Kotabommali PS Movie Review

Kotabommali PS’s name might sound strange. But it is campaigned as Nayattu remake. That garnered decent attention. With Geetha backing it, naturally, it has an advantage in terms of better positioning and release. Given this, what are the odds for Kotabommali to score at the marquee? Let’s begin our hunt.
 
What is it about?

Police personnel Rama Krishna (Srikanth), Ravi (Rahul Vijay) and Kumari (Shivani Rajasekhar) return from a marriage party. Rama Krishna and Ravi are in a drunken state whereas driver Rahul (Rama Krishna’s nephew). The police jeep in which they travelling accidentally hits a ruling party political worker who dies after rushing to hospital. As things get worse, the three accused cops are on the run. As the deceased belongs to a community that dominates the election, the ruling party is hell-bent on framing the three cops who already had a tiff with the deceased’s gang a few days ago.

Home Minister Jayaraj (Murali Sharma) takes this by-election of Kotabommali quite seriously. Pressure mounts on the Home Minister to arrest three policemen within 24 hours i.e. before the election day. He deputes Razia Ali (Varalaxmi Sarathkumar) to nab the three. The rest of the story is whether Ali catches Rama Krishna, Ravi and Kumari.

Performances

Srikanth’s intense yet subtle performance makes proceedings engrossing. Rahul and Shivani are adequate. Varalaxmi Sarathkumar and Murali Sharma deliver what is expected of them. Rest of the cast does justice to their roles.

Technicalities

It is a remake of Nayattu with minor changes. Lingi Lingi Lingidi song is a treat. BGM also adds to the narration. The film suffers with its pace as it occasionally gets slower and boring. Crime thrillers laced with survival games needed to be more tighter narration.

Highlights

Srikanth and Varalaxmi Roles
Mind Game & Man Hunt
Climax Portion

Drawbacks

Very Little Father-Daughter Bond
Lack of Emotional Depth
Not Gripping Enough

Analysis

Kotabommali attempts to shed light on power-centric politics and how they influence and impact law and order. The legislative structure directly affects the executive structure is the bottom line of Kotabommali (Nayattu).  A story around three sincere cops is woven on these lines. The plot of police (Varalaxmi) chasing the accused police (Srikanth and co) and the accused cops get shelter in the Naxal area. How Varalaxmi takes the help of other Naxals to nab Srikanth & co is the plotline. The cat and mouse game or the hunt game is partially engaging as there are some loose ends.

Largely, the makers stick to the original. The Debutante director didn’t take any chances. However, only towards the end, there is a minor deviation from the original, probably to satiate our native audiences. The father-daughter emotion needed more work. The family bonds of respective police personnel are on the run is not sufficient enough to create more drama.

Most importantly, Varalaxmi and Srikanth needed an old feud only then the proceedings would have been way better. The hunt starts well initially but it gets monotonous as things progress.  Things were interesting only till Ali did not find the whereabouts of Ramakrishna who had experience in combing operations and worked in greyhounds. Later, they get predictable. The film also suffers with the pace as the narrative gets slower at times.

One can’t help but situations remind us of  Jana Gana Mana, Asuran and even Naandhi (an innocent being framed as the culprit). Kotabommali is a film that only works in parts. There is a huge scope to improve it by leaps and bounds, but makers play it safe. The twist at the end also reminds us of some of recent films with such negative climax.

For those who have not watched Nayattu, Kotabommali makes for a one-time watch. So, Kotabommali is limited and it is not everyone’s cup of tea. 

Verdict: Remake That Works In Parts

Rating: 2.5/5