reviews

Review: Nawab Cafe – Disappointing emotional drama

by 123telugu February 21, 2026

Movie Name : Nawab Cafe

Release Date : Feb 20, 2026
123telugu.com Rating : 2.25/5
Starring : Shiva Kandukuri, Teju Ashwini, Rajeev Kanakala
Director : Pramod Harsha
Producers : Radha V Papudippu & Venkat R Papudippu
Music Director : Prashanth R Vihari
Cinematographer : Kranthi Varla
Editor : Pavan Narava

Related Links : Trailer

Shiva Kandukuri has now come up with the emotional drama Nawab Cafe. Initially the movie was titled Chai Wala, but due to censor board objection, the title was changed later. The movie hit the big screens today, and let’s see how it is.

Story:

Ranganath (Rajeev Kanakala) owns a cafe named “Nawab Cafe” in the Old City of Hyderabad, which carries a legacy of over four centuries. Raja (Shiva Kandukuri), the son of Ranganath, dislikes his father’s business and wishes to settle abroad. However, unexpected circumstances force Raja to take over the cafe, where he is confronted with hidden challenges.

Plus Points:

Rajeev Kanakala is a gem of an actor who slips into any character effortlessly, and he is at his usual best in Nawab Cafe too. As a man who wants to protect his family’s legacy and as a father trying to put some sense into his son’s mind, the senior actor does a solid job.

Shiva Kandukuri portrayed his role neatly. There are two variations in his character. Till the midpoint, he is shown as a fun-loving youngster who loves to live life to the fullest, while he becomes a completely responsible son in the second half. Performance-wise, the actor did well. A few moments before the interval, where the hero gets involved in an argument with his father and the female lead, explaining his life goals to them, came out well.

Minus Points:

The main problem with Nawab Cafe is its screenplay, which remains boring for the most part. The narrative feels outdated, and there is absolutely no urgency in the proceedings, with the director taking all the time in the world to arrive at the conflict point.

The first half tries hard to evoke laughs, but the comedy tracks are pale, poorly designed, and fall flat entirely. The romantic drama between the lead pair also isn’t appealing. The movie closely resembles Dhanush’s latest film Idli Kadai in crucial scenes, and the drama isn’t captivating enough to look beyond the resemblance.

The director places emphasis on emotion in the second hour, but here things get even more tiresome, with scenes failing to leave an impact. The dialogues are badly written, giving a sense of outdatedness in many scenes.

The antagonist’s character and his motive offer nothing new and have been beaten to death. Hence, Chaitanya Krishna’s role hardly makes any difference. The same goes for the female lead’s characterization. Teju Ashwini doesn’t have much to shine and is largely restricted to the background.

Technical Aspects:

Prashanth R Vihari’s music is okay, with one song looking good on screen. The cinematography by Kranthi Varla is fine, and the production values are decent. The production design team did an effective job, and the Old City setting is neatly presented. The editing is not satisfactory, as the movie drags on.

Pramod Harsha is both the writer and director of Nawab’s Cafe, and he has done an okayish job. Some moments are fine like the pre-interval portions, but more care should have been taken with the emotional moments in the second half. The story isn’t fresh, and the screenplay brings fatigue due to the lack of engaging moments. More care should have been taken with the emotional scenes.

Verdict:

On the whole, Nawab Cafe is a disappointing emotional drama that suffers from a routine story and a tiresome narrative. Rajeev Kanakala and Shiva Kandukuri are good in their respective roles, but the rest of the cast hardly had any scope. Both halves are filled with boring moments, and the film has very little to offer.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.25/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

Click Here For Telugu Review

February 21, 2026

Review: Sri Chidambaram Garu – Good intentions, below-par presentation

by 123telugu February 7, 2026

Movie Name : Sri Chidambaram Garu

Release Date : Feb 06, 2026
123telugu.com Rating : 2.5/5
Starring : Vamsi Tummala, Sandhya Vasishta, Gopinath, Sivakumar Matta, Kalpalatha Garllapati, Arun Kumar, Tulasi, Naidu Moram, Shankar Rao
Director : Vinay Ratnam
Producers : Chinta Vineesha Reddy, Chinta Gopala Krishna Reddy
Music Director : Chandu Ravi
Cinematographer : Shravan Muppiri
Editor : Anwar Ali

Related Links : Trailer

Last year, Sri Chakras Entertainments delivered a superhit in the form of KA. The banner has now come up with another film, Sri Chidambaram Garu. Vinay Ratnam directed the film, and debutant Vamsi Tummala played the titular role. Today, Sri Chidambaram Garu hit the big screens, and let’s see how it is.

Story:

Solomon, alias Chidambaram (Vamsi Tummala), lives with his mother in a village near Rajahmundry. He works as a construction laborer to make a living. However, due to a squint in his eye, Chidambaram lives with the constant feeling that people pity him. To avoid being mocked for his flaw, he always wears dark glasses.

Leela (Sandhya Vashishta), a girl from the same village, falls for him after seeing his kind heart. But due to a small misunderstanding, Solomon believes that Leela has rejected him. What decision does he take afterward? How does he regain the confidence he lost? How does he win back his love? This forms part of the crux of the story.

Plus Points:

Despite the film marking his debut, Vamsi Tummala exhibited solid confidence in his portrayal as Solomon. He neatly portrays the emotional turmoil of a person with a physical defect. Sandhya Vashishta is pretty good as Leela, and she nailed her dialogue delivery in the Godavari dialect.

The chemistry between the lead pair works well, and the love scenes between them are engaging. The manner in which the heroine’s emotional struggle for the hero is depicted is also touching. A neat and clean love story like this hasn’t been made in recent times.

