After the huge success of Pokiri, the director Poori Jagannath comes out with a damn squib called Desa Muduru. The film lacks in all departments and doesn’t allow the audience to carry home anything. Despite all the failures, it was Ali show all the way. Bringing Ali episode as comic interludes into the otherwise dull plot is the right thing that the director has done and it is only during Ali’s appearance that the people have little fun.

Overall a bad show from everybody, the film is flat with no ups and downs; it appears Poori Jagannath has not really applied his mind to present this film. The new comer Hansika is good and will definitely find a footing in the Telugu industry. The film starts off very enjoyably and the entire first half looks good because the comedy and the beautiful locales of Kulu Manali. The second half falls down completely and is just hit-and-run story.

The story

Bala Govind (Allu Arjun) is a television channel programme executive. He goes to cover the illegal liquor brewery in Dhoolpet and there lands into trouble when Murugesh (Subbu Raju) is trying to kill Raja Ravindra. Bala, though a rough and tough character, is supporter of good (like any other Telugu film hero), stops the killing and bashes up Murugesh. Murugesh goes into coma because of this.

Murugesh is son of a notorious criminal who rules the Dhoolpet area; he is Ponnusamy (pradeep Rawat). Ponnusamy gang goes out in search of Bala. One wonders why the Tamil angle is given to the villain, especially a villain who rules Dhoolpet of Hyderabad’s old city. There is no justification or explanation in the film. Maybe the director thought it would be ‘different’!

Bala goes to Kulu Manali to escape from the villains. He goes with his camera crew to do a travelogue for his television channel. There he falls in love with the heroine Vaishali (Hansika). She will be a Sanyasini. Why did Poori show the heroine as sanyansini is not again clear. She could have been like any other girl who is living away from the villains. Our Bala bring her out of this sanyasini mode and makes her fall in love. Interesting all through the sanyasini episode we have Kovai Sarala who is also one in the ashram, she does her part very well and keeps the comedy momentum going all through the first half.

Here the so-called story takes a turn. The turn is that the same Ponnusamy gang is also on the look out for this girl and they are planning to make her Murugesh’s wife. So the hero comes from Kulu Manali in search of love to Hyderabad. It is the same gang he understands and overpowers them to get his lover back.

Analysis

Dialogues of Poori are funny, especially that delivered by Ali and Kovai Sarala. In fact these two steals the show and have performed well. Apart from these two actors, the others have given mediocre performance. Hansika the new comer is beautiful and reminds us of Bhumika in few shots. If only she can act a little she would be the next actress to look out for in the Telugu industry.

The film starts of in a interesting fashion where in Uttej goes on interview various people for his Radio show to find out who is the best actor according to public. Various people talks about various heroes and all the heroes’ photos are displayed while the titles are superimposed on them. Though funny and interesting, the titles have no connection with the movie or its plot. It was just for fun (sic).

Shyam… err… Sam K Naidu’s Kulu Manali shots are exotic and lovely, Vijayan fights are usual. Nothing else to mention. Poori has failed to deliver his trademark entertainer.