21: Laxmii | No Rating Movie Review | Akshay Kumar | Kiara Advani

A remake of Tamil film Kanchana (2011) directed by Raghava Lawrence, Laxmii stars Akshay Kumar and Kiara Advani in the lead roles and is directed by Lawrence himself. Given the kind of buzz that the film had been generating, mostly around Akshay's transgender character, Laxmii had set a high benchmark. Was it crossed? Not entirely. Or maybe not as successfully as you would have liked. Asif and Rashmi played by Akshay and Kiara are a married against their family's will, thus setting the ground for an interfaith subplot early on in the story. Asif is out to eradicate the superstitions around ghosts, by offering scientific explanations for supernatural events but later he gives in to one such situation himself when he gets possessed by a spirit of a transgender, who is set to take revenge on all those who wronged her. While Akshay is in full form, Kiara delivers a balanced performance and doesn't go overboard. The supporting cast including Ashwini Kalsekar; Ayesha Raza Mishra; Rajesh Sharma and Manu Rishi Chadha adds a tinge of wit and humor. Stealing the show in a 20-minute cameo is Sharad Kelkar as a trans woman. Music is just about okay but the song and dance numbers Burj Khalifa and Bam Bam Bholle are total paisa vasool.