The following review was done by Dr. Prabhu Jha, an expert on English literature and storytelling in general. His short stories have been published in the literary magazine “Ink” and he runs a blog called Ephemeral Insights.

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“Greater Elephant”, recently premiered in Pune, is a delightful movie, which defies any attempts to label it. Some people might call it a comedy, bordering on the farcical. However, the label of a farcical comedy flies in the face of a very well-done and subtle search for something deeper. And we’re back to square one!

In fact, we’re back to a Mahout, who has lost his alter ego, an elephant named Kishore. The Mahout’s search for Kishore turns into a hilarious and picaresque quest. How else would you describe his chance meeting with Lord Shiva and his cohort, and then with Dracula himself? Before one begins to enjoy the shades of a morality play, the infamous Indian cop shows up to make things more interesting. By the time “Shankar Bhagwan and Ma Parwati”, who are actually Ramleela actors running away from from their own personal crisis, start enjoying their non-vegetarian breakfast, the audience is laughing their heart out. All such preposterously comic situations, however, cannot hide the undercurrent of something more serious and meaningful going on.

So, what’s going on exactly? Are they really looking for an elephant? One wonders. The answers are not easy to come by. This is where the director, Srinivas Sunderrajan has excelled. He has been able to strike a balance between a farcical comedy and a purposeful story of a bunch of people looking for something in life. The young cast has done a remarkably good job. In their roles of Lord Shiva and Parwati, both Naveen Kaushik and Saunskruti are very impressive.

On the whole, “Greater Elephant” is an extremely entertaining movie. The story as well as its symbolism works on so many levels. I have been wondering if the Mahout has really lost an elephant or his happier days of childhood, which is what Kishore – the elephant’s name – means in Hindi / Sanskrit. Obviously, such a story needs a lot of courage to turn into a great movie, for which both Pallavi Rohtagi, the producer, and Srinivas Sunderrajan, the director need to be congratulated. A job well done!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCr2AmvWplw