Though Balakrishna’s previous films did not do great at boxoffice, Okka Magadu was a much anticipated movie carrying heavy expectations. The title itself indicated that the movie has socio-political overtones and revolves around the central character – exactly what fans expect out of Balayya. Moreover, the movie is being made by Y.V.S Chowdary who is on a success streak, hardcore Nandamuri fan and can handle such subjects. The movie was sold for one of the highest rates in the recent times due the combination and festival season. But outcome is totally different from what was expected as the film disappoints on all fronts. The basic plot of the movie is just a rip-off of Shankar’s Bharateeyudu mixed with a few other movies.
Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Swami (Balayya) is a demi-god in his village as his sole motive is service to the poor. He is guided by his grand mother Baby (Simran). Where ever there is a threat to an innocent life, ‘Satyam babu’ crops up to rescue them. One such incident leads him to locks horns with the Chief Minister of the state. But every time he undertakes such a mission, he disguises himself in the form of an old man. Satyam encounters another person who looks exactly like his older self called ‘Okka Magadu’, who also fights injustice. The story later realizes that the duo after grandson and grand father. It’s revealed that ‘Okka Magadu’ was a freedom fighter who was crucial in fighting the British during our Independence struggle. How the duo tackle evil and corruption in the society is rest of the story about.
For his role Balakrishna has put a 100% effort, but that totally goes in vain. While he is good in Satyam’s role, the getup and loud-out-laughter mannerism as Okka Magadu dint suit him. He was made to look similar to NTR in Sardar Paparayudu in the pre-Independence portion. He also portrayed a lot of other getups in the film, putting a lot of effort for each of them. Simran’s role was similar to Sukanya in Bharateeyudu and the prosthetics and dubbing dint suit her. She was fine in the flashback part, though. Anushka and Nisha Kothari compete with each other on who exposes more. Anushka was portrayed more like a vamp than a heroine. Ashutosh Rana is a miscast as the Chief Minister. The CM’s character was portrayed without any dignity in the film, totally unbelievable. Krishna Bhagwan and Raghubabu provide comic relief with Sivaji Raja, Chinna played supporting characters in the film.
Generally in Tollywood, the hero walks away with the accolades if the movie does well and the directors bear the brunt if the movie flops. But in this case, the blame truly goes to the writer-director-producer of the film – YVS Chowdary. Posani Murali Krishna’s screenplay adds to the misery. But the dialogue writer – Chintapalli Ramana deserves a praise for giving some power-packed dialogues. Below are the glaring mistakes in the film
1. The storyline and a lot of episodes closely resemble Bharateeyudu. While its okay to get inspired from old classics or non-telugu films, the source here is popular 90s film.
2. Films like Lagaan, Subhash Chandra Bose portray a fictional character in a period era, but certain historical facts were kept intact. Here, the film shows the British taking prisoners of war to give independence to the country.
3. Films like Lagaan, Subhash Chandra Bose portray a fictional character in a period era, but certain historical facts were kept intact. Here, the film shows the British taking prisoners of war to give independence to the country.
4. The way the CM’s character was portrayed was unacceptable. The Chief Minister is shown running on the streets with bare shorts, while a vamp-like Anushka is his daughter.
5. There are too many sexual overtones in the film, with a few suggestive positions of lead actors and double entendres.
Though there a few catchy tunes, the music by Mani Sharma is not upto the mark of YVS’ previous films like Lahiri Lahiri Lo, Seethayya and Devadasu. The placement of the songs is improper. The fights were conceived well, but not fitted well into the script. But the last fight which a Aparichitudu, Matrix Reloaded inspired one was poorly executed. The only saving grace for YVS is that as a producer – he spent lavishly on the film.
The first half of the film is mainly about the romantic track between Nisha Kothari and Balakrishna. The movie picked up when Balayya encounters the CM for the first time, mouthing a dialogue about caste politics. But the tempo falls from there, especially during the flashback portion. There is no entertainment or any hero-elevating scenes in the second half. Moreover, the storyline is confusing and logic is missing throughout. The physical hardwork of Balayya and the makers show on screen, but what’s the use? Being the biggest film amongst the festive releases, the movie got bumper openings and has potential to gather good initial week collections.
Cast & Crew:
Producer: Kommineni Venkateshwara Rao
Cast: Balakrishna, Simran, Anushka, Priyanka Kothari, Ravi Kale, Ashutosh Rane, Raghu Babu, Kota, and others
Direction: Y V S Chowdary
Music: Mani Sharma
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Tags: Anushka, Ashutosh Rane, Balakrishna, Kota, Okka Magadu - Telugu Movie Review, Priyanka Kothari, Raghu Babu, Ravi Kale, Simran | Filed in Tollywood
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