Mama Mascheendra Review – A Story Lost in Execution
Cast: Sudheer Babu, Eesha Rebba, Mirnalini Ravi, Harsha Vardhan, Ali Reza, Rajeev Kanakala, Hari Teja, Ajay
Director: Harsha Vardhan
Producers: Suniel Narang, Puskur Ram Mohan Rao
Music Director: Chaitan Bharadwaj
Rating: 2.5
Mama Mascheendra is the name of the film, which is apparently inspired by the popular AR Rehman song Maya Mascheendra – and that hardly explains anything, let alone the complicated plot that falls short of on-screen execution of an otherwise engaging story, writes Rajeshwari Kalyanam
Harsha Vardhan – the writer and actor has also wielded the megaphone this time for his ambitious project – in addition to writing the story; he does write an engaging one. The film starts with the Right-Hand Man Guna writing the biography of his boss whom he idolizes so much that he even dresses like him. And, the boss – who is much ruthless in his approach to becoming rich is Parasuram – who has a back story to his becoming so villainous.
Nitro Star Sudheer Babu plays Parasuram, who in a bid to reclaim his parents’ property from his uncle ends up taking over the entire property ends up trying to kill his cousin. He has already killed his abusive father and stepmother. His uncle’s son aka the cousin – lives away from home as he is thrown out for marrying someone (this someone is in fact Parasuram’s visually impaired step-sister, which doesn’t deter his murderous intentions), has twin sons, and is more or less uninterested in the property. But that doesn’t dissuade Parasuram who has no compassion for anyone except for his daughter. He is unsuccessful in his murder attempt though and so, just in case the sons come back for property or to take revenge – he exchanges his daughter with Guna’s daughter in the cradle in the Ala Vaikunthapuram style.
His logic is if someone comes to kill his daughter – it wouldn’t be his daughter after all. And the complications only begin. For Parasuram it gets complicated when he comes across the love stories of his daughter – Viral Visalakshmi (the vain aspiring social media star) and Meenakshi – who he thinks is his real daughter growing up with Guna (Well, he is yet to know that Guna did his share of daughter swapping too, for exactly the same reason that he had done it and in the process the daughters are indeed in their respective homes nullifying Parasuram’s original plan). Senior Sudheer Babu discovers to his dismay that both the girls are in love with the twins, who he realises are his cousin’s children. And he wonders if it is a part of their revenge plan.
Writer Harsh Vardhan has written a story with ample plot twists, emotions, and even action in place, and has Sudheer Babu in three diverse roles – kudos to him for the commitment with which he enacted all the roles – of the devious Parasuram, the fit and happening DJ and oversized lover boy cum gangster Durga. After going through the plot one can say that this movie’s undoing is its elaborate story panning the two generations, a whole bunch of badly crafted scenes including a few forcefully introduced comedy tracks.
The film has Harsha Vardhan playing the loyal Guna who also in a way sets the story rolling as he pens down – Parasuramayanam. The two daughters are Eesha Rebba and Mirnalini Ravi and then ofcourse there is Sudheer Babu, Sudheer Babu & yet another Sudheer Babu – or is there??
The cast also includes Ali Reza and Rajeev Kanakala.
Over all this film warrants a watch for the effort, and the second half offers some unexpected twists in the story.
Mama Mascheendra OTT release details are awaited.
