Manmohan’s Budugu (2015) Movie Review

Movie Review: Budugu
Star Cast: Manchu Lakshmi, Sriram Rao, Indraja, Master Prem Babu, Baby Dolly
Music Director: Sai Karthik
Director: Manmohan
Certificate: A
Runtime: 124 Minutes

Vamsi Krishna (Prem Babu) is being the key character suffers from ADHD and therefore suffers miserably at school life. Due to his lack of performance in class and deviltry issues, he is constantly nagged by his parents. His studding mother Pooja (Lakshmi Manchu) spends time over his betterment but couldn’t comply with the difficulties of coping with a ADHD child since she has no clue what Vamsi Krishna was going through.  One fine day, parents decide to send him to boarding, thinking this to be the only viable option available for his improvement. And that’s where Bunny starts getting abnormal and starts getting connected to Diya. Who is Diya? Why did Parents consult a Psychiatrist Geetha (Indraja)? What happens next forms the rest of the story line.

Child Artist Prem Babu and Dolly are very good. Their expressions, body language, eyes – are near to perfection. Lakshmi Manchu as Mother has done a very controlled and convincing job. Sridhar Rao doesn’t over expose his character and thereby remains faithful to the story in hand.  Indraja as a psychiatrist did a fine job.  Rest of the characters supported the lead cast.

The story is usual but not unknown. The message that the story tries to convey is already known to us, but most of us remain ignorant to it. Manmohan’s storyline is conventional – the story involves typical parents, who see their own extension in their son and hence, desire to full fill their won ambitions through him.  Budugu clearly lacks soul to be a psychological thriller – pseudo horror film. The movie lies on a wafer thin and totally defensive storyline that is weakly narrated. A very important aspect of such films is in fact the characterization and Budugu falls short here too. A back story that explains the circumstances by which the part acquires thoughts and motivation for attention seeking kind is dire. So is the portrayal of the characters, the disorder and the backlash of the both the good and the bad is not defined. Another reason why the movie fails to grab our attention is the lack of association and continuity between the two stories.  Director Manmohan must be appreciated for the concept and the way he tried message parents must applauded. But he could have worked a bit on the narrative style, scripting and concluding the things in end. Music by Sai Karthik has given some good mix of tunes that support the style of the film. Cinematographer Suresh Ragutu has done a decent job. Editor Shyam could have applied his scissors more precipitously. Production Values of “Hyderabad Film Innovatives Pvt. Limited” are alright.

It’s always hard to adapt a real story of a different sensibility into our own and make it appear as a convincing art work. The director Manmohan, brings some sensible sequences in the first, but ends up being loud, boring. It’s surprising to see how a sensible start up and message oriented film could go so wrong by the end. The director could have taken a linear approach for storytelling which could have been a smart work had it not been interspersed with unbearable long drawn sequences. Never for once in the film does any thrill make you aghast or appalled. All in all, Budugu is a good concept gone bad. The film could’ve worked well if the execution of it may have been better.

Survi Review: 1.5/5

Theatrical Trailer: