Movie: Adda
Rating: 2.5/5
Banner: Sri Nag Corporation
Cast: Sushanth, Sanvi, Dev Ghil, Negineedu, Raghu Babu, Kota, Tagubothu Ramesh, Avasarala Srinivas and Others
Music: Anoop Rubens
Cinematographer: Arun Kumar
Producers: Chintalpudi Srinivas, Naga Susheela
Story, Screenplay, Dialogues, Direction: G Karthik Reddy
Release Date: 15th Aug 2013
Nagarjuna’s nephew Sushant is back after a long gap. Post Kalidasu and Current, he hasn’t had a release. Now, he returns with a film by G Karthik Reddy, who has assisted Puri Jagannadh and B Jaya. Incidentally, Sushant worked with two new directors in both his earlier films, so this is his third time with a debutant director. Let’s check out how Adda has shaped up.
Story:
Sushant plays a boy who makes the marriage registration office his adda. His job is to create a rift between the love birds that come there to get married. In return, he gets money from their parents. Heroine Sanvi approaches him to break up her sister’s (Suhasini) marriage. In the process, Sushant falls in love with her. However, Sanvi keeps off Sushant as he is too money-minded. Also, she is engaged to be married to her cousin, played by Dev Gill. The rest of the film shows how Sushant chases her and gets her to fall for him.
Performances:
Sushant looks much better vis-à-vis his earlier films. He has taken care of his looks and styling. Though his acting has improved from the past, he still needs to fine tune his skills. He fails to make an impact in the comic and casual scenes. However, he does manage to impress in the opening scenes. But a special mention has to be made of his dancing skills. He proves that he is by far the best dancer in the Akkineni clan in the present times.
‘Lovely’ girl Sanvi once again disappoints with her acting. Unfortunately for her, there are too many close up shots and it becomes obvious that she is struggling to play her part. But she carries off the pub song well.
There is nothing much to write about Dev Gill. Nagineedu is ok. Raghu Babu puts in an average performance.
The separate comedy track involving the hero’s friends reminds one of Gunde Jaari Gallantayyinde.
Technical team:
The music scored by Anup Rubens is good. Ninne ninne, title song and the pub numbers are good on the ears. The songs have also been shot well. A special mention has to be made of the cinematographer here. The background score in the climax scenes is good.
Must say, the producers Chintalapudi Srinivas and Naga Susheela have made a lavish film.
As for director Karthik Reddy, he makes a commendable effort. He manages to get the best from all departments, though the writing bit falls flat. He has attempted to stretch a single line story into a two-hour film and finds it difficult to handle at times.
Highlights:
- Songs
Minus Points:
- Screenplay
Analysis:
The entire film revolves around the main protagonist. Much time and effort is spent on his characterization. The hero is shown in a negative light all along just to make sure the climax looks convincing. But somewhere along the line, the director seems to have fallen in love with the hero’s character.
All of first half is devoted to show how the hero manages to break up the wedding of heroine’s sister. So, the story does not progress much. And when he eventually does break up the couple, he does it without much drama. Had the director moulded Sushant’s character on the lines of Allu Arjun’s character in Arya 2, it would have retained audiences’ interest.
By the time, the movie progresses to the second half, the director seems to have realized the need for some light-hearted comedy. So, a comedy track is introduced. But as mentioned earlier, it fails to evoke laughs.
The second half is devoted to the hero trying to test his love. The plot could have suited more energetic heroes like Ravi Teja or Ram. But Sushant fails to infuse life into his character.
Though the opening scenes are interesting, on the whole, Adda has nothing new to offer. But the producers have done their homework and worked on the publicity of the film. This has helped the film’s openings. As it’s been released at a time when there are virtually no films, it might work in the favour of Adda.
Bottomline: The foundation is weak for this Adda.
(Venkat can be reached at [email protected] or https://twitter.com/greatandhranews)
