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Icy N Spicy …God help Indian animation!!!

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Animation lovers of India, unite! And do something to stop this movie from shaming us in front of the world!

It’s been a long time since I last blogged but this frightening piece of news brought me back from my brief blog hiatus. Apparently, India’s First 3D Mainstream Animation Movie is about to be released on 18th July. It’s called Icy N Spicy – A Journey to Tonga and is produced and directed by Anil Goyal, “a most experience person in the field of 3d animation” (that’s what his website claims). You only need to take a look at the stills from the movie (see below) to know why it is something we all need to seriously worry about.


Until now, I have written about various Indian animated films to watch out for. Brilliant stories, outstanding visuals, hard-working Indian animators, studios with vision. Kutti Chetan, Cheenti Cheenti Bang Bang, Little Pandavas… and many more. But this absurdly named film – Icy N Spicy – is so pathetic, it shouldn’t even be released!

I haven’t seen anything as juvenile as this in a long, long time. I had to pinch myself several times over to make sure it wasn’t a bad nightmare that I was having. I don’t know what “advanced technologies and software” (again, their claim!) they have used to create the film but by all means, the character design is as primitive as could possibly be. I think even the freshest of animation students do a better job. As seen in many of the recent Indian animated releases, the stills and promo pictures are often far superior to the final animated film. Going by the appalling quality of the stills of “Icy n Spicy”, I dread to think of what the actual film might be like. They haven’t even spared the Disney “D” by incorporating it into their poster.

It is indeed a very sad state of affairs that talentless people are getting funded and absolute rubbish is being touted with the “India” sticker on it. You even have some of the best mainstream singers lending their voices to this film and from the publicity write-ups, it seems like this film will get worldwide release. What astounds me is that the film has been written about in several leading publications all over India. Makes me think, is it just a matter of paying a fee to get oneself written about in the Indian Press? Just goes to show the wonders a good PR company can do for you.

In the rush to make India’s First 3D Mainstream Animation Movie, the creators have overlooked everything from story to character design to quality. Like frogs in a well, clueless about the world outside, their site is full of praise for the film, oblivious to the fact that it makes them look even more ridiculous. They are only going to make a fool of themselves. In their race to be first and win accolades, they will flush India’s reputation in the animation industry down the drain!

On one hand you have a lot of Indian studios and production houses creating fabulous films – features, shorts and advertisements. They have put in years of hard work into their creations. We even have international studios shaking hands with Indian ones, impressed by their quality of animation. And here, you have a delusional company that is touting first generation animation as India’s best!

Nothing about the film is original. Neither the story nor the characters. The boy and girl protagonists look like they have severe physical disabilities. Their mentor, Gantoo, is yet another take on Lord Ganesh (ho hum!) and the villain is an extremely unoriginal and unimpressive derivative of the time-tested character of a djinn. The backgrounds are worse than the ones in early games that we played on our PCs. They claim they will create history. Yes, I’m sure they will – as the one shoddy film that destroyed the reputation of Indian animation.

Just so that you do not think this scathing review is unnecessary, here are a few more stills from the film. You decide whether or not my rant is justified.

If you have still not fainted with fright, please join me in my prayer…

For the sake of Indian animation and of all the talented, aspiring Indian animators, I fervently pray that this film never sees the light of day. And if it does, I hope our audiences evince their intelligence by booing the makers all the way back to their drawing boards.

If you still have the stomach for more such horrors, please visit the Icy N Spicy website but be warned, you are doing so at your own risk!

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There are 20 comments

  2. Prasad

    Man this is some cool work…where can i learn it ?…probably anywhere in India !?!…the discussion will again end with one of the article published before on this blog…substandard industry, low budgets, bad institutes, good institute but bad faculties, impatient newcomers and lot more things…many areas to be taken care of…so let’s start today !

  3. Akshay Sujir

    I had been hearing about this film for a very long long time now. When I saw first visual (which is the poster here in this article) I thought the producer and the director might have given out the very very early stages of their ‘First Look’ for some marketing buzz but I was wrong. I didnt know it was the final Look. And now I seriously feel that this movie should release since the date and everything is set. I dont want the producer to lose their money(since they must have already spent so much of money for making the film) but I want them to understand and realise, that, such kind of movies do not uplift our animation industry nor will anybody remember that this is “India’s First 3D Mainstream Animation Film” which they claim to be. If this ever movie releases their onle claim to De-Fame is that they have made “India’s First WORST 3D Mainstream Animation Film”

    May it be 3D or 2D there needs to be a certain kind of appeal and aura to it. This is Stupidity. It is sad that there are such talented people in our country but the Indian Producers give opportunity to people who claim to be “a most experience person in the field of 3D animation”; such a waste of Time and Money.

    I hope the theatre owners across India will have some sense to screen such movie.

