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A small-budget film named Narayana & Co starring Sudhakar Komakula, Amani, Devi Prasad, Arati Podi, Yamini B, and Pooja Kiran in the lead roles has hit the screens today. Chinna Papisetty directed it, and let’s see how it is.

 

Story:

 

A middle class family headed by Narayana (Devi Prasad) is in desperate need of money. Narayana has two sons Anand (Sudhakar) and Subhash (Jai Krishna). Anand looses lakhs of money in cricket betting, while a blackmailer demands 10 lakhs from Subhash by saying that he has the latter’s private video. Narayana commits a mistake at his work which forces him to pay a lumpsum. With no other option left, Narayana along with his family decides to do an illegal deal. What happens next forms the crux of the story.

 

Plus Points:

 

Though nothing much happens in the first half plot-wise, the entertainment quotient keeps the film moving. A few comedy scenes are neat, making the first half watchable. Though things go over the top at times, the first hour is still bearable for its decent humor. The character establishments are neatly done.

Seasoned actors Devi Prasad and Amani play to the gallery and their antics evoked laughs here and there. Young actor Sudhakar is pretty good in his role. He exudes confidence in his act and gave a sincere performance.

Jai Krishna lends a nice support to Sudhakar with his one-liners. Pooja Kiran’s tomboyish role is effective and the actress did a neat job. Shivakumar Ramachandravarapu and Yamini are okay in their respective roles.

 

Minus Points:

 

The story has a striking resemblance to Allari Naresh’s Blade Babji and also the way things are set up also look identical. The fun element in the first half didn’t continue in the second half and things start becoming much boring here. Ali Reza’s character is not written well.

The songs could have been totally avoided as they come as speed breakers affecting the flow. Also, their placement was quite bad and they do not add any value to the story. The pacing gets a tad slow in the second half. Arati Podi who played the main female lead doesn’t have much to do in the movie.

The makers tried to create humor through meme and movie references. Though it works initially, the overdose of the same causes irritation after a point in time. The entire second half was streched for no reason and the proceedings fall flat here. At times it appeared as if the makers tried too hard to generate fun.

 

Technical Aspects:

 

Though the songs composed by Dr. Josyabhatala Sharma, Naga Vamshi, and Suresh Bobbili are good, they weren’t necessary to the story. Rahul Shrivasthav’s cinematography is fine. The editing needed some heavy corrections as the whole second half is stretched unnecessarily. The production values are good.

Coming to the director, Chinna Papisetty, he handled the first half in a decent manner, but he lost grip on the entire second half. The graph comes down heavily once the second hour starts and the movie never recovers post the half-way mark.

 

Verdict:

 

On the whole, Narayana & Co is a routine comedy-drama that offers a few laughs. Sudhakar and other artists did a decent job, and the film’s first half was watchable. But the proceedings in the second half are quite boring, and the movie is dragged for no reason. Except for a few fun portions, there is nothing great that has been showcased here.

 

123telugu.com Rating: 2.5/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

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