Venkatadri Express
'Venkatadri Express', the film starring Tollyood's rebel Sundeep Kishan and the long legged princely beauty from Delhi, Rakul Preet Singh in the lead roles, supported by Chota K Naidu. Oops, the film, on the face of it, doesn't seem to have many other things to offer on its plate than the ace cinematographer's name.
A sneak peek into the promotional material, pre release interviews etc reveals that this is about a marriage and a missed train and an accidental romance. Gemini has done a film earlier which is also about a train romance. However, this film looks to have more elements than just that. A thrilling screenplay, a journey with twists and turns and an unexpected ending.
The lead pair has a good chemistry in a romantic number that is frequently seen on TV. While Sundeep Kishan has proved his mettle as an actor with Prasthanam and RLS, this film will be his chance to establish himself as a hero material. Rakul is almost debuting in Telugu and will be scrutinized for her performance.
Debutant director Merlapaka Gandhi is an institute product and one can expect some exciting cinematic techniques. Cinematography by Chota K Naidu is the backbone the project and his skill is clearly seen in the quick cuts of the trailers and song promos. Music by Ramana Gogula doesn't seem to have triggered the buzz but for one song. Production by Gemini Kiran has been generally excellent and will continue to be so in the film.
Surprisingly, the film's promotion hasn't been aggressive which is so important in this market conditions and it will be interesting to see how the film's opening draw would be. All in all, the film might be a surprise sleeper in the pack of films releasing this week if it performs better than what it promises.