‘Dhamaka’ movie review: Ravi Teja is in his elements in an old, jaded story
Ravi Teja within the Telugu movie ‘Dhamaka’
When a depraved businessman JP (Jayaram) makes a smart-sounding assertion, a personality asks him if he’s associated to famous author and director Trivikram Srinivas. That is maybe the closest that the makers of Dhamaka come to acknowledging the affect of Trivikram Srinivas’ movies, particularly Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo. The presence of actors Jayaram and Sachin Khedekar heightens that hangover. Director Trinadha Rao Nakkina who shares the writing credit with Prasanna Kumar Bezawada presents a narrative that includes two households — one middle-class and one uber-rich enterprise household — and locations Ravi Teja in each of them, portraying reverse personalities to suit into the ‘mass’ and ‘class’ mould.
The movie doesn’t take itself critically and neither ought to we. It’s content material with showcasing an lively Ravi Teja in two avatars — businessman Anand and a job-seeking Swami. On the fag finish of 2022, a time once we look again and take inventory of newer narratives in Telugu cinema, Dhamaka is proof {that a} part of filmmakers is content material serving the identical outdated wine in the identical outdated bottle.
Nanda Gopal Chakravarthy (Sachin Khedekar) pronounces to the world that change is to ensure that his enterprise empire since his days are numbered. JP (Jayaram), a enterprise shark, is ready to pounce on him. The actor’s introduction scene the place he has to show a turnaround doesn’t come as a shock in any respect given how weakly it’s written.
The one sliver of imaginative writing (we are able to name it that if we set the bar actually low) comes within the type of Ravi Teja’s twin portrayals. Swami takes rowdies to job as his dad and mom (Tanikella Bharani and Tulasi) watch gleefully over a video name, and his first assembly together with his sister’s buddy Pranavi (Sree Leela) is cringe-inducing. It’s a damsel-in-distress scenario. There’s a cause why she seeks his assist and why she addressed him a sure means. However Swami calls for that she reconsiders how she addressed him and as a substitute sends him a couple of flirtatious messages if he has to save lots of her. One can argue that Swami’s sensibilities might not be woke or extraordinarily gender delicate. However look again at this scene after an important pre-intermission reveal and it simply appears out of character. The age distinction between Ravi Teja and Sri Leela exhibits and stands proud like a sore thumb. This isn’t the primary Telugu movie and definitely not the final the place a longtime male actor romances somebody half his age, however it’s obtrusive.
Dhamaka
Forged: Ravi Teja, Sree Leela, Rao Ramesh, Jayaram
Path: Trinadha Rao Nakkina
Music: Bheema Ceciroelo
A superb portion of the primary half is dedicated to delineating the distinction between Swami and Anand. Pranavi discovers that she likes each Swami and Anand and her mom (Rajshri Nair) asks her to work together with each of them after which make up her thoughts. Her father (Rao Ramesh), after all, may have none of it.
A few of the scenes on this absurd-comedy section do entertain, particularly the exchanges between Rao Ramesh and his driver, essayed by Hyper Aadhi who will get the wittiest strains within the movie. There’s additionally a enjoyable tackle Chiranjeevi’s Indra, in Ravi Teja type. These comedian parts and the pre-intermission section save the movie from turning into an entire lacklustre mess.
However the later parts get progressively boring. The extended company warfare parts required incisive writing to showcase enterprise methods and one-upmanship. We get none of these. Jayaram is decreased to a caricaturish antagonist and we are able to see from a mile who else could possibly be a wolf in a sheep’s clothes.
The audiences are additionally not anticipated to ask apparent questions. For example, why does Sachin Khedekar, who’s offered as the top of a enterprise empire with no skeletons in his closet, by no means use his clout to get police or political muscle to safeguard himself? The movie additionally makes use of done-to-death tropes involving the security of the hero’s members of the family. Although there’s a lot at stake, he by no means takes precautions.
There are additionally lame ‘punch’ strains – ‘If I see a villain in you, you will note a hero in me’, ‘If you happen to attempt to be a hero, you will note a wild villain in me’…
At one level when Ravi Teja takes on baddies, he questions the presence of nepotism in rowdyism and asserts that he’s self-made. Level famous. However subsequent time, perhaps he can select a greater script. Dhamaka has a couple of entertaining scenes and is watchable in comparison with his latest movies. However that’s no yardstick to rejoice.
