Sekhar Kammula is one of my favorite directors. Come on, he directed Anand, Godavari, & Happy Days, which I have indicated on this blog how much I enjoyed watching them. I even bought Dollar Dreams, not realizing in was not subbed :( Hopefully I will watch because it looks very dialoge-heavy. I just recently ordered the other two films under his name (he didn't direct but is a distributor) I don't have yet - Ashta Chemma & Avakai Biryani.
Therefore, I had to see Leader!
Besides besides being a Sekhar Kammula film, Leader is
Rana Daggubati's debut film.
So who is this Rana Daggubati?
Well, he is the son of producer, D. Suresh Babu; the grandson of D. Ramanaidu; and the nephew of actor, Venkatesh, nephew of actor/producer, Nagarjuna Akkineni, and cousin of actor, Naga Chaitanya.
His forthcoming Hindi film, Dum Maro Dum, is with Abhishek Bachchan & Bipasha Basu.
All this hype for someone who I haven't seen yet? So what's it all about?
Only one motive
...to form a corruption free & caste system-free state
Will he succeed in his attempt?
Now will he outplay his opponents?
Will he emerge as a people-liked leader?
CM Sanjeevayya is laying on his deathbed. All he ask is for his son, Arjun, to not let his cousin, Dhanunjay, become CM and that Arjun becomes CM instead.
Arjun (Rana Daggubati) must find a way to become CM, even if that means using the black money from his father to buy his way there.
Rana has been praised for his performance. Honestly, he did good in his role. I just think his character was a bit boring. I think Sekhar wanted to show Arjun's nonchalantness and coolness.
Archana (Richa Gangopadhyay) is the love interest of Arjun
Richa is gorgeous and became "glamorous" after being the apple of Arjun's eyes. I love her smile.
Ratna (Priya Anand) has a crush on Arjun.
I felt both girls were wasted in their roles. However, more so with Priya. her character did add humor to the serious political film. I want to see more of her because she has that screen presence.
Ali (Harsha Vardan) is Arjun's personal secretary
Rajeswari Devi (Suhasini Mani Ratnam) is Arjun's mother
Dhanunjay (Subbaraju) wants to be CM and will do anything for it.
Arjun's uncle (Rao Ramesh)
The music were just playing in the background to help with the flow of the film.
Song #1 - "Vande Mataram"
Arjun thinking about becoming the CM
Song #2 - "Rajasekhara"
Celebration, Udaya Bhanu in an item number
Absolutely a wonderful dance number! Loved it!
Song #3 - "Idhi Mana Bharatham"
A clever idea to get votes for Arjun to be CM
Song #4 - "Bada Ledhu"
First move as CM
Song #5 - "Hey CM"
CM Arjun & Archana hang out
Song #6 - "Avunana Kaadana"
In love?
Song #7 - "Sreelu Pongina"
Another tough decision to make
Song #8 - "Maa Telugu Thalliki"
Leader!
There was way too many advertising throughout the film! Mainly for King. There were more advertising throughout the film (yes, when it was actually playing), just popping out and disappearing. I tried to make caps of them but wasn't able to so I just let it be. Oh yeah, BTW, I did buy King too, not because of the ads :D I just hope it won't be a new trend with the ads because it is annoying!
There's a few camera shots from the bottom-up, which I dislike a lot. To me, it's just an unflattering angle. It's like asking a toddler to hold the camera and he is looking up at you.
Overall, the film is worth a watch. I love storylines about political corruption and someone who wants to change it. When a film makes you think and wonder, then to me, it's worth it. However, if politics is not your type of genre, you may skip out. But how could you not watch it? It's a Sekha Kammula film! :D
Sekhar Kammula's dedication
"This film is dedicated to every mother who gave a leader to lead this nation..."
