Ontari - Review

Ontari directed by BV Ramana has Gopichand and Bhavana in the lead. Good screen presence by Gopichand and Bhavana are among a few positive things to talk about in the film while mediocre narration disappoints. The film is about how a guy takes revenge on the goons for his love. Story in short: Vamsi (Gopichand) and Bujji (Bhavana) fall in love with each other. They even get engaged. Enter the bad guy Pandu (Ajay) who also likes Bujji. One day Bujji is kidnapped by Pandu. The tale that follows is surely not routine. In a way, for Vamsi, Bujji is there and not there too. Watch it on the big screen to know what that really means. .. Gopichand is simply superb and is a perfect for this role. Special mention is required for heroine Bhavana who makes a good impression with Telugu audience. She has a grace - both in looks and in performance. She looked typical Andhrite and looked good in both traditional and modern dresses. She performed both comedy and emotions with equal ease. Ajay is good in his role as Pandu. Raghu Babu does a routine role. The same thing applies to Shiyaji Shinde, who plays a special officer to hunt down the killer but later realizes the true cause of the killer and supports him. Sunil, Ali, Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao etc are content in the film. Barring a twist, the film has similarities to a few old films. Even though the plot and twist provide novelty, narration fails to satiate. Director should have taken more care with the screenplay; especially in the second half. The film has good formula. But the director failed in merging the formulae and the script properly. Instead, the film turns into a fight and song sequence. Songs hampered the pace in the film. Even though there is some comedy in the first half, that was totally lacking in the second half. If proper care has been taken in the second half - both with entertainment elements and screenplay, the verdict might have been different. Technically, one of the biggest assets for the film is music by Mani sharma. Camera Man Sarvesh Murari was good with his camera. Editor Gautham Raju did a good job with editing. However, he could have done better in the second half. Plus points in the film are - Gopichand, Bhavana, music by Mani Sharma, entertainment in the first half and interval twist. Minus points are narration and lack of entertainment in the second half. OVerall, first half of the film has entertainment elements and there is good comedy. Second half becomes a bit heavy with sentiment and emotions. Director tried something different in the film with something that is not common in Telugu film formula. The run of the film really depends on how the audience will receive it.