Movie Review: Comrade Kalyan

Cast: Sree Vishnu, Mahima Nambiar, Satya, Tom Shine Chacko, Sudarshan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Saichand, Shatru, Upendra Limaye, and others.

Music: Vijay Bulganin

Cinematography: Sai Sriram

Writing: Bhanu, Nandu, Kona Venkat

Producer: Venkata Krishna

Direction: Janakiram Marella

After starting with serious films, Sree Vishnu took a comedy turn and bagged the tag ‘King of Entertainment’. Films like Samajavaragamana and Single proved it. Now he has come up with ‘Comrade Kalyan ’, and let’s have a look at how it is.

STORY:

In the 90s, when the Naxalite movement was at its peak, Kalyan (Sree Vishnu) from the village of Maadugula runs a leased cinema theatre there. He falls in love with an Odia girl, Sithara Devi (Mahima Nambiyar), who has come there. Later, he finds out that she’s a Telugu girl, and to save her from a big problem, he turns into a Naxalite. While a simple thing catapults into a serious issue and makes him walk with real Naxals, the situation spirals out of hand. What issue Sithara is facing, why Kalyan turned a Naxal and whether he came out of this or not is the rest of the story.

NARRATIVE-ANALYSIS:

Naxalism is a serious and sensitive subject. If a hero is slipping into those shoes, the story’s tone would be different. However, when Sree Vishnu took up that role, many wondered why a hero who’s doing comedy films all the while has taken that up. It’s clarified by promos that the film indeed is a comedy film. But inside theatres, the way comedy is crafted between such serious subjects is a bit hard to digest. Do Naxalites operate so silly? Are the police that dummy? Can a normal guy toy around with these two groups so easily? If these logics are kept aside, then Sree Vishnu and Co, made a decent time-pass comedy.

During the promotions, Sree Vishnu stated that ‘Comrade Kalyan’ goes on a serious tone, but the seriousness of the situations makes the audience laugh, not the characters throwing some jokes and all. However, the film hasn’t run on a serious meter as he said. At one point, the film gets interesting because when the hero turns out to be a fake Naxal, his encounter with real Naxals and the police becomes a powerful clash. Though the basic intent is good, the story isn’t narrated with such conviction and seriousness. Without showing the situations in a serious tone, and not extracting comedy from that, the writers and directors have stumbled a bit there. They never tried to narrate the story seriously, but dealt with it like a comedy only. A film which otherwise would have become crazy has now become ordinary due to this factor.

Risking everything in his life, if a hero is becoming a Naxalite, the reason for that should be much stronger. While it’s shown that he has done this for the heroine, the love story and chemistry between them isn’t that strong enough. As there’s no solid emotional drive behind his decisions, we too never take it seriously. Everything from how the hero makes plans after joining the Naxals, the way the gang leaders respond to it, the police trying to catch them, a minister’s kidnapping, and all the things that follow are handled in a silly tone, and even we cannot take them seriously. However, there is no dearth of comedy in 'Comrade Kalyan'. If you keep the logic aside, these punches blast big time.

The expected satirical fun from Sree Vishnu has worked out well, and his one-liners are a blast. At the same time, Satya is an addition, and the duo have done terrific comedy. The English love-letter scene written by Satya to Vishnu is a hilarious scene. The hurdles this duo faces after getting trapped with Naxals are also funny. Both are entertaining with their impeccable comedy timing. Satya’s top form has once again worked. Vennela Kishore’s one single comedy scene erupted in theatres. Sree Vishnu’s self-satire with other film references worked out. However, when we imagine much about Tom Shine Chacko’s character as a police officer, it isn’t designed well. While the first hour of the film seems okay, it raises curiosity at the interval, but the supporting second half is missing here. The graph goes up and down many times, and the comedy works out, but then the movie doesn’t give enough thrill, though it ends up with a message. But then, it doesn’t bore you. If watched without expectations, surely it is a timepass flick for fun.

PERFORMANCES:

Sree Vishnu’s comedy timing is apt for Comrade Kalyan, and he entertained every single scene. He delivers what’s expected from him, and even peaked in emotions in a few scenes. Mahima Nambiyar looks good and performs okayish, though her role is not written strongly. Satya is the biggest asset of the film, as his expressions and punches landed well. Sudharshan also did his part through comedy doses. Vennela Kishore entertained. Both Saichand and Satru as Naxalites have held the nerves. Upendra Limaye’s comedy hasn’t worked out, though. Radhika Sarathkumar’s role is limited, and she’s not utilised well in that pale role. Srikanth Ayyengar, Raghubabu, Sarayu and other artists did a good job.

TECHNICALITIES:

The technical values in ‘Comrade Kalyan’ are very good. Sai Sriram’s cinematography is a big asset for the film as he carves out the village and forest backdrop quite beautifully, making the visuals engaging. Vijay Bulganni’s songs are moderately okay, with the Oriya Ammayi song sounding melodious, while the background score is good. Production values showcase the quality of the film. Coming to writing, the base story of Comrade Kalyan is interesting, as Samajavaragamana writers Bhanu-Nandu created comedy situations and punches quite well. However, the script lacks a tight run. As they made a story on Naxalism in a non-serious manner, it sounds unconvincing. Director Janakiram Murella handled the comedy well with a good flow, but he faltered when scenes needed to be handled seriously.

LASTLY: Comrade Kalyan, for Sreevishnu-Satya’s Comedy!

RATING: 2.75/5