Sundarakanda Movie Review: Siddharth (Nara Rohit) is an aging bachelor who needs to shoulder the family responsibility deligently. He puts forward a quirky condition before marriage-she should have five certain qualities. At married occasions, Siddharth keeps turning brides aside on finding these qualities.
He has an obsession from his child-hood. Siddharth had a crush on a senior Vaishnavi (Sridevi). When his father came to know about it, he transferred Siddharth to another school. Since then, he has been in quest for finding same qualities in a partner.
Eventually, he has Aira (Virthi Vaghani) who accepts his proposal. Just then everything seems to align well; Vaishnavi enters his life. How is Aira linked to Vaishnavi? Who will ultimately end up marrying Siddharth? The remaining is answered in the film.
Director Venkatesh Nimmalapudi seems to have pretty familiarised plot; it reminds of Dikkulu Chudaku Ramayya. The story suits Nara Rohit because of his age but does not deliver well. The narrative may be matured in love story, but the screenplay drags on.
The first half, although slow, is salvaged by a few comic instances and an intriguing twist at the interval that held interest. However, losing tempo, stretching needlessly, and concluding at a predictable climax is what the second half is all about. It lasts only two hours and twenty minutes but feels lengthened because of poor narration. The comedy does well in the first half but gets sidelined later.
Production values are just ok; the music of Leon James has no impact-mostly the songs are not remembered, and probably without them, the pace would have increased.
Nara Rohit does his performance quite limitedly in expressions. Despite attempts to cover his physique with oversized outfits, there are ends of distraction viewing in his appearance, sometimes, even people doubting of VFX.
Senior actress Sridevi portrays a stronger performance than her previous roles. Supporting actors like Naresh, Abhinav Gomatham, and Satya add some humor, but the overall expected level never seems to materialize. Vasuki’s role is significant, while VTV Ganesh’s absence is felt, as someone else seems to have dubbed his voice.
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Plus Points:
Engaging first hour
Comedy
Dialogues
Negative Points:
Very slow
The second half let down
Memorable music
Verdict:
Then Sundarakanda has a few laughs going with some engaging portions, but it weighs down completely because of slow narration and poor directions. It would be worth a watch if you have some patience for slow-paced family drama.