'ABCD', starring Allu Sirish and Rukshar Dhillon in the lead, hit the theatres this Friday. Here is our review of the entertainer.
Story:
Aravind (Allu Sirish) is the pampered son of an NRI millionaire (Nagababu). Together with Basha (Bharath), his all-weather friend, Aravind spends money like water and woos hot girls as if there is no tomorrow.
His lifestyle goes for a toss when the father decides to teach him a lesson. He is tricked into leaving for India to spend a month. Once in India, Aravind and Basha are condemned to live in a slum. They even end up enrolling for a PG course.
In his journey, Aravind crosses paths with Bhargav (Raja), a wannabe Minister who stops at nothing when it comes to winning elections.
How does Aravind become a changed man in the process? What ideals of life does he come to value? Answers to these questions are found in the second half.
Analysis:
'ABCD' is an official remake of 'ABCD: American-Born Confused Desi', a 2013 Malayalam drama Dulquer Salman. The remake is not entirely faithful, as a lot many elements (especially rom-com scenes) have been added to appeal to the Telugu audience's tastes.
The film sets out for itself a comfortable path. Sentimentalism is built around the Indian way of life (generically presented), and drama created the woes of the unfortunate.
The first half, by and large, is about the new-found travails of the hero and his friend in India when they have to live on peanuts. Their bonding with slum-dwellers and their attempts to come out of the situation they are in are narrated in a leisurely manner. Rom-com scenes are reserved for the second half, so also the thickening of the political subplot.
Rukshar Dhillon plays Neha, the hero's crush and girlfriend. She gets enough space in the second half and becomes a part of the hero's journey. Talking of journey, the film does remind of the sense in which the makers of 'Maharshi' have used the word to describe the "journey" of Mahesh Babu's character in the film. 'ABCD' does induce a sense of deja vu for sure.
The film, directed by debutant Sanjeev Reddy, builds a rapport between the hero and his father (Nagababu), whose unassuming performance is a plus.
It would have greatly helped had the comedy situations been tight. Most of the scenes have the same theme of the hero and his friend getting comically frustrated because of one or the other thing.
The idea of the hero losing his balance whenever he sees a beautiful girl should have been explored to build new-age comedy. The audiences are accepting boldness nowadays. The scenes should have gone beyond presenting boozing moments, shopping mall comedy and the like. Vennela Kishore, who plays the cunning host of a TV show, makes the mark in a limited role.
Raja (lyricist Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry's son) looks confident in the role of a wily politician who is ruthless. But the setting is too small for a feature film. The number of junior artists seen should have been at least five times more. Also, there should have been more drama in the Youth Icon contest episode. The episode lacks gravitas. It's difficult to believe that everyone in the State starts taking Aravind seriously even when he says two contradictory things on a LIVE show.
Allu Sirish plays a more rounded character in this film and is in a happy space. He pulls off emotional scenes well. Bharath is OK, while Rukshar looks good in 'Mella Mellaga'. There should have been more of Viva Harsha perhaps. Harshavardhan, Subhalekha Sudhakar and Kota Srinivas Rao fit the bill.
Judah Sandhy's music should have got better song picturizations. The other technical elements are sub par.
Verdict:
'ABCD' attempts to strike the chord by narrating the story of a coming-of-age rich spoilt brat. With better comedy and less of cliches, the film would have hit the bull's eye.
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