A decade hence, if we are randomly given a list of films that released between 2010 and 2015 and asked to recollect the story lines, even a hardcore movie buff might struggle to differentiate one from the other. Barring a few noteworthy ones, the others follow a template that’s overused and looks jaded.
This week’s release, Shivam , directed by Srinivasa Reddy, falls into this trap. The hero, Shiva (Ram), risks everything to bring together lovers torn apart by family and societal pressures. He uses muscle power and grey cells to outwit opponents. It goes without saying that if he were to fall in love, he would go any length to help his girl. Unlike the 80s, the conflict here doesn’t rise from her family but rather from the situations he finds himself in and the opponents he makes along the way.
In a masala film, where there is a village there will be a wicked, powerful head. He’d also have an eccentric character trait. Such a character in Shivam is called Boji Reddy (Vineet Kumar). Anyone who ties up his dhoti or wears footwear while walking past him is made to walk over fire! The forces cross paths when Shiva takes on Boji Reddy’s son.
This done-to-death formula plods on, punctuated with humour. The unintentional fun is reserved for the heroine’s introduction scene. Tanu (Raashi Khanna) is shown running towards a train, dressed in a glamorous long gown, and declaring her love. This happens somewhere near Kurnool, though she looks like she’s dressed for a romantic number in a foreign locale (there is a romantic number shot in Norway, that’s much later). The hero spots her from the train and a silly romance track follows.
Not just Boji Reddy, but also Posani (Shiva’s father) and Brahmanandam want Shiva to be dealt with a firm hand. Adding to this heap is Abhimanyu Singh who’s infatuated with Tanu. He has weird character traits too, but let’s not even discuss that silliness.
The film packs in a number of actors to take care of the comic portions, including ‘thagubothu’ Ramesh and Sapthagiri (the Goa episode is an irritant). ‘Fish’ Venkat is again a henchman who adds to the fun. The villains are also reduced to a bunch of jokers.
The film ends when all the gags are exhausted and it takes 169 minutes to do that. A flashback is thrown in to add credence to the hero’s crusade for love.
Ram is impressive and gets ample scope to live up to his ‘energetic star’ tag. Raashi Khanna does justice to her role but it’s a pity that she gets stuck with roles that require her to act dumb. Whatever happened to the freshness with which she entered the industry in Oohalu Gusagusalade .
Devi Sri Prasad tries to pep up the proceedings and succeeds in a couple of songs. The title track, though, rings familiar to that of Legend .
The film is lengthy, boring and comedy isn’t enough to save the day.
Shivam
Cast : Ram, Raashi Khanna and Brahmanandam
Direction : Srinivasa Reddy
Music : Devi Sri Prasad
Bottom line : Same old stuff.
