‘Khaleja’ (Telugu, Action Entertainer, 2010)
Director: Trivikram Sreenivas
Cast: M ahesh Babu, Anushka, Prakashraj, Brahmanandam, Sunil
Mahesh Babu's new film ‘Khaleja’, which releases after a three-year gap, hasn't really lived up to the huge expectations built around it. But Mahesh Babu has given a splendid performance and his screen presence is terrific.
Everything looks perfect when Mahesh Babu is around though the script and narration could have been much better. For those who expected another ‘Okkudu’ or ‘Athadu’, ‘Khaleja’ is certainly a let-down.
The film, however, has its positive points apart from, of course, Mahesh Babu's performance. The cinematography is mind-blowing and the comedy has a classic touch.
Director Trivikram Sreenivas, who has always been a great script and dialogue writer, fails to excel in his core strength this time. What we see on screen is just a couple of hilarious dialogues and some funny situations, but the film lacks the punch seen in Mahesh Babu's previous film ‘Athadu’, which was also directed by Sreenivas.
In all his hugely successful films like ‘Pokiri’, ‘Athadu’ and ‘Okkudu’, Mahesh always had a few dialogues that had a lot of force and punch. But here Sreenivas has tried to experiment and has given Mahesh too many dialogues and they fail to make an impact.
The first half of the film is dull. It does pick up pace in the second half but the narration is inconsistent and tedious. The climax is little better. The audience may come back feeling that something was surely amiss somewhere.
In the film, Seetha Ramaraju is a jovial cab driver, who unwittingly gets mixed up in twin murders. In order to claim compensations, he goes to Rajasthan, where he faces many surprising incidents.
He also meets Subhashini, whom he had seen earlier in Hyderabad. And Raju now feels that Subhashini has brought him ill luck whenever he sees her.
While returning, he goes to a trouble-stricken village which is waiting for someone to rescue them from their problems. They are convinced that Raju is the one they were looking for. A confused Raju later finds out that the woes of the villagers are linked to the two murders he witnessed in Hyderabad.
The rest of the film is about how Raju rescues the village and clears his name.
Mahesh carries off his role with elan and looks superb too. Anushka looks pretty but doesn't share a good on-screen chemistry with Mahesh. Prakash Raj seems to be repetitive as a villain. Brahmanandam, Sunil and Ali act well, but they have nothing much to do.
Mani Sharma's music is good and the film is visually slick and stronger. Peter Heynes' fight choreography stands out in the film.
‘Khaleja’ is worth a watch for Mahesh's strong screen presence and charisma. It is otherwise just an above average venture.