Movie Review: 'Adarsha Kutumbam'

Cast: Venkatesh, Srinidhi Shetty, Nara Rohit, Satya, Raghubabu, Yuvina, Master Prajwal, Rao Ramesh, Uday Bir Sandhu, Sachin Khedekar, Brahmaji, and others.

Music: Thaman

Cinematography: Ravi K. Chandran

Producer: Suryadevara Radha Krishna

Written and Directed by: Trivikram

Films like Malliswari and Nuvvu Naaku Nacchav, which are written by Trivikram and feature Venkatesh, are all-time favourites of Telugu people. But for Venky to act under the director’s direction took 20 years, and finally “Adarsha Kutumbam” materialised and was released today. Did the combo meet the expectations? Let’s have a look.

STORY:

Chittibabu (Venkatesh) is a middle-class guy who just lost his job, but faces hurdles as he has to pay back the loans taken by his wife Swarna (Srinidhi Shetty) and to arrange money for his son’s surgery. At that moment, he wins a ₹100 crore lottery and moves to a luxury villa, as people put the spotlight on him. A dacoit, Chandan, wants to loot this family and take away the crores of money, and raids their house. Did they successfully get the money? What happened after the raid is the rest of the story.

NARRATION-ANALYSIS:

Trivikram’s writing and Venky’s acting are a magical combo, and that’s what Malliswari and Nuvvu Naaku Nachav proved. Now that Trivikram is also directing, if the expectations are super high, then disappointment is in store from Adarsha Kutumbam. Probably they might have understood during the making process of the film that they are not doing magic; hence they toned down the magic in the promos as well. If we look at the narrative, Adarsha Kutumbam has neither a logical setup nor a magical screenplay. However, the weakest story and narrative got some trademark dialogues from Trivikram and impressive acting chops from Venkatesh. While watching the film, one feels, what’s so special about Adarsha Kutumbam, but then the two hours pass just like that. If expectations are kept in check, surely the family audience will have some time passed with the film.

During the making process of “Adarsha Kutumbam”, it has come out that the film has a similar story to that of Arjun Sarja’s “Blast Zone”. That’s the reason why the film got pushed from Summer to now, and the script changes that happened, the reshoots and everything seem true if we look at the movie in theatres. While the core point of a simple family getting stuck in a situation and coming out of that quite intelligently is something we have seen in “Blast” and in Adarsha Kutumbam as well, but Trivikram hasn’t woven a watertight screenplay around that. The kind of clarity and sense he makes when giving speeches is missing in his script now. The family members and their backstory seem silly and illogical, while the crime element is also beaten to death. If one could take these flaws lightly, maybe they would enjoy the movie.

If we cut back to Mahesh’s Pokiri, once the twist is out that the hero is a police officer, all the starting scenes seem so silly. Similarly, in Adarsha Kutumbam also, once the twist is out, the starting scenes sound funny. However, simple words and funny setups have definitely brought enough laughs, as they showcase Trivikram’s trademark all over. Though some routine scenes, like how a middle-class family behaves if they get a lottery, are woven in, Trivikram’s magic worked out in bringing laughs there. IN the first hour, there’s not much story progression, but the pacing is terrific, while the interval block gives the much-needed adrenaline rush.

After surprising the audience with a big twist in the interval, Trivikram failed to give a proper, believable backstory for the same. Hero and his family’s flashback seems to be very artificial and that never made the emotions inside the family work out. However, the director engaged with comedy in such parts. Especially the family’s scene at the SP Office has worked out big time, and Satya stole the show. The villains chasing the family, the hero trying to escape the police, sound routine, but the engaging comedy offers pass marks to Adarsha Kutumbam. Though the narrative is weak, Trvikram’s comedy dialogues and Venky’s histrionics are solid. If watched without expectations, a family audience will feel okayish about the film.

PERFORMANCES:

As the narrative is weak, the weight of taking the film forward rested heavily on Venkatesh’s shoulders, but then he pulled it off with aplomb. Playing Chittibabu with his amazing comedy timing, he amazed with the way he mouths Trivikram’s dialogues, philosophy and tone in his own style. His looks are also suitable for the role. At the same time, his pairing with Srinidhi Shetty looks convincing, while she also acted well. Nara Rohit took the police officer’s role in his own trademark style. Satya seems normal in the beginning, but in the SP Office episode, he’s hilarious. Rao Ramesh hasn’t got an impactful character, but is impressive, while Raghubabu is okay. There’s not much to say about Nivetha Pethuraj, as she played a passerby kind of role. Dhurandhar 2 fame Uday Bir Singh is just okay as a villain, while the likes of Sachin Kedekar and Brahmaji are just routine.

TECHNICALITIES:

Thaman met expectations as his output matches the loudness, but then it’s not surprising inside theatres. All the songs are just okayish, while the Narayanamma song brings some energy to the house. At the same time, Venky-Nivetha's song ‘Mala’ is cut from the final version in theatres. His background score elevated a few scenes. Ravi K Chandran’s visuals are impressive, while Haarika Haasini Creations showcased their quality production values.

Coming to Trivikram, definitely this is not his best writing, but it’s not bad work either. He banked on convenient ideas for the story-screenplay, while dialogues bore his trademark. But looking at the story and some scenes, it sounds like Trivikram compromised a lot in terms of the script, giving logic a toss. However, he engaged the target audience with an entertainment quotient.

Lastly: Adarsha Kutumbam, Uneven story’s time-pass entertainment

Rating: 2.5/5