Venkatesh-Trisha’s latest film ‘Namo Venkatesa’ runs on the premise that ‘Fortune favours Positivity’. Directed by Srinu Vytla, the film has been produced by Achanta Gopichand, Anil Sunkara and Achanta Ram on '14 Reels Entertainment' banner. Srinu Vytla has already carved a niche for himself in terms of his taste for comedy and clean entertainment and ‘Namo Venkatesa’ is yet another film in that genre. It narrates the story of Venkata Ramana, a ventriloquist by profession who’s on a quest to win over his dream girl.

What is it about : Venkatesh stars as Venkata Ramana, an ardent devotee of Venkateswara Swami and a ventriloquist by profession. Venkata Ramana is so good at heart that he has no enemies, however he has only one problem- he’s still a bachelor. When he travels to Europe to participate in a concert, he meets Paris Prasad (Brahmanandam) who conspires to take advantage of Venkata Ramana and his friends. Accidentally, Venkata Ramana bumps into Pooja (Trisha), a relative of Paris Prasad and instantly falls in love with her. When Paris Prasad comes to know about this, he drags himself, Venkata Ramana and Pooja into a complicated situation. How did Venkata Ramana solve the complications issue and win over Pooja? That forms the rest of the story of this family entertainer.

What is Good: Venkatesh’s knack for comedy is brilliant. Right from the introduction scene till the end, he does well in all the comic scenes. His costumes and styling in the initial parts of the film, suit his characterization as an innocent do-gooder, pretty well. Trisha is adequate in her role. She’s gorgeous in the songs and performs well in the emotional scenes. However, it’s Brahmanandam who steals the show and walks away with all the honours. Probably, he has played the same character, umpteen times till date but the subtle variations which he brings out in his acting makes us laugh all over again. Be it, the first interaction between Brahmanandam and Venkatesh, or the scene where they plan to escape from the palatial house, Brahmanandam shows why he’s known as the ‘Hasya Brahma’! Brahmanandam and Venkatesh’s combination is another added advantage to the film. The supporting cast of the film is similar to other Srinu Vytla’s films and they do well in their respective scenes. Jayprakash Reddy once again uses the same slang which he used in ‘Ready’ and he’s good. Mukesh Rishi and Subba Raju are alright in their roles. Both Dharmavarapu Subramaniam and Vishwanath Kasi are good and evoke laughter quite a few times.

What is bad: The story written by Gopi Mohan has a déjà vu effect! Several scenes in the film bring back memories of some of Srinu Vytla’s earlier films like ‘Dhee’, ‘Ready’. After starting on an interesting note, the film takes its own sweet time to unwind in the first half. The entire first half is filled with series of silly incidents which could have been handled in a better way. There’s hardly any on screen chemistry between Venkatesh and Trisha. Yes, it’s true that Pooja is not in love with Venkata Ramana, but she isn’t indifferent towards him either. She sympathizes with him but never expresses her true feelings for him till the very end. The film fiddles with intense action and chase sequences which could have been avoided.

Technical Departments: Gopi Mohan’s story is adequate for the film although it has a déjà vu effect. Some of the one-on-one scenes between Venkatesh and Brahmanandam are wonderfully written. Chitapalli Ramana’s dialogues are very good. Cinematography is brilliant throughout the film. The use of colours and lighting deserves a special mention. Two songs which were shot in Iceland were stunning on screen. M R Varma’s editing is adequate. Devi Sri Prasad’s music is alright. ‘Ding Dong’, ‘Soundarya’ and ‘Namo Venkatesa’ songs have good music as well as good lyrics. Srinu Vytla’s screenplay runs on predictable lines, however his direction is noteworthy. The series of incidents between Venkatesh and Brahmanandam are handled well and in a way they are the soul of the film.

Bottom Line: ‘Namo Venkatesa’ falls in the genre of a family entertainer with ingredients such as comedy, love, sentiment and action. In this sense, the film has been well cooked and it’s a good entertainer without going over the top anywhere. It’s unpretentious and delivers what it sets out to achieve. Moreover, it would be unfair to compare the film with any of Venkatesh or Srinu Vytla’s earlier films because the circumstances which rule ‘Namo Venkatesa’ are quite different from them. The love track in the film could have been better and probably that’s the only disappointment. In the end, ‘Namo Venkatesa’ is a positive, feel-good family entertainer. Watch it for Venkatesh, Brahmanandam and Srinu Vytla’s direction.

P.S: The sheepish grin of Venkatesh and Brahmanandam which they use throughout the film is seriously addictive!