Date:29/09/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/09/29/stories/2007092959970200.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Impressive debut Film Reviews

Film: Chirutha (Telugu)Cast: Ram Charan Teja, Neha

Director: Puri Jaganath

Puri Jagannath’s recent work ‘Pokiri’ and ‘Desamuduru’ were more genre-classifiable and thus reached larger audiences. Chiruta his latest offering is garnished well with commercial trappings. You’ll find an adequate dose of romance, sentiment and dollops of violence. Ram Charan is the chiselled charmer. The debutant looks determined, appears poised and promising to leave his mark. The director makes his mark here by never letting the deb utant overdo on any aspect. Though he does not exude intensity, he has a charm that very few newcomers can boast of and has a personality that grows on you. While comparisons are inevitable, there are more differences than similarities and the artiste has carved his own style.

He does earn some serious brownie points for effortless dancing and fights. However, we should watch out for his next effort. Neha doesn’t make a suitable companion and her hair left all over her face, it takes one more film to figure out how she looks. Ali knows exactly where his bread is buttered but his role is surprisingly brief. Dharmavarapu, Brahmanandam, Venu Madhav’s humour is strained and one laughs more out of habit.

The hero’s mission is to unite with his mother Pragati, and when he does, it also drags Prakash Raj telling Ram Charan to bring his ‘wife’ back is quite dramatic.

Though the cameraman captured amazing Thailand there are some technical glitches. The film could have been sharp, fast-paced and tight.

The soundtrack is functional and unobtrusive, helping pitch the mood without being overly noticeable. Dialogues seem to have been downplayed deliberately and thankfully there are no references to the debutant’s lineage. This story is too mature for a debutant, despite a trembling script and an ineffective screenplay, an actor makes his mark.

Y. SUNITA CHOWDHARY