Kodipunju

Rustic romance on rocks

Set against the rustic canvas, Chowdary’s Kodipunju seeks to give its hero Tanish an image makeover.

From that of a sugary, syrupy lover boy into a brawny, macho man who beats the living daylights of baddies single-handedly.

However, with an old-as-hills script and an equally antiquated yarn, the mushy family melodrama is rendered a kill-joy rather than an engaging entertainer.

So you have the yokel Abhimanyu, son of Seetharam, with a degree under his belt, falling head over heels in love with Nandini, daughter of village president Ramachandra Rao.

Needless to say, soon you have Abhi & Rao breathing fire following a showdown, with cupid caught in the proverbial cul-de-sac. How the lover lad wriggles out of it all for that family album forms the rest of the movie.

Sadly, nothing works in Kodipunju, with Chowdary cooking up a tasteless and tiresome kichidi whose only saving grace is Roja.

But then she too is unable to prop up an otherwise malodorous movie which is simply one way ticket to tedium. Touche!