Movie: Okka Kshanam
Cast: Allu Sirish, Surbhi, Seerat Kapoor, Avasarala Srinivas
Direction: Vi Anand
Director Vi Anand’s penchant for unconventional themes continues as he has hobnobbed with yet another edge-of-the-seat thriller. With his romantic sci-fi thriller Okka Kshanam, he delves into the parallel life concept weaved around the conflict between love and destiny. Anand takes us into the story of Jeeva (Allu Sirish), an engineering graduate and a Mathematics pro who has a way with permutations and combinations but not his penny-pincher father. For about 40 minutes, Anand seems to be in no hurry and follows a slumberous style of narration. As the plot slowly begins unfolding, the film gets refreshingly exciting and the narrative ensures progress.
The romantic track of Jeeva and Jo (Surbhi), an art student with a fractured ankle, begins in a poetic fashion at the basement of a shopping mall. It’s one of those at first sight things that bloom when Jeeva catches a glimpse of Jo. When Cupid strikes an arrow between them, it was Jo’s obsession to spy on others ala Bigg Boss, particularly keeping a tab on the life of her neighbours – a newly-married couple – Srinivas (Srinivas Avasarala) and Swathi (Seerat Kapoor). This is where Jeeva discovers that their love life replicates to that of Srinivas and he makes efforts to piece together the puzzle. Will he succeed in changing the destiny? What’s in store for him forms the crux of Okka Kshanam.
The film’s premise is really fascinating – the parallel life where events happen at the same time as one another. The best part about the film is its riveting second hour. It’s in this hour the intensity and drama get the needed priority. Somehow, Anand has succeeded in connecting the dots to make Okka Kshanam a coherent story. However, one would expect the director to explore and justify the parallel-life concept rather than piggybacking on science and destiny. Had he been able to showcase it lucidly, it would have increased the curiosity. A few characters in the film, say professor (played by Jayaprakash) suddenly disappears from the scene without showing any value addition. So is the case with a bunch of goons.
Towards the end, the film falls into the usual trappings of commercial cinema and is devoid of thrills. The director stuck to the point without deviating much from the actual plot and packaged it quite interestingly staying true to his aspirations.Mani Sharma’s background score mellows and does the trick in raising anticipation. The performances throughout are convincing. his is a role penned for Sirish and he is good at what he does and gives his best to date. Surbhi takes her role seriously and puts in sincere efforts. Avasarala Srinivas has nothing noteworthy to do and he did well in a brief role. Seerat Kapoor delivers sparkling performance. With diversity being the order of the day, the audience may find it as a whiff of fresh air. The film definitely gives you a high that you expect from a taut thriller. Go watch it.