Boy meets girl in an airport and it's love at first sight. He has just two hours to woo her. One may think this is implausible but director Chandrasekhar Yeleti makes it possible in the Telugu movie Prayanam.
The journey the boy traverses in making the girl fall in love in a nutshell forms the story of the film. In a sense, it's the journey of life too for both of then.
Dhruv (Manoj), a MBA graduate, lands in Malaysia with his two friends on a holiday enroute to Singapore. He runs into Harika (Payal Ghosh who is rechristened as Harika) at the airport while he's trying to win a bet with his friend as he's trying to blow a feather without it falling down. He is smitten by her and then decides to strike a friendship with her. He overhears her talking -- that she has to meet a prospective groom in Hyderabad and decide about marriage. Realising that he has just over two hours to court her (as her flight to Hyderabad is delayed) he tries various ways and means, hatching plans with the help of his friends. Harika initially is polite and later gets irritated at the sight of him. She even says she hates him. Does hate at first sight lead to love at second sight?
Chandrasekhar Yeleti works on a thin premise but builds up the story pretty well. There are moments of humour, despair, frustration woven into the narrative. The story may seem run-of-the mill in terms of a love story but he infuses some interest by setting it against a single backdrop -- namely the Malaysia International Airport, Kuala Lumpur, by having songs in the background (thankfully there are no running around trees), and a slightly different approach towards romance.
There are moments when the pace does slacken but it picks up eventually. Known for his slightly different and hatke approach to cinema, Chandrasekhar Yeleti comes up with a commercial venture in a slightly refreshing vein. The character of Brahmanandam, albeit distracting at times, is humourous particularly in the scenes where he's caught by the airport authorities and when he is chased by the African gentleman.
Even though Yeleti has set more than 90 per cent of the film in one location, there is no suffocation. Credit must be given to the director and the cinematographer Sarvesh Murari for doing a fine job of shooting the film well. The music is quite in sync with the film
Manoj displays enough joie de vivre and does a good job as a jumping Jack bumping into the heroine consciously. He shows the right attitude as the youngster in love -- shades of joy, desperation, the slight humour et all. The boys' trio bond well and look like GEN-X.
Given a good director, Manoj has the potential to blossom into a good actor. Harika performs to the stipulations of the character. She is a new face and may need some time to grow as an actor. The others who act as friends do a good job.
Chandrasekhar has switched genres with Prayanam and comes up with a love story which on the surface seems unbelievable, but is fully watchable and enjoyable. Go, undertake the journey without questioning it!
Rediff Rating: 
