'Aa Okkati Adakku', directed by newcomer Malli Ankam and produced by Rajiv Chilaka of Chilaka Productions, hit the cinemas today. In this section, we are going to review the latest BO release.
Plot:
Ganapathi (Allari Naresh) works as a government employee. Even though he is well-settled in life, he is unable to find a match for marriage. The fact that his younger brother is married makes it all the more harder for him. He bumps into Siddhi (Faria Abdullah) repeatedly and realizes that he loves her. But then, Siddhi has no intentions to marry him and wants to explore other options. A blast from his present shocks Ganapathi, leaving him heart-broken. A court battle wraps up things and all is well that ends well.
Performances:
Allari Naresh's characterization is tonally off. He comes across as someone with anger issues in the beginning. He doesn't laugh at himself, as he used to do in his 2000s-era comedies. The only segment where his performance works is the climax.
Faria Abdullah needs to work on her expressions. She is inadequate in the serious scenes. There are a bunch of comedians and Vennela Kishore is the only one who puts some effort.
Jamie Lever and Hari Teja are equally over-the-top. Harsha Chemudu has a pale cameo. Ariyana Glory and Kalpalatha (who plays Ganapathi's mother) are equally dull. Srimannarayana's cameo doesn't help. Ajay and Goparaju Ramana are seen as a cop and an accident victim, respectively. Raghu Babu plays an astrologer, while Praveen and Bhadram are limited to just a scene each. Shakalaka Shankar is funny to an extent and that's a miracle in a movie of this level. Gautami Tadimalla and Murli Sharma are seen as a judge and a lawyer in a courtroom scene that borders on the juvenile.
Technical aspects:
Gopi Sunder's songs and background music don't lend a character to the generic, loud, over-talkative comedy. The songs are out of tune with the overall mood. A love song just doesn't suit Allari Naresh's image either. 'Rajadhi Raja' takes off with a lot of potential but fizzles out in no time. The less said about the cinematography and art departments, the better.
Post-Mortem:
In our comedies, if the male lead is unmarried or has a flaw, every single scene and dialogue has to be about that particular aspect of his life. In 'Ek Mini Katha', we saw it happen with gushing force. We saw it happen in every other film where the male lead is not 'normal'. In 'Aa Okkati Adakku', Ganapathi's neighbours, friends, colleagues and everyone he comes across in his life are faux concerned only about his marital status. They mock him, ridicule him, get toxic and laugh their way to the bank. This is uni-dimensional, to put it mildly.
The characters are reduced to being clowns. The employees at a matrimony site behave obviously, leaving nothing to the imagination.
In the film's pre-release promotions, it was time and again said that matrimony sites are guilty of scams. So, what Happy Matrimony (of which Ganapathi is a subscriber) is up to would be evident right from the word go if you have seen those interviews. The way a key character behaves is a dead giveaway. Nothing is subtle in this movie. Everything is in-your-face.
The humour is juvenile, with scenes that literally get on your nerves. The only relief is that this is not going to have a sequel where Happy Ending Matrimony is going to commit a scam in the name of honeymoon packages. The climax is watchable, complete with fast-tracked, instant coffee justice.
Closing Remarks:
'Aa Okkati Adakku' is an ineffective comedy with no freshness.
