Allari Pidugu Review

It is difficult being Balakrishna these days. On the one hand, his fans want a particular kind of cinema from him (loud dialogues and mass songs) while the urban audiences and the media is disdainful of such stuff and wants new things from him.

So the question is who does he satisfy? Perhaps, he can get ambitious, and satisfy both by incorporating both the elements. But the problem is the result could be a mishmash, a neither here nor there syndrome.

And that precisely has happened in Allari Pidugu.

The film has all the elements that Balaya's fans want and there is also gritty entertainment that urban youths would want. But alas, the proportion is a problem here.

The story is a typical twin-brother one. Ranjith and Giri are the sons of the honest military officer (Puneet Issar). He is sent to jail by the machinations of the villain group led by GK (Mukesh Rishi), who is also an MP.

Ranjith is an upright police officer who is an encounter-specialist. Giri is a maverick of starts, drifting aimlessly as a village urchin of sorts. Giri's father gives up on him for being a wastrel.

Ranjith takes on GK. The later naturally retaliates. So it is now up to Giri to double for Ranjith and erase the trumped up charges on his dad. The father also understands that his other son is no slouch. In between all the action, Giri and Ranjith get to romance Subbulakshmi (Charmi) and  Swathi (Katerina Kaif).

Balakrishna, back on screen after a gap, is the one who redeems this film. He is stylish and looks very refreshed. His acting also has the necessary variation to differentiate between the twins. But he is hamstrung by the limitation of his role. And the dialogues, too, his strength, are far and few between.

Charmi, the new oomph goddess, and Katerina Kaif, waltz around the trees and have fun. But acting? Well, their roles can be fitted on the back of a bus ticket. Puneet Issar is okay. Mukesh Rishi does the typical villain stuff.

He rest just amble through. Technically, the film is good with the camera work being top class. And ditto for Mani Sharma's music. His songs have the necessary zing for a film like this.

Director Jayanth has worked hard for Balakrishna. The hero comes out unscathed. But the same cannot be said for the film.