Bejawada

Story: The much-awaited film “Bejawada” starring Naga Chaitanya and Amala Paul released amid much controversy. Ram Gopal Varma, the producer of the film, ensured that the film constantly made headlines. But even all that hype and publicity cannot salvage this mediocre film.Movie Review: Kali (Prabhu) is a much revered local don in Vijayawada, who people turn to for help, instead of going to the police. Vijay Krishna (Mukul Dev) and Jaya Krishna (Ajay) are loyal aides. He trusts them more than he trusts his younger brother Shankar (Abhimanyu). One day, Shankar hires contract killers to murder Kali and both his aides, after being publicly humiliated by them. After their death, Shankar takes over reins of the gang and joins hands with a local politician (Kota Srinivasa Rao). Meanwhile, Vijay Krishna’s kid brother, Shiva Krishna (Naga Chaitanya), a college student, vows to avenge his brother’s death.The movie that might have gotten a good opening, considering it was embroiled in controversies right from the start, only flatters to deceive. The plot, screenplay and performances have nothing to write home about. Sometimes, the expressionless actors leave you with the feeling that you are watching a bad soap opera on television. The predictable and mindless action sequences don’t help either. Despite all the hoopla about the title (The word ‘Rowdeelu’ had to be removed from the original title, “Bejawada Rowdeelu”), the movie surprisingly, has nothing to do with rowdy culture of Vijayawada. Debutant director Vivek Krishna’s lack of experience shows up in the slipshod execution of key scenes. Before the release, the film drew comparisons with RGV’s cult-classic “Shiva”, but 10 minutes into the film you realize the comparisons were premature. While “Shiva” was a trendsetter of its time, “Bejawada” seems like an amateurish work at best. The only innovation, albeit ones that we could do without, is all the never-before-seen gore in some of the action sequences. (In one scene, a tube light is pushed into a goon’s mouth!). This film might have even outdone “Dhada”, in being called the worst film of Naga Chaitanya’s career. While the young actor still needs to work on his facial expressions, he was saddled with a poorlyetched character in this film, devoid of all heroism, and he fails to rise above it. Amala Paul is relegated to a couple of silly romantic scenes and songs. Except Kota Srinivasa Rao, who has played similar characters in earlier RGV films, no other performance is praiseworthy. The film lacks the technical panache that we associate with an RGV production. The camera work is shoddy and the editing whimsical. Six music directors worked on this film, but the background score and songs are far from impressive. The dialogues are insipid and the cinematography have nothing noteworthy. Despite all the expectations riding on it, “Bejawada” joins the long list of duds from the RGV factory.