Autonagar Surya - A tale not told well

by Pranita Jonnalagedda 12:26 0 comments Movie Reviews

Rating: 2.5/5
 
You know that feeling when you are driving to a far off destination and just when you have almost reached, your petrol is up and your bike decides to stop two kilometers away? All you can do then is push your way to the place! What was almost going to be a relief becomes a trouble by the end. And that, readers, is what ‘Autonagar Surya’ reminds us of!

What could have been an interesting journey in the world of the automobile mafia of Autonagar, Vijayawada instead turns into a gory and violent battle filled with threats and murders.

It is a film that will unintentionally remind you of Nagarjuna’s ‘Shiva’ and Naga Chaitanya’s ‘Bejawada’. Set in the backdrop of the pre internet world – the 70s, 80s and 90s – this is a story of Surya (Naga Chaitanya), orphaned in childhood when his parents are killed by a woman trafficker in a speeding train. When his uncle (Sai Kumar) refuses to let him stay with him, he takes shelter at a neighbouring garage and grows up with a kind babai.

But this isn’t just a story about him. It’s a story about a boy whose troubled childhood forces him to fight for rights, to dream big and to make a difference. While his parents are killed in 1973, a few years later in the 1980s, an orphaned Surya helps babai finish work on a dream diesel car – the first of its kind in the country. However, a tussle with the local mafia lands Surya behind the bars. But as luck has it, he finds a generous prisoner (Tanikella Bharani) who notices the spark in him, and ensures he completes a degree, before he leaves prison.

Back in Autonagar, he finds that neither the situations nor the people have changed. This time he has a dream of his own – the construction of a battery car.But just like before, the automobile mafia resurfaces as a stumbling block.  However, Surya, this time around, doesn’t let Indra (Jaya Prakash Reddy) and his menacing brother (Ajay) spoils his game. His biggest enemy, the trafficker who killed his parents, is also at the front end of all this! So does he successfully finish his dream project? Can he help Autonagar get rid of the mafia? The movie answers those questions.

The first weak link in this Deva Katta directorial is the stretch of the film. Even though it runs a general two and a half odd hours, it seems too long due to multiple action blocks and loads of carnage. Next is the screenplay. While elements like comedy and romance aren’t really required, they seem to have been forcibly put in just to impress certain section of the audiences. Even the placements of songs seem to be obligatory and have no connect with the preceding or following scenes.

However, along with the flaws are a bucketful of positives. For instance the period which the film follows has simple properties – telephones, Ambassador Cars, movie posters, radio songs – that convince the viewer of being a part of that era.

The director has an able cast that performs a notch above fine. Naga Chaitanya hardly smiles and is an angry young man all through – a total departure from his previous outing, ‘Manam’. Samantha looks lovely and as usual gives her best. Sai Kumar as the scornful uncle justifies the role. Jaya Prakash Reddy, Ajay and the rest do what is needed of them.

Music by Anup Rubens is strong, especially the background score which adds to the intensity, and strengthens the film.

Overall, ‘Autonagar Surya’ is an interesting tale that could have been narrated better.