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Director: Ashwath Marimathu
Rating: 3/5
This Telugu remake of ‘Oh My Kadavule’ (Tamil) sees Vishwak Sen stepping into the shoes of Ashok Selvan, while Mithila Palkar reprises Ritika Singh, Venkatesh reprises Vijay Sethupathi, and Asha Bhat takes care of the role played by Vani Bhojan in the original. The Tamil original came at a time when Kollywood was thought to have lost interest in love stories. The genre (romantic-fantasy) feeds into a roster of philosophical questions, dilemmas and Catch-22 situations we know of.
Arjun has been in a year-long marital relationship with Anu. They think that the marriage has been floundering and that they are are done for. They apply for divorce. The story takes a mystifying turn when Arjun meets an enigmatic personality (Victory Venkatesh as God). By the interval, God gifts him a boon. He now gets not to choose to marry Anu and see how life goes. Will Arjun’s life metamorphose into a miracle after this? Or, is it going to get only worse?
Arjun may not be someone who is too laid-back in life, but he does become perfunctory after marriage. The emotional disappointment that he faces is not made to feel like a catastrophe, thanks to the occasionally blusterous treatment. The unornamented flavour of the narration keeps the audience invested even in its somewhat sluggish portions.
Tharun Bhaskcer’s dialogue-writing is uncluttered, while the inconsequential yet sincere changes that have been made to the original don’t look sloppy.
To the film’s credit, it doesn’t stuff the trope of childhood love with sugary scenes or hackneyed lines. The narration stays true to the original in essence. Even the short scenes written around the quality check of latrines (Arjun’s job is milked for humour) are not a cheapened version of the time-tested ‘toilet humour’ idea.
The fantasy element hasn’t been sensationalized. That would have been creatively costly; by playing to its strengths, ‘Ori Devuda’ not only sticks to its emotional core but also amplifies the fun quotient.
The Venkatesh-Vishwak track should have been many shades better than its Kollywood counterpart; after all, the ‘F2’ actor is known for comedy hero roles unlike Sethupathi.
Vishwak is atypical and doesn’t try to mimic Ashok Selvan. It was enough for him to give a flawless performance. Mithila and Asha sustain our curiosity without overdoing their roles, the former more than the latter. Venkatesh Kakumanu as the childhood friend of the lead pair is fine. Murali Sharma is good, whereas Rahul Ramakrishna is a miscast; he approaches the role as if it is an extension of his comical characters.
Leon James gets able assistance from Anirudh Ravichander, who mirthfully sings ‘Gundellona’. The rain song is an improvization over the original. Vidhu Ayyanna’s cinematography is good.
Although this film should have made use of its second chance to spun a more endearing and emotionally satisfying tale, the remake is still worth a watch.
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