Date:03/10/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/10/03/stories/2008100361110500.htm

Andhra Pradesh

A desperate attempt to make you laugh FiLMReview

Venkatesh and Anushka in Chintakalaya Ravi

Film: Chintakayala Ravi (Telugu)

Cast: Venkatesh, Anushka

Direction: Yogesh

Chintakayala Ravi boasts of an interesting title but the content is very routine. Venkatesh is Chintakayala Ravi, he works at a bar in the USA and his mother is under the impression that he is a software engineer who is on backslapping terms with Bill Gates. The hero doesn’t want to hurt his mother by coming out with the truth and in the process his engagement is fixed with Mamidikyala Lavanya (Mamta Mohandas) in India. Lavanya’s friend Sunitha (Anushka) who li ves in the US has a wrong impression on Ravi and when she comes to know about the alliance, breaks it without qualms.

Predictable

Lakshmi who plays Ravi’s mother is heartbroken that the ceremony is cancelled. The onus is on Ravi to keep his mother in good spirits without revealing the truth and settle scores with Sunitha. What happens is predictable. Director Yogesh lets the story run out of steam too early and eventually falls back on clichéd double crossings towards the climax just to keep the story going.

Nothing exciting

Love blossoms between Ravi and Sunitha and the family reconciles to Ravi’s past. There is an ensemble of experienced actors but sadly the spark is missing.

Lakshmi’s voice sounds different, Chandramohan plays the same old teary role of a father and the humour is more crass than intelligent. It desperately tries to make you laugh in some portions and the audience is left feeling like they have seen it all before.

NTR shakes his leg with Venky in one of the song’s but it hardly lifts the mood of the film.

The story is not strong and the screenplay has lapses, the director fails in utilising Venkatesh’s talent and that of Mamta’s. Venkatesh is subtle in sentimental scenes and evokes little interest in other episodes. Anushka is far more assuring in this film.

A couple of songs are interesting and camerawork is vivid. Chintakayala Ravi is certainly a very captivating title on the shelf.

This film is watchable once, it is not that it is a bad film, despite a formulaic story and clichéd performances.

The absence of fights, action scenes and the scoring of romance make it at least passable, If not exciting.

Y. SUNITA CHOWDHARY