Rating: 3/5
Banner: Sri Venkateswara Cine Chitra
Cast: Gopichand, Tapsee, Sakthi Kapoor, Ali, Suman and Others
Dialogues: KK Radha Krishna Kumar
Editor: Kotagiri Venkateswar Rao
Music: Sri
Cinematographer: Shyam Dutt
Producer: BVSN Prasad
Story, Screenplay, Direction: Chandrashekar Yelete
Release Date: July 12th, 2013
He is known for his films Aite and Anukokunda Oka Roju. While commercial success has eluded him so far, his films have managed to get audience for the way they are picturised and the way Chandrasekhar Yeleti chooses to tell his stories. In his latest outing, he touches upon a contentious subject. The trailers released prior to the release were impressive and that created hype for the movie.
Story
Gautam is a security guard who dreams of becoming a big man by a sudden stroke of luck. His dream comes true and he finds the will his grandfather had left for him. The will gives him clues to find 900 diamonds from the times of King Kanishka that could be Gautam’s, if he manages to find them in a temple that is now in Pakistan.
Gautam manages to reach Pakistan with the help of a devotee played by Tapsee. Naturally, there has to be a villain who is on a lookout for the treasure. So, in comes the Pakistani terrorist Sultan played by Shakti Kapoor.
Goes without saying, the rest of the movie revolves around how Gautam manages to lay his hands on the treasure, how he fights the terrorists and if he manages to return to India safely.
Performance
Gopichand gets his comic timing right during the initial scenes. He manages to get into his role and tries to go beyond the usual mass hero image. The second half is totally action-filled and he fits in easily. The leading girl Tapsee is OK. Nothing much to write about her role, but she pulls it off well.
Shakti Kapoor gets a meatier role. His make-up and the way his character has been shaped up are good. Being a senior artiste, he puts in a good performance as the terrorist. There are few comedy scenes in the climax and he is simply superb in them. Ali evokes a few laughs. Suman and Narayana Rao play their regular parts.
Technical team
Music by Sri is nothing to write home about, but the background score is definitely good. Dialogues, especially the comic dialogues by Radha Krishna are the highlight.
Technically, Sahasam has taken the game a few notches up.
The art director too has done good work. The sets are impressive. Visual effects during the opening scenes are really good.
On the whole, the editing should have been crispier. Some scenes are too lengthy.
One must appreciate the producer for putting in money in a project that is different from mainstream commercial films.
As for the director, he once again proves his mettle. One can see the research and the effort that has gone into making the kind of movie that Sahasam is. Though the screenplay is slow at times, Chandra Sekhar makes up for it towards the climax.
While focusing on the technical values, Yeleti takes some liberties with the script that come as a surprise. In all, it is a worthy effort.
Highlights
- Cinematography
- Production Design
- Theme
Drawbacks
- Slow screenplay
- Liberties with the Story
Analysis
Sahasam is a good effort but it is not your usual commercial film. It falls into the ‘adventure’ genre. So, it may not appeal to all kinds of audiences. Those who like the Indiana Jones series can instantly relate to the story. But since the director remains loyal to the story and does not deviate from the main plot, he hasn’t put in too many commercial elements.
While the audience will be interested in knowing about long lost treasures in Pakistan, it defies logic as to how an ordinary security man enters Pakistan and manages to break into the house of a terrorist and get the gems.
There are quite a few glitches in the storyline, though the film progresses in its own pace. But coming from a director like Chandra Sekhar Yeleti, it is a bit disappointing. The subtle nuances and sensibilities that are associated with him are missing in Sahasam. Since he has raised the bar for himself, one is let down by the loopholes in the script. The confrontation scenes between the terrorists and the hero are too tame.
Where the director fails, the technical team more than makes up for it. The art director succeeds in creating the ambience of Pakistan and the cinematographer has taken the film to the next level.
The film though, can be watched for the effort Chandra Sekhar has put in. The fact that it falls into the adventure genre adds to the novelty element in Telugu.
The film’s success will depend on how it is received in the B&C centres. It’s a case of wait and watch as to how the audience will recieve this experiment.
Bottomline: Technically, a superior film.
(Venkat can be reached at [email protected] or https://twitter.com/greatandhranews)
