Movie: Gopala Gopala
Rating: 3/5
Banner: Suresh Productions, North Star Entertainments Pvt. Ltd
Cast: Venkatesh, Pawan Kalyan, Shriya, Posani, Vennela Kishore, Mithun Chakraborthy and others
Editor: Gautham Raju
Cinematography: Jayanan Vincent
Music: Anoop Rubens
Screenplay: Kishore Kumar Pardasany, Bhoopathy Raja, Deepak Raj
Story: Umesh Shukla, Bhavesh Mandalia
Producers: D.Suresh Babu, Sharat Marar
Direction: Kishore Kumar Pardasany
Release Date: Jan 10th, 2015
Gopala Gopala is an official remake of Akshay and Paresh Rawal satirical hit film Oh My God!. In Telugu, it is a multi-starrer with Venkatesh and Pawan Kalyan. But it’s no easy task to remake a film that was a Bollywood hit and tweak it to suit the sense and sensibilities of another language audience. Let’s see how the film’s director Dolly or Kishore Kumar Pardasani has handled the film…
Story:
Gopala Rao (Venkatesh) is a middle-class man who has a small family and owns a store where he makes a living by selling idols of various gods. Though he is a warm and kind person, he does not believe in god’s hand and believes that man makes his own destiny. His wife Meenakshi (Shriya) on the other hand is a devotee who totally believes in the miracle of god.
Their happy life is turned upside down when an earthquake brings down Gopala Rao’s shop. Shocked, but not one to give up, Gopala Rao finds his way to the safe through the rubble and brings out the insurance papers for his store. However, when he approached the person in-charge (Vennela Kishore), he is told that the company is not liable to pay any money for ‘act of god’.
A determined Gopala Rao decides to file a case against the insurance company with the help of Khan (Murli Sharma). In the process, he antagonizes many religious gurus with his questioning the existence of god and the means through which they choose to feed fear in the name of god.
Then a miracle happens and Gopala Rao experiences something that he could never have imagined.
Artistes’ Performances:
Venkatesh plays one Gopala from the title. He is one Telugu star who has always said that he was ready to do multi-starrers. Last time, he did one with Mahesh and this year, he once again pairs up with Pawan Kalyan. Venkatesh is a pro when it comes to playing the middle-class hero and in Gopala Gopala he once again wins over his fans with his flawless performance. He is a perfect fit for the role and does not try to overshadow Pawan Kalyan despite having more screen time. From his clothes to hair style to his overall body language, he has taken care of every minute detail to make sure he fits the part totally.
Pawan Kalyan, is a man who is at the peak of his career and is of course the main asset of the film. He plays god and he does make for one super cool god. Of course, his fans would have loved it if his role was much longer, but Pawan hasn’t taken any liberties and sticks to the original version. He looks trim and fit and his lean frame carries off the outfits rather well. He looks real nice in the all-white suit when he comes to the house of Gopala Rao.
Shriya gets to play Venkatesh’s wife Meenakshi. She fits her part but she too has a brief role thanks to the limitations in the script. Otherwise she is as good as ever.
Mithun Chakraborthy repeats the role he played in Oh My God! of the effeminate guru Leeladhar. Being a seasoned actor, he pulls off his rather unique role with ease and adds his touch to it.
Another swamy Siddeshwar is played by Posani Krishnamurali. He along with Murli Sharma, Ashish Vidyarthi, Krishnudu who plays Venkatesh’s assistant Oththi all put in decent performances.
Technical Excellence:
Music is by Anoop Rubens and the album consists of three situational songs. The album received mixed reviews, though the background score is good. Cinematography by Jayanan Vincent matches the quality of the original. Editing is by Gautam Raju who has succeeded in keeping the story tight from beginning to ending.
If one hasn’t watched the film in Hindi, Gopala Gopala has a unique concept that is new to Telugu audiences. So, director Dolly has taken care to stick to the original mostly barring the climax when a few minor changes have been made to give it an original feel.
Highlights:
- Pawan Kalyan
- Mithun Chakraborthy
- Dialogues
Drawbacks:
- Some parts of screenplay
- Hurried climax
Analysis:
As is already known, the film is a remake of Bollywood hit film Oh My God! and it does not try to stray from the original. Through out, the film remains true to the Bollywood story, though a few changes have been made here and there to suit the tastes of the Telugu audiences.
Since it happens to be a multi-starrer, the writers have taken special care to ensure that the fans of both the heroes don’t feel cheated. So, both stars get well-conceived characters which are complementary to each other.
Both Venkatesh and Pawan Kalyan are at ease while doing their scenes and never do they try to outdo each other. In fact, the respect they have for each other is translated on to the screen and one can actually feel the positive vibe they share.
Of course, the film is Pawan Kalyan’s show all the way, but it nowhere ignores the experience and capabilities of Venkatesh. He gets an author-backed role which he carries off with complete ease.
While the Telugu audiences who haven’t watched the Bollywood version will totally relate to the characters and the different concept, those who have already watched the original and the recently released PK, might find the concept a bit repetitive.
Also, the film may fall below the expectations of Pawan Kalyan fans who would have loved to see their star in every frame.
But director Dolly must be given total credit for remaining true to the original story and not bowing down to the temptation of stretching the role of Pawan Kalyan. However, he does manage to sprinkle the script with some punch dialogues like ‘gelichina vaadu kaadu leader, gelipinchina vaade leader’, ‘appudu trend adi, current trend idi’ and some more on similar lines for the fans of Pawan Kalyan.
Gopala Gopala was promoted as a different concept right from day one. While those wanting different films are bound to like it, others may miss the mass elements that are a must-have in commercial entertainers. Added to this, the screenplay is a bit boring at places.
Yet, barring these hiccups, Gopala Gopala is one film that fans of both Venkatesh and Pawan Kalyan will love watching.
Bottomline: Watch For The Stars
(Venkat can be reached [email protected] or https://twitter.com/greatandhranews)
