Sree Vishnu returns with Comrade Kalyan, a new film featuring an interesting title and a unique backdrop. But does the latest release deliver solid entertainment and give the actor another hit?
Young hero Sree Vishnu holds the tag of the king of entertainment. He previously ruled as the king of content. He recently shifted his focus to pure entertainment. He plays the lead role in his latest film Comrade Kalyan. Janakeeram Marella directs this movie. Kona Venkat presents the film. Venkatakrishna Karnati and Seetha Karnati produce it under Skanda Vahana Motion Pictures and Kona Film Corporation banners. Mahima Nambiar plays the heroine. Radhika Sarathkumar, Shine Tom Chacko, Upendra Limaye, Satya, Sudarshan, Vennela Kishore, Srikanth Iyengar, Sai Chand, and Shatru play key roles. The movie hit the screens today, Friday, October 9. Does the film work? Does Sree Vishnu make us laugh? Does comedy suit a Naxal backdrop? Let us dive into the review.
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Comrade Kalyan movie story
The story happens in a village on the Andhra-Orissa border. Naxal influence remains strong here. Kalyan (Sree Vishnu) runs Alankar Theatre in this village. He mostly screens R. Narayana Murthy movies. Kalyan commits small frauds to keep the theatre running. The police often arrest his mother (Radhika Sarathkumar) for her mischievous acts. She develops a breathing problem while returning home from the police station. Sitara (Mahima Nambiar) passes by and saves her. Kalyan instantly falls for Sitara. Sitara and her family come from Orissa and they do not speak Telugu. Kalyan supports her. Soon, a dark secret about Sitara's family comes out. They actually borrowed money from a Seth (Upendra Limaye) and ran away from their town. The Seth publicly insults Sitara's family. He threatens to marry Sitara using a bond paper. Kalyan steps in and challenges the Seth. He promises to clear their debt to save the girl's family. Kalyan joins a scheme for money and turns into a Naxal. What is this scheme? Does Kalyan return for his love? Does he permanently join the Naxals? How does a love story mix with a Naxal plot? The rest of the movie answers these questions.
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How is the Comrade Kalyan movie?
The makers mix fun and entertainment into a Naxal backdrop. They rely heavily on humour to drive the story. They also add a small social message. The film exposes the frauds committed by the police in the name of Naxals. The movie opens with R. Narayana Murthy's Erra Sainyam. The hero uses that revolutionary vibe to pull crowds to his theatre. The opening song looks fantastic and gives you goosebumps. Sree Vishnu quickly shifts to his comedy track. Sudarshan joins him soon. These two actors impress everyone with their innocent antics.
Kalyan falls for the heroine after she helps his mother. The language barrier creates funny situations since her family speaks Odia. The hero delivers hilarious dialogues during these scenes. The story moves smoothly as he chases her, learns about her troubles, and promises to arrange money to stop the Seth from marrying her. Satya enters the scene and makes things even funnier. The plot gets interesting when the hero joins a Naxalite scheme for the heroine. He ends up leaving with the Naxals. The real story begins here and builds good suspense.
The second half focuses on the hero trying to prove he is not a Naxal. Sree Vishnu and Satya get stuck between the Naxals and the police. They try to manage both sides. This creates some suspense and a lot of comedy. Satya's comedy works really well here. The duo does silly things in the forest while the Naxals do their serious work. This contrast generates good laughs. The climax turns thrilling. The director gives a good message to both the Naxals and the police. However, the first half feels a bit slow. The second half carries the same slow feeling. The main comedy track does not fully work. It feels forced in many places. The comedy by Satya, Sudarshan, and Sree Vishnu clicks only in a few episodes. Upendra and Vennela Kishore play hilarious characters, but they do not generate enough laughs.
A lot of the comedy feels forced. Taking a Naxal backdrop and turning it into a comedy does not connect well. It feels like a wrong choice. The drama looks okay but gives a routine feeling most of the time. If you ignore these flaws, the movie gives a good message. It creates awareness about fake Naxal encounters and frauds. You can watch this movie for some casual laughs despite its minus points.
Sree Vishnu rocks in the role of Kalyan. He impresses everyone with his trademark acting style. The story stays serious as his character gets crushed between the police and the Naxals. Sree Vishnu creates a riot with his performance. However, fans did not expect this kind of movie from him. Mahima Nambiar performs very well as Sitara. Radhika Sarathkumar steals the show as Kalyan's mother. She completely nails the role. Sudarshan and Satya excel as Sree Vishnu's friends. Satya's comedy does not work as expected, but his jokes land perfectly in a few scenes. Shine Tom Chacko impresses as the police officer. Brahmaji also does well in his police role. Sai Chand and Shatru look decent as Naxals. Upendra tries to make people laugh as the moneylender Seth. The rest of the cast does an okay job.
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How is Comrade Kalyan technically?
Vijay Bulganin gives good music. The songs sound catchy. The background score acts as a big plus point. Sai Sriram provides visually pleasing camera work. Chota K Prasad should have worked harder on the editing. He could have trimmed some parts. Kona Venkat and Venkatakrishna Karnati maintain high production values. Director Janakeeram Marella picks a fresh backdrop. The Naxal movement is a serious subject. Adding fun to it is definitely a bold move. He does not succeed completely, but he tries his best to impress the audience. He attempts to balance both elements. He should have focused more on generating organic fun. Still, he manages to entertain for the most part. The movie would have been a blockbuster if the comedy was more gripping.
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Final Verdict
Comrade Kalyan offers some casual laughs. You can enjoy the movie if you watch it without any high expectations.
