Film: Nenu Local
Cast: Nani, Keerthy Suresh
Director: Trinadh Rao
Rating: 2.5 stars
Over the years Nani has mastered the art of making breezy romantic comedies that appeal to the college-going youth. He's shown his versatility with films like Yevade Subramanyam and Gentleman -- but Nani is back to doing his bread-and-butter role in his latest offering Nenu Local. The actor flourishes in his inimitable style, in a film that has entertainment on offer. But director Trinadh Rao takes the tried-and-tested route and plays it safe, turning Nenu Local into a routine, predictable film.
Nenu Local tells the story of Babu (Nani), a casual engineering student who fails his regular exams and writes the supplementary ones instead, much to the chagrin of his invigilator (Sachin Khedekar), who gets constantly irritated by his antics, to the extent that he helps him pass the exam, just so he wouldn't have to see his face again. As fate would have it, Babu falls in love with his daughter Keerthi (Keerthy Suresh). It's love at first sight for Nani (as it happens so often in Tollywood romedies), where he chases after her, beats up goons for her, helps out her close friend and eventually wins her heart. But just when we're looking at a happy couple, enters Siddharth Varma (Naveen Chandra), a dashing cop who claims to be in love with Keerthi for four years. How the entry of Siddharth changes the equation between the lead pair and how Babu manages to convince her father to accept their love, makes for the rest of the story.
Where Nenu Local falters badly is with its predictable storyline. How often have we seen stories of the underdog winning at love (Ravi Teja's Idiot comes to mind) or one where the hero has to convince the heroine's strict father to accept him (Cinema Choopista Maava and Bhale Bhale Mogadivoi are strikingly similar in this aspect). Nenu Local does provide its share of laughs but offers nothing new to the viewers.
Director Trinadh Rao rides on Nani's image throughout the journey and shows neither the skill or the imagination to provide a fresh perspective. The music is quite jarring, apart from the song 'Next Enti', which is quite hilarious in the context of the film.
Nenu Local does have its moments. The first half an hour, in particular, leaves you in splits. Nani shines like only he can, especially when he delivers a monologue in class, where he says students and lecturers are two cogs of the same wheel.
Keerthy Suresh gets a sizeable role and does it well. Sachin Khedekar stands out among the other supporting actors.
Despite offering a few laughs, Nenu Local is as predictable as it gets, and the melodrama at the end just makes it worse. Take the first half-hour away and you're left with a predictable bore.