Vishvak Khanderao makes a good debut with Skylab produced and starring Nithya Menen, Satyadev and Rahul Ramakrishna. The film is about the life and times of a poor village near Hyderabad called Bandilingampalli and the quirky inhabitants who live there. The village is basically ordinary and has a certain code. There are many villagers with many desires and dreams but have been crushed by life. And this is where the 3 leads come in.
Anand (Satya) is a doctor from Hyderabad without a license staying with his grandfather (Tanikella Bharani). He wants to make money right away and will not hesitate to cheat the villagers. Ramarao (Rahul Ramakrishna) is a scion of a former rich and respected subeidar family now reduced to penury due to lavish spending. He is desperate to pay off his debts to the villagers and will do anything to save his family. Seeing that they're both in the same boat, Anand and Rama join hands to create a clinic in a forbidden part of the village so that they can earn quick money. Meanwhile Gouri (Nithya Menen) is a conceited unmarried daughter of the richest man in the village who desires to be a writer but is rejected because her writing is the worst thing anyone has seen. She is determined to find her own voice and with the help of her servant Seenu tries to find ideas and stories but is unsuccessful.
Suddenly, shocking news comes along that a NASA space station named Skylab has suffered a malfunction and is crashing down to India and Bandilingampalli is the village will be the most affected. Since the majority of the villagers are uneducated and will believe anything, all hell breaks loose. The 3 leads decide to take advantage of the situation to benefit themselves. But it doesn't turn out the way they want it.
The first half has a lot of comedy, the majority of the characters speak comic lines in a deadpan manner; similar to Wes Anderson movies. But you can't do this all the time, because the majority of the Telugu audience can never understand it and will lose interest. And after some point, the plot and scenes become boring and you wonder, when will they get to the point?
It's after the interval and during the second half where the film really begins to shine. I will not spoil it for you, but the scenes become emotional and real and then you see why this film is special to Telugu cinema and most importantly teaches you about life.
The plot isn't very new and is very predictable throughout. We know exactly what will happen and how it's going to happen. Had they decided to change more of a drama from beginning to end, maybe it would become an art film that would never be seen. The BGM felt really loud and the music while good is not that memorable.
And yet the story and screenplay have the ability to touch your heart and brain without mind numbing scenes. And perhaps this is what matters to audience goers. We just want feel-good cinema which entertains and enlightens us.
I believe the majority of the people in the film are actual villagers, so it is a great hat tip to the parallel cinema of the 70s and 80s led by Shyam Benegal where real villagers acted in them. The actors in the minor roles whether they are Gouri's parents, the little kids, the dumb man, the two elderly men and Ram's sister, mother and grandmother provide good support. Tanikella Bharani still has it and gets a great role and the guy who played Seenu was fantastic. It's another feather in the cap of Rahul as he gets a role with comedy and pathos and Satya shines as the doctor.
However as always, the film belongs to Nithya Menen. She is one of my favorite actors who is an absolute natural on camera. When she gets films like these, she sinks her teeth into them. I can go on about her acting talents for days, months and years together, but it is a great debut for her as a producer. With this film and other films like Awe, Malli Malli Idi Rani Roju, Ala Modalaindi and others, we are seeing an unconventional actress who is completely sure of her choices and has always focused on giving quality cinema and fantastic natural acting to the audiences.
Overall, this predictable but feel-good film will touch your heart and realize that cinema should not just entertain but enlighten. I would advise Vishvak to not succumb to commercial diktats and not overdo the Wes Andersonisms. He should also experiment with OTT, because he would have more freedom to tell his own stories the way he wants without sacrificing quality.
Hats off once more to Nithya Menen for supporting high quality and meaningful cinema! She will be remembered as one of the best actors of her generation.
7.5/10.
