115. Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnu Katha; movie review

 

VINARO BHAGYAMU VISHNU KATHA

Cert 12A

138 mins

BBFC advice: Contains moderate violence

Why are the first halves of so many Indian movies wasted with boring padding?

Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnu Katha has a thrilling last hour with mind-boggling twists and a shocking finale.

But Mrs W. had already given up, having literally fallen asleep during the opening half which introduced an apparently too-good-to-be-true hero and a limp romance.

We caught up with Murali Kishor Abburu's movie on the streaming service Aha after its very brief run at UK cinemas.

Its lead is Kiran Abbavaram whose character Vishnu suffers great tragedy as a child but, as an adult, has the mantra of helping others whatever their needs.

He has also alighted upon the concept of phone-number neighbours after he is contacted by a young woman (Kashmira Pardeshi).

Darshana is an aspiring YouTuber, her mobile number is adjacent to his and she asks to meet.

Meanwhile, she also calls her other number-neighbour (Murali Sharma) and the three become friends.

It's all rather twee but the story is being told to an arch criminal (Sharath Lohithaswa) and we are aware of the Indian authorities attempting to intercept a package from a potential Pakistani terrorist.

And this gives the clue that the film will burst into life after the intermission.

Sure enough, action, betrayal and murder ar three of the elements in a plot which serves in surprising directions.

Abbavaram is an encouragingly youthful leading man and shows he is fulfilling his previous promise in Abburu's film - both with his acting and dancing.

There are also some strong tunes during Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnu Katha.

It all adds up to a movie with a scintillating finale for those who get that far.

Reasons to watch: Intriguing and surprising thriller

Reasons to avoid: Its slow opening hour

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 7/10

Did you know? After pursuing a Bachelor of Technology, Kiran Abbavaram worked as a network consultant in a software firm in Bengaluru for three years.

The final word. Kiran Abbavaram: "Vishnu believes that you don’t need to go to the borders to do good for the country; you just need to pick up the litter and dump it into the dustbin. All you need is some civic sense, you don’t have to go that extra mile to do good. But you can do a lot of stuff within your limits." South First

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