Okkadu caught me by surprise. Though the movie is titled Okkadu, the story doesn't revolve only around the hero. Though the movie has Kurnool - Rayalaseema - as one of its backdrops, the hero here never sends the message - 'I kick some ass, I kill some people, I romance a few chicks, I have a flashback to narrate. And .... Oh yeah I am the harbinger of peace' across to us. That some glaring loopholes in the story caught me by surprise too are points of discussion I have saved for later.

Rayalaseema themes have become successful tried and tested crisis management solutions to our heroes. When caught in a quagmire of flops, most of our heroes have turned to these stories to emerge with flying colors. After Chinnabbai, Victory Venkatesh's - first of its kind love story with Rayalaseema backdrop - Preminchukundam Raa went on to become one of the biggest hits in his career then. After not tasting expected success with Yuva Rathna Raana, Devudu, Pavitra Prema, Nata Simha Balakrishna gave one of the biggest hits of the industry with Samara Simha Reddy, which had a full fledged Rayalaseema story. Megastar Chiranjeevi's latest blockbuster Indra, now the biggest hit ever in the history of Telugu Cinema, not only reinstated his numero uno position in the industry but also flagged off countless rumours about his probable entry into politics. Indra, which had a high dose of Rayalseema flavor, was preceded by disastrous Daddy, Mrugaraju. If you think why wouldn't such a proven formula not work for Mahesh in Okkadu then you might not be totally wrong in assuming so. But as I said earlier, Okkadu is not a typical Rayalaseema fare we have been subjected to. And I guess that's where a meager portion of the film's success lies.

After watching Okkadu, you cannot stop commending MS Raju for not only his strong belief in the script but also for providing the best means and resources for an equally amazing outcome. Each and every scene in the movie boasts of rich production values talking about the passion MS Raju has, to produce quality cinema. Be it the Rs. 2 crore Charminar set or the hoards of junior artistes for the kabaddi matches, MS Raju hasn't compromised on anything and has played his role of a producer to the hilt delivering a super hit.

Guna Sekhar might have received a lot of flak for a very poor adaptation of 'The Ghost and the Darkness' into one of the biggest flops of Chiranjeevi's career - Mrugaraju. But that has not dampened his spirits. Undeterred by it, he strikes back with vengeance with Okkadu. Apart from a gripping screenplay and slick shot execution, his direction is appropriate and appeasing. But the storywriter in him ends up making too many assumptions. To talk about a few, why does Bhumika have to run away from her home all alone? The overt concern for Bhumika by her parents transforms to being covert when they ask her run away from Kurnool to the US without helping her in any way possible. Also, the intelligence shown in irritating the passport officer (Dharmavarapu Subramanyam) by making a series of calls by the hero and his friends from the hero's mobile to the officer's mobile, so that he would give away the heroine's passport to the hero without further questions, is totally amiss as far the officer is concerned for he could have avoided answering those series of calls as they come from the same mobile phone. And since when did the US universities stop issuing admission letters and other such documents for a student to obtain a visa? The heroine has no clue as to what she is going to study in the US but she gets a visa without a hassle. Obtaining a fake passport, we know, is no big deal in Hyderabad. But since when did a student visa become so easily accessible? All F1-visa rejects, here's something you guys might want to unearth.

Agreed the logic in the story at times is funny and questionable but you are bound to be mesmerized by the thrilling action sequences (Vijayan), the wonderful cinematography (Sekhar V Joseph) and the realistic sets (Ashok Kumar) in the movie. Without debating about the originality of the fights, I must say that fight master Vijayan composed some very cool fight sequences for Okkadu. The first fight in the movie calls in for a lot of ceetis and should not be missed. So all you action buffs, stick to the show timings. The Charminar set erected by art director Ashok Kumar is a show stealer. But the sets in the last song (Attarintiki) give you an impression that 3 and half hours of Devdas has been squeezed into 5 minutes of this song. Imitation wise, Ashok Kumar excels but creativity wise he still has to prove himself.

Mani Sharma and Sirivennela contribute largely to the success of the movie. Almost all the songs in the movie flow smoothly with the narrative. The lyrics not only add their share of beauty to the songs but also to the movie as such. I have already talked about Mani Sharma's melodious music and Sirivennela's lyrics in the audio review. Mani's background score fits in like a glove setting the right mood for each and every scene in the movie. For all of you who thought (which includes me too) that Hare Rama Hare Krishna was an original composition by Mani Sharma, here's the truth. Its a copy of Prem Joshua's 'Bolo Hari' song from his Dance of Shakti album. (Special thanks to Kranthi for this input).

Mahesh, the charming prince of Telugu film industry, finally delivers a super hit with this movie. As an adamant youth, aspiring sportsman, a headstrong son, teasing brother and a lover who doesn't realize that he has fallen for the girl until he almost loses her, Mahesh's performance is as infectious as his smile. With Okkadu, he sure has satisfied all his fans who have been waiting for a reason to rejoice and regale. So all you Mahesh fans, its time for you to sing - sandram kooda sthambhinchela mana satta choopiddaama. Bhumika's performance is far better than most of her contemporaries but its her dances that need some honing. Though there aren't enough scenes in the movie to talk about the on screen chemistry between Bhumika and Mahesh, they form a good pair. Prakash Raj, as usual, does a good job. Though he tries hard to mouth the dialogues in a Ralayaseema accent, he falters at places.

Well crafted chase sequences, exciting thrills, mellifluous songs, good performances, slick direction, rich production values and the efforts by all the team members make Okkadu not just a one man show but also a successful show. The movie hardly has any dull moments though the pace in the second half, at times, tries to give snail a complex.

Sreya Sunil

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