Beeruva: A closet full of gags

January 23, 2015 05:33 pm | Updated 05:33 pm IST

Sundeep Kishan and Surabhi

Sundeep Kishan and Surabhi

If an improbable idea is to be believed, a humble ‘beeruva’ can be a man’s best friend, bailing him out of tricky situations. As a boy, Sundeep Kishan hides inside a cupboard to escape his father’s wrath and through the key hole, spots his father crying for him. Since then, he supposedly shares a rapport with cupboards — he eats, studies and sometimes sleeps inside beeruvas . It’s a pity no one locked him up by mistake. If they had, this film would have had a different story.

Consider this. The hero of the film, Sanju (Sundeep), has an introduction scene showing him step out of a beeruva that’s been shipped to Hyderabad from Vijayawada. The woman who purchased the cupboard for her new duplex apartment is shocked when she opens it to find Sundeep. Instead of suspecting something untoward, she listens to his story.

Directed by Kanmani, Beeruva is about a pesky child who drives his father (Naresh) up the wall. When he grows up, he continues to annoy his dad. Once, when his father is duped in business, he suggests they take help from a political goon (Mukesh Rishi). They go to Vijayawada and seek his help. Mukesh Rishi orders them to stay at his house till their problem is solved. There, Sundeep falls in love with his daughter. Mighty convenient!

A few recent mainstream potboilers have had plots that reduced its antagonists to bumbling idiots, placing them amidst the hero and comedians who assume mistaken identities. In the name of being innovative, Beeruva has the hero and his father at the villain’s den. The narrative plods along with songs and wisecrack lines that deliver the laughs. Yet, there is nothing absorbing till we see the heroine (Surabhi) emerge from the boot of the car in which the hero and his father leave Vijayawada once their work is done.

The film gathers some steam from this point, though the story is predictable. Despite the ominous aura the director tries to give his antagonist, it’s a foregone conclusion that Mukesh Rishi will do no harm and his henchmen are no threat to Sundeep. Their runs-ins with the hero only lead to more slapstick situations.

The laughs keep coming by the dozen through supporting characters. There’s a former thief who is now a cook at Mukesh Rishi’s house, hoping Sundeep will one day be trapped in a similar situation while he can leave for better prospects. There’s Sapthagiri who has fallen in love with the heroine and assumes that she, too, has a soft corner for him. Sundeep is like a livewire, doing his best to carry the film on his shoulders. Saptagiri is good too. But Beeruva is no Venkatadri Express . There’s also a passing reference to that hit comedy. Venkatadri Express was a much better package with an interesting story to boot.

Beeruva will work for those willing to wait patiently for the gags to come.

Beeruva

Cast : Sundeep Kishan, Surabhi and Naresh

Direction : Kanmani

Genre : Comedy

Story line : A ‘beeruva’ becomes handy for the hero to win his girl.

Bottom line : Mindless fun

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.