Tagore

TAGORE

Crusade against corruption is the trump card both for the film and for Chiranjeevi, as it fulfils the two objectives of elevating the hero's image and also touching the hearts of people facing this menace. However, the appeal of the film is a bit uneven, mostly because the clandestine activities of the hero stretch well into the second half of the film too. A remake of a Tamil film starring Vijaykanth, the story is penned by Murugudas. Parachuri brothers tried to make the Telugu version as relevant as possible to Telugu viewers. This is the winning pulse of the drama. While the first half is marked by the exposure of brutal corruption in private hospitals with a satirical approach, the latter half shows Tagore's early life. The hospital episode is used to bring the villain of the drama, the hospital owner (played by Shayaji Shinde) into the picture. Shayaji Shinde's (who has given his own dubbing) diction proves counter-productive and distracting, more so when contrasted with the neat pronunciation of Raja Ravindra who plays his son. The storyline is thin. Why Tagore launched this crusade is explained in a flashback. Shinde, a builder then, constructs a complex near a flyover, not heeding his engineer's advice against the decision. Tagore stays in one of the flats with his wife (Jyothika) and child. The flats crumble one day, killing most residents including Tagore's family. He learns how Shinde bribed all and went ahead with the construction. The lecturer now turns a crusader against corruption and attacks Shinde and his men. In retaliation, they attempt to kill him but Tagore is rescued. He then launches an organisation called Anti-Corruption Force taking into its fold his most trustworthy students, working in various government and non-government offices, to collect information about the corrupt and pass it on to him. Tagore kidnaps them and subjects them to punishment. Police fail to discover who the man behind the operations is. But a curious driver of a police car, Suryam (Prakashraj), starts investigation on his own, thinking his discovery might get him a promotion. That is also the time a girl (Shriya) enters Tagore's life as his admirer. The climax is allotted for a tense drama. The film is worth watching especially for the way the crowd scenes are shot. Like in Bharateeyudu, the objective of the theme is to eliminate corruption by physically removing those who perpetuate it. The sequences shot on Chiranjeevi look as if the director and his dialogue writers are consciously building a socially responsible image for the hero. But they are guarded enough never to give political airs. Chiranjeevi too plays his role well. The film is a good technically and is laudable for the efforts put in by the director and his team of technicians.