'Sita Ramam' hit the screens today (August 5). In this section, we are going to review the latest box-office release.

Story:

The romantic drama is a period film where two separate sets of characters live in two different time periods. It is the early 1980s when Afreen (Rashmika Mandanna) is on the lookout for Sita. She comes to know that Ram was in love with her and starts searching for him, meeting Ram's past acquaintances.

Twenty years prior to this, Lieutenant Ram (Dulquer Salmaan) fell madly in love with Sita Mahalakshmi (Mrunal Thakur), a young woman from Madras. What is Afreen trying to tell Sita? What is there in the sealed letter which she wants to hand her over? What is the role of Brigadier Vishnu Sharma (Sumanth) in the larger scheme of things and why is he guilt-ridden? Answers to these questions are found as the story progresses.
 
Analysis:

Director Hanu Raghavapudi's films have suffered from the second half syndrome, something he himself recently acknowledged. For the first time in his career, the director delivers a sure-fire film where terrific writing meets mesmerizing performances and gorgeous execution. Vyjayanthi Movies lets content and visuals do the talking.

It's telling that the lead man Dulquer had gone to the extent of saying that the film's screenplay is as unpredictable as it gets. He was not exaggerating at all. The story's many turns keep us hooked till the last minute. The tight run-time respects the integrity of the story as much as the audience's intelligence.

Mrunal Thakur takes the scenes to the next level with her flawless acting chops. If Dulquer shows the joy of finding a girlfriend and putting his orphanhood behind (and those early scenes where love blooms are a joy to watch), Mrunal's restrained performance is magnificent. Both Dulquer and Mrunal are the most beautiful looking onscreen pair in recent times on the Indian cinema screen.

Vishal Chandrasekhar's music and background score are coherent. The latter, especially, refuses to make an imposing presence despite the occasional opportunity to do so. 'Kaanunna Kalyanam' and 'Inthandham' are both nimble-footed and lovely because of SPB Charan as much as the composer. PS Vinod and Shreyaas Krishna share the credits for the poetic and occasionally glowing visuals. The production design is superior.

Selfless love is a motif this film doesn't oversell. It deals with human emotions without making it sound like one man's emotion is more important than another man's. Dulquer delivers an unpretentious act, looking every bit like how we would like Ram to be. Mrunal's girl-next-door vibes are guileless. Rashmika lends a degree of intrigue. Her character takes a backseat as the story progresses.

The rest of the ensemble performances (read Sumanth, Gautham Menon, Bhumika Chawla, Prakash Raj, Shatru) are able, with the first of them getting one of his career's most memorable roles.

Verdict:

Sita Ramam' is a fab story where events hang by a thread and keep the audience engaged without making the tension take a toll. It makes for a riveting watch!