'Most Eligible Bachelor' arrived at the cinemas today. Here is our review of the rom-com.

Story:

Harsha (Akhil Akkineni) has his career sorted out. Vibha (Pooja Hegde), a stand-up comedian, is waiting for that one guy with whom she can share thousands of romantic moments for a lifetime. When Harsha bumps into Vibha, one of his prospective matches, he is enlightened by her new-age thinking. But since he doesn't know how to express himself, he falls in trouble. To make the matters harder for him, Vibha's father (Murali Sharma) has a low opinion of him as well.

Analysis:

Writer-director 'Bommarillu' Baskar has made a comeback of sorts with this mature telling of a sincere romantic drama. The backdrop of 'pelli choopulu' and the comedy built around it serves the purpose extremely well.

The performances are effective. Akhil Akkineni discovers his strengths, while Pooja Hegde's acting graph soars in the second half. Her long delivery at a wedding is a treat to watch. She gets the lip sync spot-on. The superstar actress has definitely worked hard to get her dialogue-delivery right. After all, Vibha is not a glamorous character but a stand-up comedian who has a philosophy to reckon with. Akhil's performance is miles ahead of what we saw of him in 'Mr. Majnu'. He looks sophisticated like in 'Hello' and his get-up in the second half is cool.

Murali Sharma's character is comical as well as serious. He is like a soft antagonist who is obsessed about his daugther's life. Pragathi and Vennela Kishore are fun to watch. One feels Get-Up Srinu, Ajay and Srikanth Iyengar have been miscast. Jayaprakash and Aamani play father and mother to the hero, respectively. Sudigali Sudheer has a role and croniness is around him. Chinmayi and Rahul Ravindran lend a patient ear to Harsha, who narrates the story as a flashback.

Gopi Sundar's music is a stand-out feature of this coming-of-age rom-com. 'Leharaayi', 'Guche Gulabi' and 'Chitti Adugu' deepen the drama. The BGM finds its voice in the second half and perks up the emotional scenes in the climax. Pradeesh M Varma's cinematography is excellent.

'Most Eligible Bachelor' gives a new definition of romance and holds a mirror to the confusions hobbling today's youngsters. It uses terms like 'adjustment' and 'career', explores them, and shows that we take a lot of things for granted.

The climax is not simplistic. It deep-dives into the mindsets of Harsha and Vibha and lets us understand their world even better. The comedy is strong, including the courtroom scene involving Faria Abdullah and Posani Krishna Murali. Eesha Rebba's cameo helps.

The songs are situational, while the comedy is also driven by the needs of the story. The context is strong and the scenes play out with a great amount of conviction. If 'MEB' didn't exist, it would have to be invented for the current generation.

The second half could have come with more depth, especially in how the rom-com scenes play out between Harsha and Vibha. Whatever deficiency is there, the climax undoes all of it and gives us a wholesome meal.

Verdict:

'MEB' is an important film because it taps into the anxieties of today's youngersters and also offers futuristic solutions.