Oosaravelli Review

It all begins well with a sidekick narrating the different traits of Tony to a thug who is in search of a heroic henchman in Mumbai.  Tony, for one, is a gutsy bod with deadly eyes, a Napoleanic heart and a never-wracking viscera. For another, Tony is a remarkable lover who would go to any extent for the sake of a promise he made to his sweetheart.  Who is Tony?  He is a well-built youth with a penchant for eliminating everyone in sight.  Like everybody else in this incongruent film, who kill ruthlessly. Oosaravelli begins on a high note, falters mid-way and descends into chaos later.

The film keeps switching locations before you can take notice.  Cut to Kashmir, where Tony (NTR) is on a death row, along with a beautiful stranger, Niharika (Tamanna Bhatia).  Apparently, some terrorists (and they behave as if they are executing actors in a drama play) are butchering ten innocents one after the other because some Indian Mujahideen leader was murdered by the army.  Next in row are the two birds.  The girl shares some tense moments but the guy remains unruffled, feigning a resignation from the rough and tumble of life. (Why so?)  All of a sudden, the girl plants a life-giving kiss on his lips, which reignites a string of emotions in him.  He saves himself and the girl in a jiffy and breaks into a song.  (By the way, NTR seems to be grooving like Devi Sri Prasad in a stage performance in this song).

Cut to Dubai, where a ridiculous scene in the middle of an ocean involving two-three gangsters and a politician (Tanikella Bharani) leaves you gasping.  Tony follows the girl in Hyderabad (don't lose the count of the places).  The film takes the shade of a rom-com from this point.  Niharika, unfortunately, loves one Rakesh, Tanikella's son.  Nevertheless, Tony decides to make her fall in love with him while Raks flies to the US on a 15-day camp. 

Before it is interval time, the NTR-Tamanna track gives you some moments to enjoy.  These are few but they add to the fun factor.  Just when you are thinking 'so far, so good,' a Tony-Rakesh showdown raises the curtain for routine fare.  All that Tony had been looking for was an opportunity to eliminate a dreaded mafia leader (called Irrfan bhai), Rakesh and his wily father-politician, and scores of thugs.

Why is Tony after them?  Who is next on his radar?  How is his destiny intertwined to that of Niharika? The second half answers these questions in a predictable fashion.

The script has got some gaping flaws.  The Rakesh-Niharika element doesn't seem imperative.  Ridiculous violence and mindless killings, all seem quite pointless and out of context.  Songs are extremely intrusive.  (The vaudevillian Mongolia number after the flashback is an assault on our senses).

In the absence of intensity in the proceedings, even sentimental scenes seem superficial.  At times, things border on the eccentric.  At one point, the dreaded Prakash Raj looks on as if he is watching a romantic thriller while the girl takes her sweet time to administer an oath to the hero. 

Performance-wise, NTR looks just about okay.  Tamanna's performance is good but inconsistent.  Prakash Raj as Azju bhai is wasted.  (He looks to be fed up with donning the greasepaint for a low brow role and delivering a forced output here). 

On the positive side, the oddball wit involving JP (Jaya Prakash as Jaya Prada), who is made into an accidental don through design by NTR, is enjoyable. 

All in all, Oosaravelli is an opportunity wasted.  It's a character-based story, but a shoddy screenplay leaves you asking for help.