First thing first; Upendra gives a very effective and extraordinary performance in the film Anaatharu, a remake of Pithaamagan. All those who have seen the original were curious about only one thing, whether Upendra will match the national award winning performance of Vikram or not. And the answer? Yes, he does.
Upendra has given a fitting reply to all those who have till now dismissed him as an ordinary actor with brilliant writing and directorial skill. Without doubt, we can now say he has scaled new heights as an actor in a role in which he does not utter a single word.
Anaatharu may well go down as a film that is completely dominated by Upendra's performance, overshadowing every other aspect in the film.
Comparisons with the original are inevitable. Anaatharu may not disappoint the viewers but will not have the kind of impact Pithamagan had. The original had several other attractive features than the award winning performance from Vikram. The raw realistic narration of Bala was a major plus point of Pitamagan, so also the lively performances of Surya, Laila, and the touching portrayal of Sangeetha. Every character in the original looked real and natural.
In a way Upendra and cameraman Krishna Kumar have succeeded in making Anaatharu enjoyable and saved it from being called an ordinary fare.
Sadhu Kokila, the director has taken care to choose the right locations. The graveyard sequences have been shot well and the lighting pattern adopted by Krishna Kumar is definitely the highlight of the film.The fight sequences are sure to please and dialogues, penned by Ranganath are effective. Though the background score is a lot like the original, the musical score could have been better.
The producer Munirathna and the director Sadhu Kokila have taken a calculated risk in making a violent and highly emotional film like Anaatharu when soft musical love stories have become the trend. They should be applauded for the effort.
Darshan, a trained actor who has given fine performances in many films is several notches below Surya, who was simply adorable in Tamil. Similarly, Laila is miles ahead of Radhika. Sanghavi passes muster in her role. Mohanan, the villain had acted in the original has been retained in Kannada also.
If you have not seen Pithamagan, Anaatharu is definitely worth watching especially for Upendra and the efforts of Sadhu's technical team.
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