PremiumGet-Set Baby movie review: Writing of Unni Mukundan, Nikhila Vimal’s family drama is too confused to be effective
Get-Set Baby review: Why this Unni Mukundan film flounders is because of its wafer-thin plot which essentially is about a renowned IVF specialist who refuses to believe that he has infertility issues
Last Updated: 02.34 PM, Feb 21, 2025
Get-Set Baby plot: Though there’s initial resistance of seeing a male gynaecologist from his patients, IVF specialist Dr Arjun Balakrishnan’s skills ensure that he becomes one of the most renowned doctors in the State. But along with his ambition, his ego too spikes – leading to a rocky road in his personal and professional lives.
Get-Set Baby review: In 2024, director Sooraj Tom’s movie Vishesham addressed a relevant topic of the struggles of a couple undergoing fertility treatment. The sensitivity and emotional depth with which the film tackled the subject is what connected it to a lot of the audience, who have had to go through the same journey to have a child. In Get-Set Baby, director Vinay Govind and the writers Rajesh YV and Anoop Ravindran, take you through the world of maternity hospitals – but from the perspective of an ambitious and gifted doctor, Dr Arjun Radhakrishnan (Unni Mukundan).
What separates the two films though is the journeys of the patients and doctors, while one is emotional, the other is less so, focused more on getting to the end of the process. In a way, that’s also how Get-Set Baby works. The movie is punctuated by the emotional climax but till then it’s a journey that you don’t really care about – mainly because of the writing.
The film introduces Dr Arjun, the gynaecologist specialised in IVF, but struggling to get patients because of the bias from his patients. The writers navigate this well, by showing his sensitive side in dealing with women. But when his ambitions take flight, the film nullifies this, showing him as a cut-throat man who prioritises fame and fortune over his patients or his colleagues. The rapidity of this evolution also makes you care less for Dr Arjun, even when the makers use humour while showing his personal life. That disconnect also doesn’t do the film any favour.
The main reason Get-Set Baby flounders is because of its wafer-thin plot which essentially is about a renowned IVF specialist who refuses to believe that he has infertility issues. This is stretched in the film, where you question what the point of the plot is – especially when it deals with an expert in the field, who is so closed off to his own shortcomings. There could have been more creative ways to present this, but the writers instead paint a confused portrait of a man. It’s not like they didn’t give it a thought, because Dr Arjun himself talks to Chemban Vinod Jose’s macho character about these issues at the beginning of the film – which is why it appears even more befuddling for the audience.
It’s not to say that the movie doesn’t have any good moments. It does, but they come too late – when Dr Arjun understands the importance of his duty as a doctor and when he has to make an important choice that ruins his reputation, which he was trying to protect all along.
Unni Mukundan does a decent job as Dr Arjun and tries hard to be charming, but because of the writing, the character never really appears endearing enough. Nikhila Vimal as Dr Arjun’s wife gets one impactful scene where she questions his methods as a husband to become a father. Surabhi Lakshmi and Sudeesh’s characters serve to reflect the journey of patients going through fertility treatment, while there are also other flat efforts of showing celeb surrogacy and its challenges.
Get-Set Baby’s tone mirrors that of OB-GYN wards or maternity clinics. Sam CS’ peppy music is easily forgettable except for the Maname Alolam track.
Get-Set Baby verdict: Even if you are in the mood for a breezy family drama, this Unni Mukundan and Nikhila Vimal-starrer is neither pregnant with emotions nor laughs.