The message that the film offers is solid. The idea that “If you don’t love yourself, how can you expect others to love you?” has a good chance to connect with today’s youth. The rural setting and the beauty of the Godavari region are captured beautifully on camera. The visuals are pleasant throughout the film.

Minus Points:

The film moves at a very slow pace, and this is the biggest drawback of Sri Chidambaram Garu. The time taken to build emotional depth feels stretched in several moments. The lack of engaging elements is one more major flaw. Though the love track is clean, unlike many recent films, it remains flat for the most part without any major developments.

The second half could have been shortened for a better impact. Since the movie is entirely character-driven, audiences expecting regular commercial or mass elements may find the film less engaging.

Some elements feel overly simple, while a few come across as slightly silly, which diminishes the overall impact. Because of the straightforward narration, the film feels boring in many instances.

Technical Aspects:

Director Vinay Ratnam has chosen a good core idea, and Sri Chidambaram Garu is no doubt a sincere attempt. Editing could have been sharper, especially in the second half, where a few scenes could have been trimmed.

Though the attempt is sincere, the lack of gripping narration holds the film back. The music suits the film well. Cinematography stands out as a major asset, beautifully capturing the rural visuals and landscapes. Production values are decent.

Verdict:

On the whole, Sri Chidambaram Garu is a sincere attempt, but it doesn’t pack a punch. The director presents themes of self-confidence and self-love that are neatly supported by actors’ performances. Though the message that the film conveys is good, the simple storyline and slow pacing may restrict the film’s overall impact. Hence, it falls short of being an impactful outing despite its good intentions.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

Click Here For Telugu Review

February 7, 2026

Review: Shiva Rajkumar’s 45 – Strong Cast, Dull Execution

by 123telugu January 2, 2026

Movie Name : 45

Release Date : Jan 01, 2026
123telugu.com Rating : 2.5/5
Starring : Shiva Rajkumar, Upendra, Raj B. Shetty, Kaustubha Mani, Jisshu Sengupta & Others
Director : Arjun Janya
Producer : M. Ramesh Reddy
Music Director : Arjun Janya
Cinematographer : Satya Hegde
Editor : K. M. Prakash

Related Links : Trailer

Kannada stars Shiva Rajkumar, Upendra, and Raj B. Shetty headline the fantasy action drama 45. Following its Kannada theatrical release in December 2025, the Telugu version has now arrived in cinemas as a New Year special. Here’s how the film fares.

Story:

Vinay (Raj B. Shetty) is a software employee who dreams of being killed in a bike accident after hitting a dog. Soon, parts of the dream begin to turn real. The dog, Rossy, belongs to Rayappa (Upendra), a feared don who treats it like his mother. Holding Vinay responsible for its death, Rayappa brutally attacks him and declares that he will be killed in 45 days. As Vinay starts counting his days, his life slowly falls apart. He loses his job, girlfriend, and friends, leaving him shaken and helpless. At this point, a calm and philanthropic man named Shiva (Shiva Rajkumar) enters his life and tries to guide him. Who Shiva really is, why he wants to help Vinay, and whether Rayappa spares or kills him form the rest of the story.

Plus Points:

It’s a big win for Arjun Janya, music director who made his directing debut, and convincing three stars of Kannada to act in a movie. All the characters are neatly designed.

Raj B Shetty gives a settled performance and he lives the role with audacity. The fear of death and the follow up events are well expressed through his performance.

Upendra turns a baddie for this movie, and his stylish looks and fights work well with his fans. Finally, Shiva Rajkumar, who enters in the second half, delivers a cool performance.

The initial portions are neatly arranged and executed, keeping once invested to see what will go on next. The climax fight where the different forms of god appear and fight with Upendra are well shown and it is the best part to look out in the entire movie.

Minus Points:

The film opens well and the set up makes one feel that something is planned big. But, the momentum slowly disappears and the story moves like a snail with dull scenes that sometimes feel repetitive. If we think that this is only limited to first half, it’s not. The second half, which one thinks that the real game begins, is same until the climax comes in.

It is great convincing three stars to act in a movie but at the same time, the director could have written better character arcs for them. Of course, It is the problem with the story. It is nothing impressive after all few minutes of beginning and the raciness slowly fades away to move at snail pace.

Shiva Rajkumar does his part, but the comedy scenes designed with him doesn’t land well and they feel like fillers that intervene in the seriously driven plot, only to nullify the watching experience. Upendra is okay but all his scenes are like ‘come, fight, give warning and leave’ type. The same style repeated for multiple times and it gives boredom to one watching.

The entire story is to tell the karma concept in a modern form. It is fine to tell so, but the lack of proper emotional support and strong scenes to build the momentum made it an understatement. A better writing and screenplay could have done magic.

No other characters have strong value and even mother’s emotion that became a hook point during interval was left behind after the interval. There are such many disjointed scenes in this movie.

Technical Aspects:

Arjun Janya thought of to present the karmic themes differently but his pale writing and underdeveloped characters limited his ambition. Technically, the movie is rich in money. The makers spend very huge on VFX but, it looks underwhelming on big screen. Climax is something okay not great. Background score done by the director himself is unnecessarily loud and fits only in some portions. Editing by K M Prakash is totally upsetting. It has a lot of room for trimming unnecessary and laggy scenes in both halves and thus the runtime could have been shortened. Production values are just fine.

Verdict:

On the whole, 45 is a mediocre outing despite having an ambitious story to tell. The poor writing and screenplay limited its appeal to viewers. Though the performances of the lead actors are acceptable, the limiting of their characters being better, and unnecessary scenes along with lag, made the fantasy drama feel underwhelming. Except the climax scene, there is no worthy scene to watch out for. It is better to look out for other alternative movies to spend this New Year eve.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

Click Here For Telugu Review

January 2, 2026

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