What made Pokiri a biggest sensation..
It's ten years for Pokiri, the 2006 blockbuster that catapulted Mahesh into a different league. IndiaGlitz chronicles the elements that made the film one of the best mass entertainers of the last decade.
Mahesh Babu
Mahesh Babu had never been as forceful as he was in this film. He had not come even closer in terms of rawness even in Okkadu. He was sentimentally intense in Arjun, but here in Pokiri, Puri Jagannadh transformed him into an altogether different Mahesh Babu - seething with righteous rage in the climax, to cite just one instance of his acting brilliance in this run-away blockbuster. Remember that Pawan Kalyan hadn't had a hit for six years and NTR had been down after Simhadri in 2003. At a time when the audience were looking for a mass hero with a knack of saying punch lines with a devil-may-care attitude, Pokiri came as the answer.
Mahesh here showed a Puri Jagannadh-esque attitude. His body language had takers across all sections of the audience. The song 'Jagadame..' was a trailer that announced the 'hatke'-ness of his character. Right from facing the villains head-on to wooing the heroine, Mahesh was a pro in everything. His scenes with Prakash Raj (as Ali Bhai) and Ashish Vidyarthi (as SI Pasupathy) were remarkable for the hero's aggressive attitude, besides constantly suggesting that a mindgame was on! Lines like 'Nee station lo kottha constable anukunnava..' showed what Mahesh was capable of.
Puri Jagannadh's dialogues
After Mahesh, the film's biggest USP were the dialogues. Puri was writ large all over. One saw people of all ages mesmerized by the lines. Sample these:
'Evadu kodithe dimma tirigi mind block aypoddo, aade pandu gaadu': This was the most parodied one in private conversations, especially among the college-goers.
'Ee thokka lo meetingento naku artham kavadamledu': One must say the word 'thokka' was once again resurrected to life for the first time since Pawan Kalyan's Kushi.
'Eppudu vaccham annadi kadannayya, bullettu diginda leda': The scene was more enjoyable in retrospect. That's because cop Mahesh Babu's righteous rage in the scene could be understood only later.
'Nenu entha yedhavano nake teldu': Of course, many youngsters took pride in saying this. They couldn't have asked for a better way to make their mediocrity look sexy.
'Okka sari commit aithe naa mata nene vinanu': Not sure how many managers and team leaders openly said it after Pokiri, but many of their team members did quote this line about their bosses, sarcastically or otherwise.
Sayaji Shinde's lecture to the media: This is another scene where the dialogues lived on for long even after the film was gone. Noteworthy, given that it has no hero, but only a character artiste!
'Cinemalu choodadledenti?': Not a big punch line, but it showed how lightly he took the gangsters.
Mahesh-Illeana tracks
The romantic track involving Mahesh and Illeana D'Cruz stood out for its irreverence. Sample this: 'Carrierlu carrierlu pattukoni o tirugutuntav', the hero says to his love interest. Imagine a hero who takes on the heroine's lecherous suitor (Asish Vidyarthi) without even being told the name. The anger that Mahesh shows in the scene where Illeana helplessly weeps while talking about the harassment, is one scene that made the love story substantial. A textbook case of how to elevate heroism, once again!
Climax
Mahesh Babu revealing his identity was a masterstroke that catapulted the film into a different league. From the moment the hero returns as a cop, it's an adrenaline rush-giving journey to a high-octane denouement. Nasser's dialogues raised the tempo to a new high.
The fear on the faces of the villains from the time they come to know of Mahesh's real identity, said it all. The episodes stood out as a textbook example of how to elevate heroism.
Comedy track
In a superstar film like this, a comedy track involving Brahmanandam and Ali had the audience in splits. The Ba. ba.. ba-ing and Brahmi's frustrated 'I hate beggars' elicited laughs big-time. Ali and Venu Madhav made organized beggary look eminently funny. Brahmi's self-glorifying young software engineer was invoked to ridicule unfashionable uncles in private conversations.
What made Pokiri a biggest sensation..
