'Sapta Saagaradaache Ello – Side B' movie review: Slick production values in a sluggish sequel

There is a hero, there is a heroine. They are in love. They dream of a beautiful life together. Circumstances force them apart. Heroine marries another man. That was Side A.

Hero is upset and depressed. He meets a sex worker and finds solace in her. But he cannot forget the love of his life. That is Side B. Devdas was published in 1917 but it has become a frequently used template, as in Sapta Sagaradaache Ello. 

What is director Hemanth Rao trying to tell us through the character of Soma, played by Ramesh Indira? That there are insane sorts who like to trouble people for no reason? Soma shares a love-hate relationship with hero Manu, but nowhere do we get a clue about what motivates his mischief. The second half is steered by Soma’s actions to trigger Manu. It looks like a cat and mouse game. Soma even remarks, “We’re like Tom and Jerry.”

Rukmini Vasanth in Sapta Sagaradaache Ello- Side B.

The film boasts an excellent technical team in the cinematography (Advaitha Gurumurthy), editing (Sunil S Bharadwaj) and sound (Charan Raj) departments. Charan Raj’s music, a tad dull in Side A, is mesmerising in Side B, as this sequel is called.

Rakshit Shetty plays Manu, a messiah in disguise, willing to take any risk to help his former lover’s family, badly affected by the pandemic. He stalks her, her husband and even her seven-year-old son. He secretly watches her movements, drinks with her husband, and casually chats with her son to find out everything about the family. His intentions may be noble, but his actions are definitely cringey!

The only scene that qualifies as ‘poetic’ is when Manu and Priya run into each other and hold a conversation. They weave a web of lies to show how happy they are. This reminded me of Rituparno Ghosh’s Raincoat.
Gopal Deshpande doesn’t fail to impress as a dear and caring friend. Rakshit’s brooding look from the second half of Kirik Party is back. Chaitra Achar gets better with each film, and it is a delight to watch her. Rukmini Vasanth, with a pleasant demeanour, is captivating in her polyester saris.

A sequel makes sense when a film leaves the story hanging in suspense (as in Bahubali) or tells an extended story (as in Ponniyin Selvan). But SSE does not call for a long-drawn-out narrative. A love story like this could have worked better as a single film with a taut screenplay.