Choosing a life partner is never an easy task. For some, it takes just a moment to find their partner, while others take years. Some might marry the first person they fall in love with, and some may go through two or three relationships before finding the right person. But what if you are in a relationship with three people at the same time?
With Nanna Nenu Naa Boyfriends (NNNB), Director Bhaskar Bandi takes an interesting plot with great potential -- but falters in its execution and falls way short of expectations. It's one thing to have a contemporary story about relationships among the youth in the smartphone era -- but to execute in a realistic and entertaining manner is a completely different ball game. And this is where NNNB misses the brief. The content is so far-fetched that it's laughable.
When Raghava Rao's (Rao Ramesh) daughter is born, an astrologer tells him that she will be a problem for him. Hell bent to beat the prediction, he raises his daughter Padmavati - Paddu (Hebah Patel) with complete freedom, and allows her to have everything her way. He even sacrifices an MP seat to spend time with his daughter.
So when the spoilt Paddu is given an ultimatum to find herself a groom in six months or get married to a person of their choice, she decides to go hunting for a prospective groom. With the help of her friend Maggie (Tejaswi Madivada), she zeroes in on three men, but a comedy of errors ensues when she begins to date all three of them at the same time.
For a script with tremendous comic potential, the humour is one of the most disappointing aspects of NNNB. There is a sense of predictability to the story and the twists and turns hardly make an impact. The first hour is quite interesting as the director sets a base for each of his characters and while you eagerly await what happens next, the result is quite underwhelming.
The writers inexplicably try to justify a girl dating three men at the same time. Their explanation is unconvincing and pretty much sums up the mediocrity on show. The infusion of melodrama to garner sympathy for the protagonist, cuts no ice either.
It's refreshing to see a love story being told from the girl's perspective, and this is perhaps Hebah Patel's meatiest role yet (in terms of length atleast). Patel pulls off a decent performance as the spoilt, clueless girl. Tejaswi shines as her best friend, and provides rare moments of humour on show. Rao Ramesh, as ever, is exceptional as the doting father.
Nanna Nenu Naa Prema is an atttempt at progressive cinema which explores modern-day relationships, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired and the film fails to strike a chord. When Hebah Patel begins her melodramatic monologue in the film's climax, you know it's time to leave the theatre. And that's never a good sign.
| Film: Nanna Nenu Naa Boyfriends Cast: Hebah Patel, Tejaswi Madivada, Rao Ramesh Director: Bhaskar Bandi Rating: (2 stars) |