It's ten years for Pokiri, the 2006 blockbuster that catapulted Mahesh into a different league. IndiaGlitz chronicles the elements that made the film one of the best mass entertainers of the last decade.
Mahesh Babu
Mahesh Babu had never been as forceful as he was in this film. He had not come even closer in terms of rawness even in Okkadu. He was sentimentally intense in Arjun, but here in Pokiri, Puri Jagannadh transformed him into an altogether different Mahesh Babu - seething with righteous rage in the climax, to cite just one instance of his acting brilliance in this run-away blockbuster. Remember that Pawan Kalyan hadn't had a hit for six years and NTR had been down after Simhadri in 2003. At a time when the audience were looking for a mass hero with a knack of saying punch lines with a devil-may-care attitude, Pokiri came as the answer.
Mahesh here showed a Puri Jagannadh-esque attitude. His body language had takers across all sections of the audience. The song 'Jagadame..' was a trailer that announced the 'hatke'-ness of his character. Right from facing the villains head-on to wooing the heroine, Mahesh was a pro in everything. His scenes with Prakash Raj (as Ali Bhai) and Ashish Vidyarthi (as SI Pasupathy) were remarkable for the hero's aggressive attitude, besides constantly suggesting that a mindgame was on! Lines like 'Nee station lo kottha constable anukunnava..' showed what Mahesh was capable of.
Puri Jagannadh's dialogues
After Mahesh, the film's biggest USP were the dialogues. Puri was writ large all over. One saw people of all ages mesmerized by the lines. Sample these:
'Evadu kodithe dimma tirigi mind block aypoddo, aade pandu gaadu': This was the most parodied one in private conversations, especially among the college-goers.
'Ee thokka lo meetingento naku artham kavadamledu': One must say the word 'thokka' was once again resurrected to life for the first time since Pawan Kalyan's Kushi.
'Eppudu vaccham annadi kadannayya, bullettu diginda leda': The scene was more enjoyable in retrospect. That's because cop Mahesh Babu's righteous rage in the scene could be understood only later.
'Nenu entha yedhavano nake teldu': Of course, many youngsters took pride in saying this. They couldn't have asked for a better way to make their mediocrity look sexy.
'Okka sari commit aithe naa mata nene vinanu': Not sure how many managers and team leaders openly said it after Pokiri, but many of their team members did quote this line about their bosses, sarcastically or otherwise.
Sayaji Shinde's lecture to the media: This is another scene where the dialogues lived on for long even after the film was gone. Noteworthy, given that it has no hero, but only a character artiste!
'Cinemalu choodadledenti?': Not a big punch line, but it showed how lightly he took the gangsters.
Mahesh-Illeana tracks
The romantic track involving Mahesh and Illeana D'Cruz stood out for its irreverence. Sample this: 'Carrierlu carrierlu pattukoni o tirugutuntav', the hero says to his love interest. Imagine a hero who takes on the heroine's lecherous suitor (Asish Vidyarthi) without even being told the name. The anger that Mahesh shows in the scene where Illeana helplessly weeps while talking about the harassment, is one scene that made the love story substantial. A textbook case of how to elevate heroism, once again!
Climax
Mahesh Babu revealing his identity was a masterstroke that catapulted the film into a different league. From the moment the hero returns as a cop, it's an adrenaline rush-giving journey to a high-octane denouement. Nasser's dialogues raised the tempo to a new high.
The fear on the faces of the villains from the time they come to know of Mahesh's real identity, said it all. The episodes stood out as a textbook example of how to elevate heroism.
Comedy track
In a superstar film like this, a comedy track involving Brahmanandam and Ali had the audience in splits. The Ba. ba.. ba-ing and Brahmi's frustrated 'I hate beggars' elicited laughs big-time. Ali and Venu Madhav made organized beggary look eminently funny. Brahmi's self-glorifying young software engineer was invoked to ridicule unfashionable uncles in private conversations.
It's ten years for Pokiri, the 2006 blockbuster that catapulted Mahesh into a different league. IndiaGlitz chronicles the elements that made the film one of the best mass entertainers of the last decade.
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