Biriyani Review
- Cast: Karthi, Hansika, Premji
- Director: Venkat Prabhu
- Music Director: Yuvan Shankar Raja
- Producer: K E Gnanavel Raja
Rating:
Biriyani – Did you observe the extra “i” in between? That’s how
Biryani is spelt and pronounced in Tamil. Likewise the movie too is
flavored completely flavored in Tamil style. Why not, it’s originally a
Tamil film after all. This comedy suspense thriller is directed by
Venkat Prabhu starring Karthi and his favorite Premji.
Sudheer (Karthi) is a street-smart philanderer working for Mahindra tractors. Varadarajulu (Nasser) is an influential industrial who comes to inaugurate a new showroom of Mahindra. After the event, Sudheer and his friend Parasuram (Premji) on the way back home stop at a Biryani dhaba roadside. They both meet an attractive lady (Maya) there and in no time, they become acquaintances. Maya invites them to her hotel room, followed by a seduction song. Sudheer and Parasuram get completely drunk. The next morning Sudheer finds himself in a car on a highway. A news of Varadarujulu missing pops up in the media. Sudheer and Parasuram become the suspects of this missing case, but to their shock, Varadarajulu is found dead in their cars trunk. How Sudheer solves the mystery and proves himself as icconcet is the rest of the story.
The story of Biriyani is predictable at times and unpredictable in some places. However, the proceedings keep you hooked to the seats. Venkat Prabhu packages the thriller with humour which works really well. The style in which even the extremely serious situations are decorated with some witty lines must be appreciated. The mood lightens up whenever there is a risk of movie getting too serious or boring.
What bothers the viewer is the length. The director takes too much time in showing the flamboyance of Sudheer, and an unwanted love track with the heroine, wasting a valuable 40 minutes. The actual story enters the picture very late, and you already half exhausted. Also, many scenes and dialogues are written which appeal specifically to the native Tamil audience but not to a Telugu viewer. The movie also has some trademark sleaziness of Tamil cinema.
Karthi’s performance oozes with confidence. He has the capability to carry the film on his shoulders. Dubbing the Telugu version himself is one of his important strengths. Premji as the sidekick is annoying at times, but evoked lots of laughter in many places. Hansika is restricted to very few scenes. The music is a let-down too.
All in all, this Bir’i’yani can be eaten once, at leisure, at home, on the TV.
