Verdict: Akhil Akkineni has a bright future ahead!
Akhil: The Power Of Jua was meant to be the big, celebrated debut of Akhil Akkineni, a third generation starlet from one of the first families of Tollywood – what it is, however, is chaos from the very first frame.
Director VV Vinayak cannot be blamed for a storyline that is all over the place, and no number of seasoned comedians could have saved this sinking ship.
.jpg)
Yes, the film is shot beautifully and yes, the fantastical narrative is unique and new. What spoils all of this, however, is the shoddy editing and style of storytelling. Full of un-ignorable loopholes and far too many minutes of filler dialogues, losing the simplistic plot becomes a reality within a few minutes of the film’s beginning.
Akhil has a good future, but he needs to choose better films. The young actor does justice to his role and fills out most of the mass hero requirements: he’s drop dead gorgeous, dances well and oozes enough attitude to make the Akkineni legacy proud. What we wished for, however, was a better choice for a debut film.
Sayesha brings nothing new to the screen and struggles to make an impression in a film meant to focus on Akhil. Even the choreography for her, in several of the songs, makes it seem like she was a second thought. Definitely not the best debut for her either.
Nagarjuna does make an ill-timed appearance and while we love the man and his talent, it pains us to say that the trailer to his new film, Soggade Chinni Nayana (played during the interval), seemed far more engrossing than his son’s debut.
The less we speak about the songs and background score the better. All the songs were shot beautifully, with repetitive choreography but amazing locales. What was missing was the meaning. There’s just so much of nonsensical Telugu-Hindi lyrics that one can take. Also, dear lyricists, we know his name is Akhil and that he’s the scion of the Akkineni legacy: it needn’t be repeated and alluded to in every second song.
Akhil is disappointing but will manage to entertain younger audiences. Take your kids to this one if you choose to go – a family-friendly Telugu film is indeed a rarity these days.
Why You Should Watch This Movie:
Akhil Akkineni’s freshness, Rajendra Prasad in his element (after a really long time), and some beautiful locations across Europe and Africa.
– By L Romal M Singh