Mangalavaaram is a Telugu-language crime thriller written and directed by Ajay Bhupathi. The film has Payal Rajput playing the central character while Nanditha Swetha, Divya Pillai, Ajmal Amir, Ravindra Vijay, Chaitanya Krishna, Ajay Gosh, Ravindra Vijay, Shravan Reddy, Srithej, Laxman Meesala, Anand Ramaraju & others are seen in important supporting roles. The music is composed by B.Ajaneesh Loknath and the film is produced by Swathi Reddy Gunupati & Suresh Varma.M under Mudhra Media Works & A Creative Works banners.
Story:
Fear engulfs a village as mysterious murders pile up all of a sudden. Every Tuesday, there is bad news of people who are having illegal relationships being murdered in the village. The village’s new Sub Inspector (Nanditha Swetha) starts to investigate these murders. As time goes it is understood that a young woman, Shailaja (Payal Rajput) is the center point for all these murders. Who is Shailaja and what is her past? What is the mystery hidden behind these killings? What is Shailaja’s connection to these murders? The film has the answers to all these questions.
What about on-screen performances?
Payal Rajput comes up with her career-best performance in this film. It is surely a daring step to accept a complex role like this and she needs to be appreciated for taking this bold step. She is very in her act and is especially good in all the emotional parts of the film.
Nanditha Swetha gets a nice fierce makeover and she is excellent in her role as the newly appointed Sub Inspector of the village who investigates the murders.
Ravindra Vijay who is one of the most underrated actors doing few notable roles these days, delivers a commendable performance as the RMP Doctor. He does particularly well towards the end portions.
Chaitanya Krishna is another underrated actor who leaves a huge mark in his role as the Zamindhaar of the village. Divya Pillai is the surprise package of the film. She shines well in the key moments in the film.
Ajay Gosh & Laxman Meesala are hilarious in their respective roles as Kasiraju & Puli. They entertain us with their funny lines.
Ajmal Amir is pretty decent in his important cameo in the flashback portions. There is a special character that comes as a big reveal at the very end of the film and he does a neat job in his key role.
Shravan Reddy, Srithej, Anand Ramaraju, and all the rest of the supporting actors are very good in their respective roles.
What about off-screen talents?
The story by Ajay Bhupathi is refreshing and very bold. The plot he chooses and the concepts he induces into his plot are very interesting. The story is high on nativity and all the characterizations are very well written.
The screenplay too is pretty decent. Though the first half is a bit on the low side with too many characters & random subplots, he makes sure almost all these dots are neatly joined and all the characters are perfectly rounded off towards the end of the film in the second half.
Director Ajay Bhupathi does a fine job with his presentation. He narrates the story decently and will keep us engrossed in the proceedings for a sizeable part. Kudos to him for how he handled the script and special mention to the manner he opened up all the pages towards the last 30 minutes. The ending shot of Laxman is a clear example of director Ajay Bhupathi’s masterclass.
However, there is fair bit of lag in the first half as too much time is taken for the character establishment. These proceedings bring down the pace.
The dialogues by Tajuddin Syed & Kalyan Raghav are impressive. They add the desired impact to the narrative.
The camera work by Sivendra Dasaradhi is brilliant. His cinematography takes the film to another level. His lighting and framing are on point.
The songs by B.Ajaneesh Loknath are good and they go well with the narrative. But it is his background score that sets the screen on fire. His music is terrific and is the biggest highlight of the film.
The edit by Madhav Kumar Gullapalli is good. He could’ve been more authentic with his cute as a few character threads end abruptly and don’t get the right conclusion.
Special mention to the whole sound department led by M. R. Rajakrishnan. It plays a major role in giving a new experience in the theatres.
The production design by Raghu Kulakarni, the artwork by Mohan Talluri, and the costume department also deserve appreciation for their perfection.
The production values by Mudhra Media Works & A Creative Works are grand.
What’s Hot?
* Payal Rajput’s Performance
* Refreshing Plot & Authentic Set Up
* Superb Last 30 Minutes With Good Twists
* Kickass Background Score
* Immersive Sound Design
* All Supporting Artist’s Performances
* Kaasiraju & Puli Comedy Track
* Cinematography & Art Work
* Direction & Production Values
What’s Not?
* Average First Half
* Few Half Baked Sub Plots
* Unnecessary Edit Cuts In Few Places
* Incoherent ends to a few characters.
Verdict: Mangalavaaram is a well made nativity thriller with an interesting backdrop, engrossing twists and turns. But the opening half has a fair few lags and that could’ve been avoided for a better watch. A decent one-time watch that should be watched on big screens for the twits and turns.
Telugubulletin.com Rating: 2.75//5