NAANU NANNA KANASU - Kannada folm review

DIRECTOR: Prakash Rai

ACTORS: Prakash Rai, Amoolya, Sitara, Achyut Kumar, Rajesh, Ramesh Aravind

This kannada film marks Prakash Rai’s debut as a director. Naanu Nanna Kanasu had created expectations also for the reason that it was the remake of the acclaimed Tamil film Abhiyum Naanum. The neatly made kannada film explores the bond between a father and his only child, his daughter. However, any self-respecting television soap director would mourn the loss of a storyline that could have been told in 250 episodes.

Story of the film: Raj Uthappa’s (Prakash Rai) life revolves around his daughter. His love for her sometimes transcends reason like when he gets a beggar to become part of the family on her insistence. As she grows up, the film marks the changes the father undergoes and how he is made to realise the many natural turns of life.

But he still cannot digest the fact that his daughter selects a sardar for a husband and confides in her mother first about it instead of him. There is no unnecessary drama or ‘commercial elements’ and the film is a pleasant watch.

However, the film lacks intensity throughout. There are no bad scenes, only a few brilliant ones. Achyut emerges as the best actor among the lot even surpassing Prakash Rai. The latter seems to be burdened by the additional responsibility of direction. He is good but not as much as he was in the original. Amoolya does her part as finely as possible for her. But she does not add value to the film. The same is the case with kannada music director Hamsalekha. His lyrics(download songs and lyrics here) and music are complementary to the film but don’t make it better.

Kanada film Laali, by Dinesh Baboo, was one film that explored the bond between a father and daughter. So, Naanu Nanna Kanasu is not a new subject for Sandalwood. Between the two, Laali is better. This film will entertain those bred on television soaps and make them realise that a story can be told in 150 minutes instead of years.