Nagarjuna’s matches up to the expectations of his fans with his devotional ‘Om Namo Venkatesaya’ which hit the theatres on Friday. Nagarjuna delivers an amazing performance and is in his usual self in the devotional. Nagarjuna’s role is similar to his earlier roles in devotional movies like ‘Ramadasu’ and ‘Annamayya’.
Though the female leads, Anushka and Pragya don’t have much to do in the film in terms of acting, but their roles are significant in the plotline.
Jagapathi Babu appears in a surprise cameo role to the delight of the viewers. Right from his childhood days, Ram(Nagarjuna) takes upon a journey to make contact with the eternal powers of the god. He joins the ashram of Padmananda Swamy(Sai Kumar) in Tirumala and gets enlightened about Lord Venkateswara and his spiritual powers. To seek more divinity, he reaches the main temple in Tirumala and starts praying for the lord.
God answers his prayers as lord Venkateswara himself appears before him and acknowledges his sincerity. During the same time, there are many other criminal factors that Ram needs to face in the temple town.
Probably, this is one of Nag’s best performances to date and the way he plays the emotional devotee of Lord Venkateswara will mesmerize you completely. Be it his longing to meet the lord to his facial expressions, Nag takes you on an emotional journey. The way he performs during the climax is just spell binding.
Being a master filmmaker, Raghavendra Rao unveils the story of Hathi Ram Baba in a way that is very commercial and easily understood to all. The film is filled with superb visuals and Raghavendra Rao takes the film to another level.
The film is super rich on the visual side. A special mention should go to the special effects team for showcasing Tirumala and the surrounding areas in top notch mode. Camera work is astonishing and brings a divine light to the film. Keeravani’s music and background score are supremely impressive and elevate the film completely.
When devotional films are considered to be a huge risk in today’s day and age, Nagarjuna and Raghavendra Rao take us on an emotional story of an ardent devotee in a simple yet entertaining manner.
Director : K. Raghavendra Rao
Producer : A. Mahesh Reddy
Music Director : M. M. Keeravani
Starring : Nagarjuna , Anushka , Pragya Jaiswal
Rating: 3.5/5
