'Aarambham', produced by Abhishek V Thirumalesh on AVT Entertainment, hits the screens this Friday (May 10). The sci-fi drama has been adapted from a Kannada-language novel titled 'Neenu Ninnolage Khaidi', written by Anush A Shetty. Director Ajay Nag has also written the movie. Let's find out what the latest theatrical outing is about.
Story:
Miguel (Mohan Bhagat), a lean youngster who has apparently been orphaned, is serving a jail term. One fine morning, the cops manning the prison are shell-shocked to find that he has escaped. Slowly, it dawns upon them that he staged an escape without leaving any footprint. Enter detectives Chaitanya (Ravindra Vijay) and Madhav (Abhishek Boddepalli), who chance upon Miguel's diary to search for possible clues. The diary is full of references to a failed scientist named Subramanya Rao (Bhushan Kalyan) and his sui generis experiment through which time can be made irrelevant. What happened to that experiment? Where is Miguel? Answers to these and more questions are found in the second half.
Performances & Technical Departments:
Mohan Bhagat comes across as a Varun Sandesh with a better expression range and dialogue delivery. Bhushan Kalyan, as his guardian-like elder, is very good in the role of a non-eccentric scientist. Supritha Sathyanarayan plays Sharadha aka Vasantha; she looks beautiful and has a serene screen presence. Ravindra Vijay is nice, while Laxman Meesala as Miguel's prison in the friend is neat. Surabhi Prabhavathi plays Leelu, the male lead's stepmother.
Sinjith Yerramilli's music may not be completely out of the world but it serves its purpose.. He is ably supported by Manicka Prabhu CS's flawless sound design. The cinematography by Devdeep Gandhi Kundu is superb despite seeming budgetary constraints. Aditya Tiwari and Preetham Gayathri have edited the movie for those who have the patience to soak into a slow-burn drama. Harika Potta's costumes are naturalistic.
Merits:
1. The production values and the neat execution are worthy of applause.
2. The dialogues written by Sandeep Angadi are measured.
3. The suspense created over a major character's death.
4. The use of abstract language in the songs and in the diary retained by Miguel.
5. A degree of curiosity hangs over the entire first half.
6. The climax is surreal.
Demerits:
1. The second half reduces the film to a melodrama and the sci-fi element becomes a half-baked sub-genre in the larger scheme of things.
2. No highs in the second hour keep the viewer distracted.
3. While the film is not silly, it can definitely be boring. It is not bland but it is not novel either.
Vox Verdict:
'Aarambham' has been executed to near perfection. However, it is far from haunting and original.
