'Rajini' a must-watch for Upendra fans

By R.G. Vijayasarathy, Film: 'Rajini'; Cast: Upendra, Arati Chabria, Mukul Dev, Rangayana Raghu, Sadhu Kokila, Ramesh Bhat and Doddanna; Director: Thriller Manju; Music: Hamsalekha; Rating:***

Upendra has been acting in a number of remakes and "Rajini" too is a remake of Telugu film "Krishna", which starred Ravi Teja and Trisha. But it is a well-made film nevertheless.

"Rajini" has followed the narrative of the Telugu original and has turned out to be a good package of perfectly blended commercial elements. Upendra has a role that suits his body language and dialogue delivery.

Surprisingly, action director-turned-director Thriller Manju has done good work in the film. He has remained faithful to the original film and has focussed on the action sequences. But the comedy scenes still manage to overshadow the action scenes.

Comedy veterans like Rangayana Raghu, Bullet Prakash and Sadhu Kokila rule the roost in "Rajini" with their top class performances. Bollywood actress Arati Chabria adds to the glamour quotient of the film.

The second half of "Rajini" is fast-paced and it turns out to be a racy entertainer.

Music director Hamsalekha has created a sure-shot blockbuster song in "Tiruboki", which has been choreographed well also. Thriller Manju has also ensured a huge spend for the action sequences, which are a treat for Upendra's fans.

"Rajini" is certainly an out-and-out mass entertainer, but the film has its share of mistakes. Too many scenes have just been copy-pasted form the original. In fact Upendra, who is usually brilliant with his dialogue delivery, tries to speak like Ravi Teja at times. The audiences would have liked to hear Upendra's brand of dialogues instead.

The movie revolves around a young, unemployed software engineer Rajini who falls for a beautiful girl Sandhya. The heroine, meanwhile, is being chased by a group of baddies headed by Yekka, who had to face a six-year- jail term due to Sandhya's brother.

Rajini realises that Sandhya's life is in danger and assures her tha he will save her from Yekka's gang. Rajini uses his brains and brawn to fight Yekka and his gang members to finally marry his lover.

Upendra has excelled in the comedy and action sequences. Another brilliant performance comes from Rangayana Raghu, whose confusion-laced dialogues are hilarious.

Bollywood actor Mukul Dev suits the villain's role perfectly. Sharat Lohithashwa is impressive as the heroine's bother. Doddanna, Sadhu Kokila, Ramesh Bhat and Bullet Prakash do provide a few good laughs in the film.

The film is technically superior with good fights and song sequences. "Rajini" is a huge entertainer for Upendra fans.

--IANS