Jan 29, 20223 min read

Pushpaka Vimanam: The Comedic Aftermath of a Separation

Updated: Feb 26, 2023

Reviews by:

@mr.cinemaaa

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Project Details

Director: Damodara
Written By: Damodara
Produced By: Govardhana Rao Deverakonda, Vijay Mattapally & Pradeep Errabelly
Production House: King of the Hill Entertainment LLP & Tanga Productions LLP
Cinematography: Hestin Jose Joseph
Music/Songs: Ram Miriyala, Sidharth Sadasivuni, Mark K Robin & Amit N Dasani
Background Score: Mark K Robin
Edited By: Raviteja Girijala
Art Direction: Neil Sebastian
Costumes: Bharath Gandhi
Choreography: Raghu & Aata Sandeep
Fights/Stunts: Anji
Run Time: 2 Hours & 22 Minutes
CBFC Rating: "U/A"

Direction & Story

The story is about Sundar, a middle-class Govt. school teacher who marries a girl named Meenakshi & comes to Hyderabad. But one day, Meenakshi elopes with her boyfriend & leaves Sundar in deep depression. Why did Meenakshi run away from Sundar? How will Sundar face the circumstances after facing this kind of humiliating rejection from his wife? Forms the plot. The story by Damodara is pretty decent and has a very funny yet interesting plot point with a good mix of comedy, suspense, and a murder mystery as well. The screenplay in the first half is quite entertaining but it is poorly written in the penultimate climax scenes. Director Damodara has done a passable job with the film. His story idea is good and he also executes the first half well. If the second half & the murder mystery angle at the end were handled in a more convincing manner, the film would have been a super hit.

Lead Performances

Anand Devarakonda surely needs to be appreciated for choosing realistic subjects right from his first film and he once again comes up with a fresh relatable concept. He looks settled in a seemingly complex role and impresses as a middle-class soft-spoken Govt. school teacher. His body language, dialogue delivery, and the way he showed a few subtle emotions suit the character perfectly. He certainly looks like an improved actor with every passing film of his which is good. Saanve Megghana is the best one of the lot for me. She impresses big time with her lively screen presence and gets most of the memorable scenes in the film. She has a very good comedy timing and she is for sure someone to look out for in the future given some good roles. She kills is in the scene with Sunil at the Police station & is also good in the scenes where she acts as Anand's fake wife.

Other Performances

Geeth Saini also has a decent screen presence & has done her role quit convincingly as Anand's wife. She is particularly good in all the emotional scenes. Sunil shines with his trademark comedy as SI Rangam. Harshavardhan bags a meaty role which will surprise everyone towards the end and he comes up with a very believable performance as the music composer. Naresh is dependable as usual as the headmaster. Kireeti is also good in his role and evoked decent laughs in the scene where the faculty comes home. Saranya is fine as the heroine's friend. Harsha Chemudu is limited to a very short role. Bhadram is funny as the travel agent. Sudharshan, Meena Vasu, Abhijeeth Poondlam, CVL Narasimha Rao, Shaking Seshu and others are fine in their limited supporting roles. Varsha Bollamma is neat in her surprise cameo towards the end.

Detailed Analysis

The entire first half relies on the hero's interaction with various characters in his world. It generates decent fun and the situational comedy works well. With the entry of Sunil, the fun builds up and one will be excited to know what happened to the hero's wife. The second half is a bit boring at places. As the crime angle gets unfolded, the suspense should have been wrapped up in a racy manner, but it gets dragged on unnecessarily. The thriller element lacked proper execution and the climax twist isn't convincing at all. But the second half also has a couple of hilarious scenes. Saanve's scene where she shows her acting skills in front of Sunil is super funny & the scene where Sunil comes to check Naresh's home is hilarious. The main conflict point is not so strong & the murder investigation is a bit over the top. Another major minus is that it lacks proper clarity of all the sub-plots.

Technical Team