The Telugu film Rangabali, directed by Pawan Basamsetty, comes across as a bunch of random ideas strung together with a sliver of a story. The film aims to celebrate unabashed hero worship in a templated mainstream Telugu cinema. The protagonist Shaurya (Naga Shaurya) — nicknamed Show and Nani — likes to be the centre of attention, with his childhood friends (Satya and Rajkumar Kasireddy) by his side. Shaurya falls in love, there’s a conflict point and a backstory that shakes up the identity of a place in his hometown Ramavaram. However, all the ideas that contribute to this storyline are at the superficial level with the assumption that anything will work in the garb of humour and mass masala.
The film tries to depict Shaurya aka Show aka Nani as a mass hero who calls the shots since childhood. He has a fetish for white shirts, wearing one of which he can easily overpower his opponents. Early on, he shines in white amid a sea of black and red shirts in an action sequence.
Rangabali (Telugu)
Rangabali resorts to the familiar trope of contrasting this aimless protagonist with his sincere, hardworking father (Goparaju Ramana stoically proving his worth once again) who owns a medical store. The father issues an ultimatum to the son and sends him to Vizag to complete a course. The rapport between the concerned father and the brat of a son is established well. However, Shaurya soon returns home with a new agenda.
The bone of contention is Rangabali Centre (a fictitious space with a background story and reference to the blockbusters Rangasthalam and Baahubali). When Shaurya, who believes that his strength and identity come from his hometown, has to change the identity of Rangabali Centre, it has the potential to be a personal coming-of-age story as well as trigger a change in people’s psyche. But Rangabali fails on both counts.
The initial portions are written and filmed like a wannabe mass film from the viewpoint of a small-town guy who fashions himself as a hero. There isn’t enough to root for the character, but there are moments of occasional humour thanks to the friends, played by Satya and Rajkumar. Satya is gleeful when others are in trouble and he does bring the house down a few times with his comic timing. The writing never leverages the opportunity for solid fun.
Shaurya’s romance with Sahaja (Yukti Thareja) and the ensuing conflict catalysed by her father (Murali Sharma) steers the film into the mass zone of politics and identity. Soon, multiple characters appear and disappear at will. Tom Chacko, Sarath Kumar, Sapthagiri and even lyricist Anantha Sriram are cast in parts that seem caricaturish. Naga Shaurya’s screen presence isn’t enough to salvage the film.
In a futile attempt to redeem the narrative, Rangabali puts forth a message-heavy climax to talk about the importance of keeping our eyes and ears open to good things as opposed to consuming sensational news.
In hindsight, the promotional spoof interviews wherein Satya mimics a few media personalities seemed far more innovative and fun than this entire film.
