It has been an eventful year for Rao Ramesh. 'Majili', 'Venky Mama', 'Maharshi', 'Yatra', 'Chitralahari' and 'Oh! Baby' gave him adequate space to prove himself. Last week's 'Venky Mama' cast him in the role of a wily and ruthless politician. In quite a contrast, this week's release, 'Prathi Roju Pande', has him in a different role altogether.

As the self-centered and calculated son of a 75-year-old terminally-ill cancer patient (Sathyaraj), Rao Ramesh has nailed it with his nuanced performance. Both comedy and emotions (in the climax) make him stand out. He has completely overshadowed his fellow character artists, especially Murali Sharma and, in some scenes, Sathyaraj himself.

The actor awaits the release of 'Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo' on January 11. In all likelihood, Trivikram Srinivas has put his talent to the best use.