    Anyways Persepolis has released today will have to catch up. Tx for the article.

  4. Dhimant Vyas

    Hi Akshata
    You are absolutely true! I am agreeing with you.
    Such film ruins our reputation world wide. I do not know how they find the funding!!!
    I am going mad after watching all their visuals!
    God help India animation!!!!

    Dhimant Vyas

  5. firdos alam

    Hi, I’m a post graduate and i have completed my 3 year diploma in
    3D graphics and Animation . I’m doing job as 3D modeling artist for 1 year.
    I’m also well conversed with object oreinred programing.
    Thanks

  6. Eeshita

    I totally agree with what Akshata has pointed out. Recently I saw a song from this movie coming on TV . Oh, it was so so horrible. I can do much better than that.

  7. PJ

    Folks! Beware! put on your strongest Armour. Wear your titanium helmets. Dig a bunker 40 feet below the ground. Do all you can to protect your senses and sensibilities. The assault is inevitable!
    Just one little question. Why? What have we done to deserve this?

  8. Ankit Pruthi

    I would rather call this a de-animation instead of animation…

    i just want to see how many people love this movie…

    somebody please stop this movie….

  9. HV

    INDIA(n Animation) UNDER ATTACK!!!

    Akshata, thank you for the write-up, and PJ, you said it!! India definitely IS under attack!! Where are these aliens coming from??? Are they from this planet or are they from some primitive land who has not seen the animation world of today??

    O! those great singers (Shaan, Vasundhra Das, Udit Narayan, Hariharan), why don’t they just hum a tune in chorus so that the heads of those who were the part of the making of this show could blow-up to millions (like in Mars Attacks) rather than singing FOR them!!

    Have some mercy….

    There need to be a Censor Board for quality stamp exclusively for Animation Films produced in India so that such films don’t get released and the poor investors do not lose their face as well along with their money. Let the board be active atleast for 3 years so that the Industry/Talented Artists/Sensible Investors and above all the viewers are saved from this ATTACK!!

  13. dapoon

    well just done BLASSSSTING them! hope they read the mail and not wonder with disgust that someone ACTUALLY said something bad abt their crap!
    seriously i cant believe they’re actually priding themselves on it! u’re right! their website IS full of praises… almost as if we animators shud rather be GRATEFUL to them for opening the doors of opportunity for us! BULLSHIT!! i wud never work in such a redundant narcissistic ignorant company, not even if they offer me lakhs of rupees! i think they must have finished this “film” in a week or so! actually even THAT’S a bit too much! after all, it’s done by “a most experience person in the field of 3D animation” using “advanced technologies and software”!!

    what a joke! i hope this friggin “movie” is banned!

  17. Tinoy j

    The animation is so pathetic that I felt like crying.This movie would have been a hit had it been released 25 years ago.They took 3 years to animate this piece of bullshit??…ya.. right!!Looks like the whole film was animated in a hurry within a day. And they had the nerve to put Disney “D” in the poster.It is an insult to the whole animation field.Today’s kids are used to watching quality works like ‘Shrek’ and ‘Wall-e’.This film is going to make kids puke.I saw its trailer in youtube and my worst fears became true.Compared to the visuals the posters look bearable.

  18. Akash Raj

    Whats new in this?? All indian animation movies are pathetic. Crap drawing, bad looking characters, animation worse than flash animated clips.

    This is nothing new, Indian animation industry is as bad as garbage.

    Never wanted to watch any of them.

    Japanese animation rokx the world. U can see the difference clearly in the movie ‘Ramayan The legend of Prince Ram’ which is made by japanese people and ‘Hanuman’ crap made by Indian animators.
    Indian animation can never be as good as Japanese ones due to really bad artists, those who dont have any knowledge on drawing.

    So seeing what disaster is Indian animation industry chech this news out:

    Alliance Media’s Sunil Doshi (producer of films like Navarasa, Mixed Doubles and Bheja Fry) has acquired a catalogue of 11 animation titles from Japan’s biggest production house Studio Ghibli, created by Hayao Miyazaki.

    It will be marketed under brand name Junior, a subsidiary of Alliance Media, to fulfill the needs of consumers in the six to 18 age brackets. Junior will include comics, live action films, animation films, games and television shows.

    Under the supervision of Hayao Miyazaki (who is considered by many as the big daddy of animation), Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki, Studio Ghibli (founded in 1985 by Miyazaki and Takahata) has made many animation masterpieces such as Princess Mononoke and Academy Award Winner Spirited Away.

    The titles are:
    Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
    Laputa: Castle in the sky
    My Neighbour Totoro
    Kiki’s Delivery Service
    Only Yesterday
    Porco Rosso
    I Can Hear the Sea
    Pom Poko
    Whisper of the heart
    My Neighbors the Yamadas
    Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea

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