2-day
courtship.
Before
marrying
Jia,
Vikram
confesses
that
his
first
wife,
Anamika,
had
died
under
mysterious
circumstances.
Vikram
and
Jia
fly
to
Vikram's
ancestral
home
in
Gajner
in
Rajasthan.
The
home,
a
palace
to
be
precise,
is
being
looked
after
by
Vikram's
childhood
friend
Malini
[Koena
Mitra].
Now
begins
the
story…
Everyone
in
Gajner
seems
to
be
obsessed
with
Anamika
and
Jia
starts
sensing
it.
In
fact,
Jia
is
constantly
compared
to
Anamika.
Worse,
she
even
sees
Anamika's
spirit
in
the
palace.
In
a
turn
of
events,
Anamika's
dead
body
is
discovered
and
the
police
[Gulshan
Grover,
Dino's
brother-in-law]
re-open
the
case.
All
fingers
point
towards
Vikram.
Is
he
the
murderer?
Loosely
based
on
the
novel
'Rebecca',
Anamika
is
a
difficult
subject
to
make.
But
after
the
initial
hiccups,
the
director
succeeds
in
involving
the
viewer
in
the
mysterious
world
of
Anamika.
The
backdrop
of
Rajasthan,
the
isolated
palace
and
the
reference
to
Anamika
at
every
point
only
deepens
the
mystery.
So
far
so
good!
Almost
the
entire
first
half
is
executed
with
elan
by
Ananth,
who's
only
grown
as
a
storyteller
over
the
years.
But,
as
mentioned
earlier,
the
writing
[in
the
second
hour]
acts
as
a
spoilsport.
Without
wanting
to
reveal
the
climax,
let's
just
say
that
it's
one
of
those
tame
and
predictable
endings
that
we've
visited
time
and
again.
Anu
Malik's
music
is
pleasant,
but
the
songs
[the
ones
filmed
in
Thailand]
and
the
choreography
in
particular
of
these
tracks
don't
really
gel
with
the
mood
of
the
film.
Pushan
Kripalani's
cinematography
is
alright.
The
stunning
locales
of
Rajasthan,
the
production
design
[Gayatri
Marwah]
as
also
the
styling
is
commendable.
Aadesh
Shrivastava's
background
score
deserves
special
mention.
It's
excellent.
Dino
Morea
surprises
you
with
a
controlled
performance.
Also,
he
carries
the
regal
look
convincingly.
Minissha
Lamba
is
a
revelation.
She's
getting
better
and
better
with
every
release.
Koena
Mitra
is
first-rate.
Gulshan
Grover
is
effective.
Achint
Kaur
is
highly
competent.
Vishwajeet
Pradhan
and
Jatin
Grewal
are
okay.
On
the
whole,
Anamika
is
letdown
by
its
writing
in
the
second
hour.
At
the
box-office,
the
not-too-interesting
face-value
coupled
with
the
ongoing
cricket
mania
will
only
go
against
it.