Movie: Alludu Seenu
Rating: 2.75/5
Banner: Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Productions
Cast: Bellamkonda Srinivas, Samantha, Prakash Raj, Bramhanandam, Raghu Babu, Ravi Babu, Pradeep Rawat, Tamanna and Others
Story: Gopi Mohan
Dialogues: Kona Venkat
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Editor: Gowtham Raju
Cinematographer: Chota K Naidu
Producer: Bellamkonda Ganesh Babu
Screenplay and Direction: V V Vinayak
Release Date: July 25th, 2014
Top producer, top director, top actress, top music director, top cinematographer and good technical team – what else can a debutant hero ask for? The first film for every debutant is a huge test. One usually makes or breaks one’s career with their very first movie. But if the debutant is the son of a successful producer, he has the luxury of checking out if he would be welcomed by the audience. Alludu Seenu is one such attempt.
Story:
Seenu (SaiSrinivas) is an orphan brought up by Narasimha (Prakash Raj). Unable to repay the amounts due to their fellow villagers, the duo absconds to go to Dubai via Chennai. But as luck would have it, they land in Hyderabad. Here, they bump into Naidu (Raghu Babu) and his gang who later help Seenu and his uncle.
Meanwhile, Seenu chances upon don Bhai (Prakash Raj in a double role) and his pretty daughter Anjali (Samantha). On seeing Bhai who is a look alike of his uncle, Seenu comes up with a plan to make some quick bucks. Meanwhile, Anjali mistakes Seenu for Rohit, her fiancé and falls for him. The scene then shifts to Sharjah, where Bhai and his friend (Pradeep Rawat) try to marry off Anjali to Rohit. What follows next is a cat and mouse game.
Artistes' Performance:
In time-tested tradition, let’s start with the hero Sai Srinivas. For a debutant, he is very good at dances. His spring-like body helps him pull off some difficult dance moves. Again, for a debutant, he does put in a sincere effort to make up for his looks. Will we get to see him in more films? That’s up to the audience to decide.
Coming to Samantha, she must really put her foot down to do the ‘You will have to pass my test’ rigmarole with the hero. The pout and her tests are becoming a routine that is slowly becoming repetitive. When compared to her other films, she does more skin show. But on the whole, she is her usual self and tries to complement the hero in all scenes, including the dances.
Next, we come to Prakash Raj, who hams away in his double role. Being a seasoned actor, both the roles are nothing short of a cake walk. Still, one gets the feeling that he sleep-walked through the film.
Brahmanandam as Dimple manages to evoke laughs with some interesting dialogues sprinkled here and there. Ravi Babu as Peda, Raghu as Naidu and Vennela Kishore are their usual self.
Tamanna ups the glam quotient in the item song.
Highlights:
- Visually appealing songs
- Production Values
Drawbacks:
- Ordinary Story
- Weak on entertainment element
Analysis:
A debutant hero’s film always generates a buzz before its release as the audience is forever trying to check out new heroes and heroines.
Of course, they love their super hit stars, but they also want a change in the form of fresh faces. And if the debutant hero is the son of a successful producer, then the curiosity levels are rather high. In case of Alludu Seenu, Samantha playing the leading lady is another plus for the audience to check out what made her sign the film in the first place.
Music by Devi Sri Prasad is decent and will appeal to the target audience. Cinematography is by Chota K Naidu and there is little you can write about such senior technicians. The scene at the factory with fireworks all around is really eye-catching. Of course, all the songs have a rich feel to them as they have been either shot in exotic locations or extravagant sets.
Director VV Vinayak put in all the elements expected from a mass, commercial entertainer. Of course, working with a new hero is rather difficult as it is very hard to experiment, but he has a superb line-up of technicians, actors and a producer ready to pump in money. Naturally, one expects a film on the lines of Adhurs. Despite some punch lines and a couple of satires, he failed in making an entertainer that will keep you glued to the seats. He fleetingly touches upon the fluorosis problem as Prakash Raj’s story is set in Nalgonda. But he leaves that thread quickly. So, the audience neither gets an all out entertainer like Adhurs nor a message-oriented, hard-hitting film like Tagore.
If one looks at it, the film has all the elements that a commercial film must have – a lost and found father-daughter story, twin brothers, poor hero and a rich heroine, two villains, action and songs. Still, VV Vinayak disappoints by not making a gripping entertainer which will make you leave the theatre with a smile.
Bottomline: Lacks the Punch!
(Venkat can be reached at [email protected] or https://twitter.com/greatandhranews)
