'Boss is back' declares the film right away indicating that 70-year-old Megastar Chiranjeevi is back with a bang this Sankranthi with a film that is sure to appeal to Telugu audiences across age segments. Director Anil Ravipudi has also written this film and this is the first time that the successful Telugu director is teaming up with Chiranjeevi as well. And the character he has penned for Chiranjeevi encompasses all that the Telugu star is good at - humour, dance, action, romance and family sentiment.
As the title suggests, