Sathi Gani Rendu Ekaralu movie review: Low-budget yet high on entertainment

What starts as a sob story quickly moves into the comedy zone, and almost immediately enters into the territory of a thriller

Hyderabad: It’s difficult to bracket ‘Sathi Gani Rendu Ekaralu’ in a single genre. The movie is one of those low-budget yet high on entertainment ones set in a Telangana village with its endearing dialect, so it is safe to call it an entertainer. What starts as a sob story quickly moves into the comedy zone, and almost immediately enters into the territory of a thriller. As the title suggests, the two-acre land owned by the protagonist is the backdrop of, and also central to, the plotline.

The story revolves around Sathi (Jagadeesh Prathap of ‘Pushpa’ fame), an auto-driver and owner of a two-acre farming land, who lives with his wife Andamma (Mohana Sree) and two children. Their infant daughter has a congenital disease and needs Rs 25 lakh for surgery. He doesn’t want to sell the land he acquired from his grandfather, so there’s a sentimental value attached to the land as well.

The hero tries accumulating the required amount bit by bit (shown to us not as tear-jerker episodes but subtly) – by selling his auto, borrowing from his uncle who is the village Sarpanch (Muralidhar Goud), and other means, until he stumbles upon a car accident scene and leaves the place with a briefcase of uncut diamonds. He seeks the help of his friend Anji (Raj Tirandas), whose girlfriend Sangeetha (Aneesha Dama) is the Sarpanch’s daughter. The friends try to sell the diamonds whose real worth they do not know.

Meanwhile, in the city, a businessman of short stature needs the suitcase back and hires a ‘bike rider’ (Vennela Kishore) who reaches the village, burns the car down and destroys the evidence. But, more importantly, his task is to retrieve the diamonds. What happens in the latter part of the story, who gets the diamonds, does the surgery take place – all these need to be watched on screen.

Though the film isn’t really wacky, it has some hilarious moments. Jagadeesh and Raj are good in their roles while Vennela Kishore leaves his mark even in a not-so-well-etched-out character. ‘Bithiri Sathi’ as the SI in the village PS does a good job. Mohana and Aneesha do justice to their roles. On the whole, this Abhinav Danda directorial can be watched once if you are looking for a light-hearted film.