Review: Amaravathi is not for the faint-hearted

Actor/director Ravi Babu seems to have a penchant for thrillers considering his previous directorial venture Anasuya was also one.

His latest Telugu film Amaravathi is also of the same genre though in the first half the effort is to make it more of a horror film than a thriller.

Ravi ensures super slick films shot well with a good background score (considering this is crucial in thrillers) and some difficult-to-find locations.

Well this seems to have become his signature move now. He also makes it a point to act as some character or the other in the film. In Amaravathi he is Agent Venkat of the police's Special Task Force (STF).

The story of Amaravathi actually begins post-interval. The first half sets the pace for the build-up of the story. The opening, set in Muthyalarevu (place of pearls), shows Amaravathi and Seenu as close childhood friends. Amaravathi's father doesn't like her closeness to Seenu and therefore finishes him off. The next few minutes seem rather unconnected. In fact the sequence of events seem rather bizarre to the viewer.

Babies are taken away from the womb in very crude ways from a series of women in their final stages of pregnancy even before the police and the ambulance arrive. The women more or less survive, but the babies disappear. In fact, before the actual thing happens, the ambulance is informed. The thrill and fear in each of the victims is built up on screen and shot brilliantly by Sudhakar Reddy.

The lighting pattern is excellent making for a visually good film. An eerie effect is created by Shekar Chandra's background score. The modus operandi of each act is different. It's rather horrifying to watch the orchestration of these sequences particularly towards the end when it becomes too gory.

The police is clueless about the person(s) behind it. In between there is the story of Venkat (Ravi babu) and Latha (Sneha) wherein Venkat has taken leave from the STF to be with Sneha, who is suffering from a blood disorder and needs care and attention.

Cut to the second half when the events happen with the babies Venkat is summoned back. During one of the episodes, a person is caught while trying to frighten a woman. Venkat discovers that the person is none other than Seenu (Tarakaratna). Venkat then unravels the whole mystery behind the story and the link with Amaravathi.

The story which consists of surprising twists and turns may not appeal to all. The tempo is sustained and the viewer is glued to the screen though there are a few moments which may not be intelligible to all.

Technically, the film is brilliant. The fear factor particularly in the first half is brought out well. Ravi Babu has a knack of selecting locations which are not well-known. The locales in the first half are picturesque, while in the last are eerie.

Tarakaratna sports a different image in this film. He is fairly convincing in his role. Bhumika (who grows up to be Amaravathi) looks refreshing in her cameo. Sneha looks pretty while Sindura Gadde is a good-looking cop.

Watch Amaravathi if you can stomach some of the violence.

Rediff Rating: