The Lion King: The Hindi version is a great temptation

Making a remake is challenging, more so when the predecessor is the much-feted The Lion King released in 1994. The original classic had given us memorable characters like Simba, Mufasa, Scar, Timon, Pumbaa, Nala and Zazu. The story had deceit, tragedy, mischief, fun, romance and a happy ending that everybody had adored. Director Jon Favreau’s 2019 remake, which is loyal to the original, shows us the same bunch of animals and shares the same story that has been globally popular for a quarter of a century.

The basic difference, of course, is that hand-drawn animation has made way for computer-generated photorealism. The animals in the new version are so real that the film might have been a nature documentary – if they didn’t speak and sing as they do. Human expressions on animal’s faces created with hand-drawn animation in the original are missing though. Photorealistic animals can’t convey such expressions as traditionally animated animals can be made to do, which is a weakness that is on display here.

The Hindi dubbed version of The Lion King is a major temptation for Indian viewers. That’s understandable since it has an interesting voice-cast from Bollywood. Shah Rukh Khan as Mufasa, his son Aryan Khan as Simba, Ashish Vidyarthi as Scar, Shreya Talpade as Timon, Sanjay Mishra as Pumbaa and Asrani as Zazu are among those who have lent their voices, which has increased the entertainment quotient of the film.

Most film-goers know the story of The Lion King. Set in the Pride Lands of Africa (called Gaurav Bhoomi in the Hindi version), the story begins when the lion king Mufasa rules over the animal kingdom. Mufasa’s younger brother, a wicked lion named Scar, seeks the throne. He masterminds a plot, kills Mufasa, and blames the crown prince Simba for the happening. He then asks Simba to leave the kingdom and never return. There comes a time when Simba makes a return and becomes the new lion king. The rightful heir, in short, gets his due.

Story-wise, the longer present version doesn’t depart from the original material most often. One of the few changes is that more time is given to show Simba’s days in exile in the company of Timon and Pumbaa. Is that good or bad? It does help to enliven the proceedings.

The main problem with this dubbed version is an ancient one common to all dubbed films. Even if well-done, the essence of the original gets partly lost in translation. That also applies to the music, which is reasonably likeable – if you haven’t heard the delightful English versions a million times already.

That said, the Hindi version is appealing when Mishra and Talpade produce gut-busting moments with their hilarious lines. Aryan Khan’s delivery is commendable, while Asrani’s chirpiness makes Zazu an interesting character to listen to. SRK mostly sounds like SRK without any significant deviation. But, that suits Mufasa just fine.

Among the characters is a bunch of detestable hyenas, who might have killed baby Simba had his father not intervened. For some strange reason, these hyenas speak in Bihari Hindi. There ought to be a good enough reason for making the hyenas speak as they do. Whatever it is cannot be understood by the viewer.

The new version of The Lion King is an entertaining watch. It doesn’t tug at the heartstrings as the 1994 original did, but it keeps one engaged with its competent retelling of a story we have heard before.