Allu Arjun's "Iddarammayilatho", which was released on 31 May, has received mixed reviews from film critics.
Before the film could even release, the Allu Arjun starrer had created a lot of buzz among his fans. With the super success of the actor's last film "Julayi", expectations soared higher for "Iddarammayilatho." The film, directed by Puri Jagannadh opened to grand response from movie-goers not just in India, but also overseas.
According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, "Iddarammayilatho" collected $ 88,124 (₹49,85,174.68) during Thursday's (29 May) previews in 50 locations across the United States.
"Telugu film #Iddarammayilatho starts well in USA. Thu previews: $ 88,124 from 50 locations, Adarsh tweeted.
Even though the film had a grand start, it has to be seen if it would be able to sustain in the coming weeks.
"Iddarammayilatho" story is about guitarist Sanju Reddy (Allu Arjun) and the two ladies Akanksha (Catherine Tresa) and Komali Sankarabharanam (Amala Paul). Akansha is the daughter of a powerful politician played by Rao Ramesh, who is facing alleagations for his involvement in a major scam valued at ₹1 lakh crore.
Akansha shifts to Spain to do higher studies in psychology and the first thing she discovers in her new home is a diary that belongs to Komali, an ex-tenant. The diary has details about Komali's love story with Sanju. It is revealed in the diary that Komali is a conservative Brahmin girl who comes to Spain to learn the Fidel under the tutorship of Brahmanandam. She meets Sanju, a street performer and a lead guitarist in a band, and they instantly fall in love with each other.
The love story comes to an abrupt end in the diary and Akansha becomes curious to discover more. She even falls in love with Sanju and proposes to him. Did Sanju accept Akansha's proposal? What happened to Komali? All these are answered in the rest of the film.
Let's see what the critics have to say about "Iddarammayilatho"
Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu says, "Iddarammayilatho is a commercial cocktail that packs in a bit of romance, laughter, mystery, greed and crime. It crawls at a snail's pace in certain portions while it entertains when you least expect it to. A fair amount of mystery sustains the interest till the end."
"Iddarammayilatho is a visual and musical treat that offers nothing new in its storytelling, nevertheless it's entertaining," she further says.
Karthik Pasupulate of The Times of India says, "The arresting nature of the cinematography, smoothness of editing, perkiness of the music, and flamboyantly conceived action sequences are also in synch with the overall style standards."
He adds, "All the panache does add up to make the film look better than it is, well at least until the end of the first half. Minutes into the second half our worst fears begin to come true. Beneath all the gloss is just another big dumb action/romance package that's as unsurprising as they get."
Commending the performances of the lead stars, Indiaglitz says, "Arjun once again proves that he is a good actor and probably because of the action director's meticulous planning, he makes perfect expressions in all the fight scenes. The short 'Gang Leader' remix should have been placed in the first half."
"Amala Paul has been presented well but her role is not meaty. Nevertheless, she shines through an ordinary role. Wither her voluptuous looks Catherine comes across as the girl to watch out for."
Speaking about Ali and Brahmanandam's (comedians) performances, Indiaglitz says, "Brahmi is routine, while Ali was never seen in a dumber role than this in a Puri film before."
Heaping praises on "Iddarammayilatho's" music composer, Girija Narayan of Oneindia says, "Music from Devi Sri Prasad was very refreshing. With the songs placed perfectly. It gave the audience a very happy feel. Chiranjeevi songs was [were] a huge plus. The reaction to the songs were [was] naturally electrifying."
Verdict: Watch it for technical finesse and the performance of the lead stars.
