Pelli Choopulu (Telugu, 2016)

The first word that comes to mind after watching Pellichooplu is ‘Refreshing’. There are multiple times where the writer-director Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam (also a short-film maker) inverts stereotypes without making a big deal of them. The dialogues seem very natural and never look filmy. The one-liner might seem very predictable but the writing and the making take it to a whole new level that it is appealing to people across India and not just one State.

The characterization of Ritu Varma, who plays the spunky Chitra, is delightful. The way she reacts to being cheated, the measured emotional outbursts, equation with her dad, and the way she manages the lazy trio is brilliantly enacted.

Vijay Deverakonda who plays the role of the slacker, Prashanth, has a terrific sense of timing and gives a bright performance. He is perhaps overshadowed by Priyadarshi who scores every single time with his deadpan mode of dialogue delivery. If even the subtitled dialogues have so much impact, one wonders how much fun it would have been to savour the words in native Telugu. The fathers of the protagonists and the ‘Frankly’ Businessman played by Anish Kuruvilla also shine.The characterization of Ritu Varma, who plays the spunky Chitra, is delightful. The way she reacts to being cheated, the measured emotional outbursts, equation with her dad, and the way she manages the lazy trio is brilliantly enacted.

Vivek Sagar’s music is a huge pillar of support for the film. His background score and songs are extremely pleasant and always follow the narrative never deviating from the story-line.

The scene of the father understanding the emotions, strengths and ambitions of his child is one of the template-scenes in a plot as in ‘Pellichooplu’. We have three such instances here and the way they have been written, acted and filmed exceedingly well.

After being under the cosh for the majority of the plot till then, there is a sudden change in tone when Prashanth advises Chitra’s father. Also, the third act is not wholly convincing in spite of the best efforts from Prashanth.

One honestly wishes the subtitles were better. It is sad to see the word ‘Shined’ being repeated many times over the course. Also, it was disappointing to see the long conversation during the end credits not have subtitles.