'Tenali Ramakrishna BA.BL' review: Where’s the wit and tact?

Going by the title, you would expect a dose of wit and smart thinking. Instead, what we get earlier on is the hero referring to the heroine as hybrid tomato, and she, with the onus of breathing life into one of the dumbest characters, laying bare her inefficiency by stating that each section of the Indian Penal Code is, well, important and a different section.

She is a lawyer, mind you, and dreams of becoming a name to reckon with. All she’s made to do is wear pretty clothes and preen; but that’s okay, because when she decides to do what she thinks is smart, she walks straight into trouble and has to be rescued. And the hero remarks that whenever he sees her, his stress levels come down! It’s meant to be a compliment, of course, but it’s silly and pointless. Just like most of the narrative.

To be fair, Tenali Ramakrishna BA.BL ’s broad storyline isn’t bad at all. It’s about an underdog young lawyer Tenali (Sundeep Kishan) who is thrown into a tough situation and has to prove himself and make his father (Raghubabu), a small-time broker in the court precincts, proud. Had it been written and narrated well, it could have made for a decently entertaining comic courtroom drama.

Tenali remains on the courtroom fringes, desperately trying to attract cases. The turning point comes when he and his father are challenged by an established lawyer (Murali Sharma). No prizes for guessing that the leading lady, Rukmini (Hansika Motwani), is this reputed lawyer’s daughter.

There’s a case involving Varalakshmi (Varalaxmi Sarathkumar), a well known industrialist and an aspiring politician. It could be the one big case that can change the tides in Tenali’s favour. He has to use tact and brawns (like any mainstream film hero) to win the game.

The brighter moments come once in a blue moon. The rest of the time, it’s filled with mind-numbing and innuendo-laced jokes that aren’t even funny. The cast includes a host of actors known for their comedy — Posani Krishna Murali, Sapthagiri, Vennela Kishore and a bunch of names from Jabardasth — but most of them look clueless.

Sundeep Kishan does his part with effervescence, trying to prop up the material given to him. But there isn’t much in his characterisation to make him do anything memorable. The parts given to Murali Sharma and Varalaxmi have scope, at least it allows them to show a range of emotions, but that isn’t saying much. So much more could have been done with Varalaxmi’s characterisation.

In the end, when one character tells another that the game isn’t over and there will be vengeance, it sounds like a cue for part two. And that feels like a threat.