Vaayuputra

This young man has cinema in his genes alright. Rumoured to have selected the story himself for his launch, Chiranjeevi Sarja then set about equipping himself with all necessary skills. It can safely be said that Sarja Jr doesn’t betray his inexperience.

The effort shows right from the opening scene. Chiranjeevi moves like a panther and, in a nicely choreographed song with Aindrita Ray, offers a fleeting glimpse of his fab-abs (girls now have a new pin-up boy). He dances like a dream, legs pumping like pistons and easily clears opponents’ faces while fighting.

As the film progresses, the fact that Arjun Sarja chose to remake Sandai Kozhi recedes to the background and the interest centres on the Young Turk’s ability to hold his own. The Sarja family pulls out all stops for Vaayuputra and the audience benefits from this largesse.

The pick of the lot is Aindrita, who has, probably for the first time been presented the way she should be: pluses highlighted and drawbacks cleverly camouflaged. She responds with a spirited performance in her small role and attracts notice.

Ambareesh fans will love seeing their Rebel Star wielding the long sword. Kishore Sarja takes care not to introduce unnecessary elements in his screenplay, yet a couple of songs and the long-drawn but brilliantly choreographed climax drag the film a bit. M S Ramesh also gives good dialogues that seem natural enough; rhetoric is kept to a minimum.

Harikrishna’s songs bring that chatpata feeling. There are some inconsistencies, but these are minor in the overall shaping of the product, which, for a remake manages to dole out fare to every discerning connoisseur.