Review : Ustaad – Dull and slow

Sri Simha Koduri, who has been entertaining audiences with his different scripts, has now come up with the film Ustaad. Directed by Phanideep, the film has Kavya Kalyanram as the female lead. Ustaad hit the screens today, and let’s see how it is.

Story:

The film is about Surya (Sri Simha Koduri), an aimless youngster. His life takes a complete turn after he purchases his first bike. It is named Ustaad by a mechanic played by Ravindra Vijay. Surya gets emotionally attached to his bike, which stimulates him to become a pilot. Also, he falls in love with Meghana (Kavya Kalyanram). But Surya faces roadblocks in his love life. What are they? How did Surya sort them out? Did Surya achieve his dream? This forms part of the crux of the story.

Plus Points:

Ustaad is a new chapter in the career of Sri Simha as an actor. The actor performed with aplomb throughout the film and flawlessly portrayed a wide variety of emotions involved in his character. He was highly convincing as a hot-blooded teenager. Sri Simha Koduri got his looks right for this particular teenage portions, and this helps us to connect with the character initially.

Though the first half has pacing issues, it has decent moments. The way Surya’s character is shown initially is good. There is this crucial scene where the protagonist’s bike and his childhood memories with his father act as the catalyst agent to evolve as a pilot. This scene has been shot so well and written brilliantly.

Kavya Kalyanram did her part well. Ravi Siva Teja is Tollywood’s new talent to watch out for. The young actor is impeccable with his comedy timing and one-liners. He played the hero’s friend role quite effectively. Anu Hasan is alright in her role.

Minus Points:

The interval block is nicely designed, and one would wish to see how the professional life of the protagonist moulds. But sadly, the second hour doesn’t take off and bores one with a stretched love track. The romantic portions were good initially, but they were dragged heavily in the second half. It would have been better had the professional angle of the lead actor been shown in a detailed manner.

The issues in the relationship are brought quite late. Though the scene involving Sri Simha and the heroine’s father is good, one would lose interest in the film by then due to many unnecessary scenes and a snail-paced narrative. Many scenes test the viewers’ patience in the second hour.

The story doesn’t move forward, and there is a lot of beating around the bush in the second half. The editing team should have chopped off many repetitive scenes. Ravindra Vijay did a good job, but his character lacked enough depth to take things to the next level.

Technical Aspects:

A couple of songs composed by Akeeva B were good on screen. The background score is fine. The cinematography by Pavan Kumar Pappula is neat. The production values are nice. As mentioned earlier, the editing team should have shortened the film’s length.

Coming to the debutant director, Phanideep, he chose a very good point but didn’t succeed in translating the same onto the screen effectively. The idea of making a bike act as a catalyst agent for the protagonist’s dream is fine, but the main issue is with the narrative in the second hour. The first half had some decent moments, but the entire second half is filled with repetitive scenes that damper the film’s soul.

Verdict:

On the whole, Ustaad is a coming-of-age drama that suffers mainly due to narrative issues. There are a few decent moments here and there, but the overall execution is below-par. The stretched love portions, unnecessary scenes, and slow pacing affect the movie considerably. Sri Simha Koduri is good in his role, but the film ends up being a disappointing watch.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.25/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

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