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‘Balu Gani Talkies’ Review: An Amusing Thriller Too Smart for Its Own Good
Vishwanath Prathap's debut feature film is self-aware and contained, but it also gets ahead of itself in trying to subvert expectations.
Director: Vishwanath Prathap
Writer: Vishwanath Prathap
Cast: Shivakumar Ramachandravarapu, Saranya Sharma, Raghu Kunche, Kethiri Sudhakar Reddy
Language: Telugu
Streaming on: Aha
The young Balraju (Shivakumar Ramachandravarapu) daydreams of one thing and one thing only, and that is to see his ‘Balu 35MM’ theatre run houseful again. Balraju might be drowning in debt; he might be infamous as ‘BF Balu’ who screens soft porn movies, and he might even have an evil, begrudged paternal uncle (and his bumbling henchmen) on the vigil at all times, but the guy just won’t quit yearning for that place. Something about the theatre, which he inherited from his late father, is so special to him that he will forego everything in life except that; and if push comes to shove, he will go to any length to breathe a new life into his dream. Interestingly, that push does come to shove for Balu at one point.
At first glance, Vishwanath Prathap’s debut feature, Balu Gani Talkies, is every bit your classic zero-to-hero story. The writer-director adopts a rustic, endearingly unassuming village in Andhra Pradesh's Rayalaseema region as his setting, and almost every facet of this place feels conducive for a journey that Balu embarks on. The idle life of the village folk, their preferred lack of overambition, their everyday scuffles and romances, and so much more are exemplified by the fact that this is a pre-smartphone era (the film is set sometime in 2010) when social media hadn't yet consumed them all.
The same languid ambiance also lends itself to futile banters in the village, and one such tussle of words infuriates Balu into pledging his theatre to his uncle Chennakeshavalu (Raghu Kunche) in exchange for a hefty sum of money. Balu wants to revamp his single-screen and attract big-ticket films (the first big attraction being the Balakrishna starrer Simha, released in 2010), but being neck-deep in debt means he has no wiggle room nor any margin for error whatsoever. However, right on cue arrives a problem (a murder, if you will) that blows out of proportion so fast that everything he has fought for — from money to love and reputation — comes under the threat of jeopardy.
And this sleight-of-hand move, of gradually turning a slice-of-life comedy into a mystery of sorts, is one of the biggest charms of Balu Gani Talkies. Vishwanath Prathap is both effective and economical with his narrative beats, and does a fine job of springing a small surprise or two at every turn, while still ensuring the humour is retained throughout as an undertone. His tone and treatment feel quite mawkish and loud in parts (the background score is a bit of an annoyance throughout). But the decision to make the seemingly ill-fitted protagonist guide the plot saves the day for him, as the film moves briskly through its 122-minute runtime.
The second half, in particular, has many bright moments that stem from a new lot of characters. That Balu Gani Talkies is a film smarter than it appears is proven by how well it employs its milieu. The cadence with which the characters speak and operate, the harmless politics surrounding them, and the several other small bits of information also add to the overall effect. More importantly, it is refreshing to see an ensemble of lesser-known to fresh faces imparting a sense of authenticity to the storytelling. Balagam (2023) actor Kethiri Sudhakar Reddy, as the old man who is besotted with actor Shakeela and her oeuvre, is delightful in his small part, while Shiva Ramachandravarapu commands good control as the street-smart Balu. Saranya Sharma’s role feels stunted, but the actor, nevertheless, does her best. Vamsi Nakkanti impresses as an unscrupulous cop.
Yet, the desire to subvert our expectations at every given chance gets the better of the writer-director. The climactic twist, though intriguing in its own right, exposes that Prathap was always in pursuit of a knock-out ending that would blow our minds, and not the one that the film actually needed. Sure, the turn-on-its-head reveal contextualises things and brings the story to a full circle. However, in order to get there, the writing goes a tad overboard in throwing up contrivances that are predictable, silly and convenient at once. Consequently, some of the sheen of the impressive film wears off as the end credits roll up.
That said, Balu Gani Talkies is an amusing watch because it is self-aware and contained to a good measure. The film might be bookended by some slack writing, but it works for the majority of its length because of its emotional core and a kind of innocence that we sometimes find lacking in cinema around us. Moreover, it is a film that wants to entertain, and if not for anything else, you might give this a chance for its bouts of inventiveness.