'Varudu Kaavalenu' hit the screens this Friday. Is it worth a watch? Find out in our review.
Story:
Akash (Naga Shaurya) falls in love with Bhumi (Ritu Varma) upon returning to India from Paris as a reputed architect. He seeks to work for her start-up in Hyderabad and woos her at every opportunity. Bhumi, for some reason, doesn't engage in his flirtatious talks. Eventually, she falls for him. This is when we realize that there is more to it than meets the eye. What is Bhumi up to? What is the central conflict of a love story where both the girl and the boy have a clear liking for each other? Answers to these questions are found as the story progresses.
Analysis:
Films that are about the shifting thought processes and mindsets of the lead pair are not easy to be narrated. Recently, 'Most Eligible Bachelor' did it and now, it is the turn of 'Varudu Kaavalenu', where Akash and Bhumi are squeezed in by a strong story and a stronger screenplay.
What does it take to overcome the hurt of the past? How long does one take to shrug off something that caused agony? How does a painful experience change an individual's personality and thinking? Debutante filmmaker Lakshmi Sowjanya toys with these questions and the answers to these questions inform her feature film.
In an age of instant gratification and lazy love stories, here is a film that lives up to the title. Bhumi is too strict to be taken seriously, yet she is seen as an autocratic boss at her office. The characters played by Vennela Kishore (as an inept designer who doesn't know the ABC of architecture), Himaja (as a selfie-obsessed employee) and others are fun to watch. The first half is a mash-up of breezy as well as serious scenes.
In the second half, when the plot grows in weight, we get a taste of the unfolding conflict plot point. After a series of serious scenes, there come lively scenes revolving around the quirks of Saptagiri, who hates lag in things, and a lazy domestic help ruining it for him at a wedding.
The placement of the songs is dashing. From 'Vaddanam' to 'Digu Digu Digu Naga', they are what the doctor ordered. Both Sid Sriram and Chinmayi Sripada become the voice of the lead pair. And both Thaman and composer Vishal Chandrasekhar give their best, with the latter dishing out the maximum number of songs. Vamsi Patchipulusu, who has mostly done thrillers, does an able job with a family and romantic-comedy entertainer.
Naga Shaurya is impressive and fits the bill of a go-to guy wearing an irresistible attitude. Ritu Varma is fabulous throughout and gets an author-backed character to play. Her scenes with Murali Sharma and Nadhiya, who play her parents, are among the best. Nadhiya plays a mother who has a thorough arc of her own.
Verdict:
'Varudu Kaavalenu' makes for a cool and emotional watch. Go for it!
