<i>Alaa</i> Review

Monday, March 05, 2007
Award winner tests audiences patience
Chimmani Manohar had earlier directed a film called Kala in 2004 and launched his own banner Manutime Movie Mission under which he has produced and directed Alaa.... He chose a typical plot for his subject and almost 90 per cent of the film was shot in a petrol bunk. Unfortunately, the entire story looks quite cinematic and there is neither a story nor a proper narration. There is no surprise why the film's release was delayed as none of the viewers could believe that it would run for even few days.

The Plot:
There is a boy who wants to become a film hero. He has three friends. Among them, one was thrown out of home as he is fond of music and music alone. Another was pushed out of house because his penchant for painting. The third one comes out home as his father wanted to discipline him for no fault of his. In order to fulfil their dreams, they need money. So, if the one who wants to turn a hero realises his dream, he could help the others as well. Though he gets a chance in films, the director demands Rs 1 lakh in return he would make a film with him playing a heros role. So, the boy decides to get the money from one petrol bunk owner, who had cheated his father some 15 years ago and took away Rs 1 lakh from him. That boy gathers information that the petrol bunk owner would pay Rs 1 lakh to his concubine every month on first Friday. So they attack the petrol bunk to grab the money. They all know that it is illegal, but they still believe that taking money from him is justified.

They attack the bunk and demand that he give them the money. First he refuses but later lies saying that a friend has to bring the money. So they give two hours time. During the two hours they come across a host of people and house arrest some of them in a room behind the petrol bunk. During the process they come across a couple of lovers who elope from their home and keep them also with them in order to safeguard their interest and also of the couple's safety. Finally, they could realise that the money is in the bunk and take away the cash. With that money, the boy turns a hero, while his other friends also settle in their life as music composer, painter and a security consultancy owner. The lovers couple also get married and live a happy life.

Plus Points
Vidisha, who has made her debut in the film looked gorgeous and she is the only saving grace adding to the film the glamour quotient of the film. But she too had no scope to perform much. Comedy by Venumadhav comes as a relief for a few minutes. There are five songs in the film and of them only one song, which is a remix of 'Naravara.. O Kuruvaraa..' of 'Nartana Sala', an old classic, is worth listening.

Minus Points
There are absolutely no plus points in the film. None of the artistes could put up best performance and failed to emote well because almost all of them were debutants. The appearance of Jeeva, Narsing Yadav failed to serve any purpose. At a time, when there is a big extortion drama is going on, the youth enjoying life with songs and dances looked quite absurd.

Final Remarks:
Manohar Chimmani, who bagged Nandi Award for 'Best Book on Films' for his book 'Cinema Script Rachana Shilpam', failed to script a good subject for his own film. Though the plot is good, the director miserably failed in giving a good screenplay, movement of the story, the environment that suits the subject. It seems no music company had even come forward to market the audio hence, the audio was also launched through Manu Audio, their own music company.

Cast: Rohan, Vidisha, Karthik, Vijay Atma, Ajay, Ilayaraja, Surya, Venumadhav, Jeeva, Chitram Srinu, Abhinayasri and others.

Credits:
Music - KP
Lyrics - Kameshwar
Cinematography - Virendra Lalit
Editor - Murali-Ramaiah
Choreography - Shanti, Samuel, Rajesh
Executive Producer - Krishna Siramsetti
Presenter - Devagari Rajender Reddy
Producer, Writer&Director - Manohar Chimmani

Banner: Manutime Movie Mission.

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