Sankranthiki Vasthunnam is directed by Anil Ravipudi who previous directed slapstick comedies like F2 and F3 and most recently an action drama Bhagavanth Kesari. This is his third collaboration with Venkatesh. The basic premise of the story is it is a rescue mission. Venkatesh plays a suspended cop who goes back to his hometown, gets married and has four children. I did not know a cop can be suspended for 6 years. Anyway, he is called back to lead lead a rescue mission and Meenu, played by Meenakshi Choudhary, goes to him to convince him as they had a relationship in the past. Now happily married to Bhagyam, played by Aishwarya Rajesh, how he deals with his ex-girlfriend showing up at this doorstep and how his possessive and seemingly uneducated wife reacts forms the rest of the story.
You don't expect anything big in a slapstick comedy. While the comedy worked in parts with two to three genuine laugh out loud moments in the first half, nothing stays with you once the movie is over. The insipid writing which is basically a few instagram reels stringed together to generate laughs, forced emotions and sentiments make this a chore to watch. It is almost as if the director had a checklist of things he should include in a "festival film" to get families to theaters. There is comedy, there is sentiment, there is a message, there is emotion, there are fights but nothing feels organic.
Venkatesh excelled in his role as this is nothing new for him. Aishwarya Rajesh did a brilliant job with her expressions and dialogue delivery. The little kid who played Venkatesh's son was hilarious. The LOL moments that I had were because of him. But beyond these three aspects, the movie offers nothing. Not even a coherent story. Pass this one and you wouldn't miss anything.
-YT/@CinephileIndia2023.
