Eenadu - Flawless execution

Starring: Kamal Haasan, Venkatesh, Ganesh Venkatraman. Lakshmi and others

Director: Chakri tholeti

Music: Sruthi Haasan

Release date: 18 September 2009

The film Eenadu is a remake of the Hindi film A Wednesday. The director has taken enough care to make the Telugu version authentic by shooting a major part in and around Hyderabad. The film is about the menace of terrorism and how the dreaded terrorists are walking away scot-free after committing heinous crimes against the citizens and the country.

Story:

Kamal Haasan is portrayed as a dreaded terrorist who is now on a mission to secure the release of four dreaded terrorists lodged in various prisons in the state. They are the key accused in the bomb blasts at Lumbini park, Gokul chat etc. For this, he plants bombs in malls, cinema hall, moving train etc.

Kamal Haasan then calls up the city police commissioner Eashwar Prasad (Venkatesh) and tells him that he has planted bombs and they will explode at 6.00 p.m. He wants the four dreaded terrorists to be released otherwise the bombs will be exploded.

The police commissioner gets full powers to negotiate with Kamal Haasan from the CM and chief secretary (Lakshmi). When the police commissioner wants to know if Kamal is serious about his threat and wants proof, Kamal Haasan tells him about the bomb he planted in the Lakdi-ka-pul police station. It is about to explode but is defused with the help of instructions from Kamal.

The police commissioner is now convinced about the seriousness of Kamal’s threat. He now acts according to the instructions given by Kamal Haasan. He is ably assited in his operation by toe of his trusted aides. The four terrorists are released from jail and taken to the Begumpet airport as instructed by Kamal. What happens next? Will the terrorists walk away as free birds? Will the bombs planted at various places explode or are they defused in time? All this is the suspense element that must be watched on the screen.  

Performance:

The film runs on Kamal Haasan for most part. He does not move around much but sits all the time at his hideout on top of a under construction building. He keeps talking over the phone but gives a decent performance. The way Kamal talks, his subtle facial expressions, body language etc. make the film interesting.

Venkatesh as the police commissioner Eashwar Prasad gets to share more screen presence. He is very dignified and impressive but as he is confined to just talking to Kamal all the time and obeying his diktats, he does not get much of a chance to prove his histrionics.

Lakhsmi plays the role of chief secretary and is okay. Ganesh Ramanathan, who played the role of an economist and Trisha’s boyfriend in Aakasamantha plays the roe of a powerful undercover cop and he excels in his role. Poonam Kaur looks gorgeous in her short and sweet role as the wife of the police officer Bharat Reddy. The rest of the star cast gives able support.

Music by Shruthi Haasan is quite impressive and adds to the overall impact of the film. Chakri Tholeti makes his debut as a director with this film and he has done a flawless job. Dialogues are also good and the cinematography is rich and impressive. The entire film has been shot using a RED camera.

Eenadu is a film that shows the present reality in the country. The film moves at an even pace and the gripping story and screenplay and the flawless execution make the film a compelling watch. Comparisons with ‘AWednesday’ are inevitable but if you have not watched the Hindi film, then Eenadu are definitely worth a watch.