Review: Hanu-Man

Headline: A New Experience!

Plot:

Hanumanthu (Teja Sajja) is destined to be the guardian angel of the ill-fated Anjanadri, who comes under the vice-like grip of an evil genius named Michael (Vinay Rai). If Hanumanthu wants to marry his childhood crush Meenakshi (Amritha Aiyer) and settle down, Michael`s sinister machinations to go against Dharma set him on a higher path. Hanumanthu becomes a superhero in the process.

Performances:

It is commendable of director Prasanth Varma to have cast someone like Teja Sajja for this larger-than-life yet guy-next-door role. Props to the `Zombie Reddy` actor for not overdoing it. He steps into the shoes of a masala hero, complete with turning teary-eyed in a sentimental scene involving his sister (played by an able Varalaxmi Sarathkumar).

Vinay Rai does feel like a regular suited-and-booted hero. He is okayish nevertheless. Vennela Kishore, as a failed scientist who gets an arc of his own, is good. Satya and Getup Srinu are rib-tickling.

Technical Departments:

1. Background Score: Gowra Hari reinvents himself.

2. Songs: The Sri Rama Dhootha Stotram is wow. `Avakaya Anjaneya` is entertaining. It uses the `Sittarala Sirapadu` template from `Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo`.

3. Production Design: Could have been more specific.

4. Cinematography: Semi-perfect.

5. Editing: No complaints.

6. Production values: A remarkable feat that came at a cost of just Rs 25 Cr.

Analysis:

Writer-director Prasanth Varma enters a new zone in trying to establish a homegrown superhero cinematic universe. The next edition of this will be `Jai Hanuman` (2025). The last 25 minutes of `HanuMan` pack a punch. Be it the divinity or the mundane aspects of the hero`s character, everything has been dialed up to eleven. In a positive way.

The first 10 minutes, introducing the villain, is bathed in hues of red. Michael`s childhood episodes show his fetish for superhuman powers. The relevance of a monkey named Koti, who has a funny rivalry with Hanumanthu, is not novel but good. Ravi Teja has dubbed for the character.

Anjanadri comes with a history of suffering from invasive bandits. This could be milked in the second part. Meenakshi is no pushover, as she is someone who is opposed to vested feudal interests.

Merits:

1. An element of mystery is built around Hanumanthu. Even in the love story, the heroine is ignorant about his true identity.

2. The Kusthi fight in the backdrop of the towering Hanuman statue is nice. The build-up to the interval is evocative.

3. The fight during a wedding is a high point.

4. The pre-climax and climax portions are immersive.

5. The attempt to make Teja Sajja a full-blown commercial hero is worthy of appreciation.

6. Using the imagery of Lord Hanuman and blending divine elements with a modern-day spin.

Demerits:

1. The routine scenes involving a goonda-type moneylender could have been avoided.

2. Anjanadri looks like a regular Telugu village where greenery abounds in some scenes.

Rating: 3/5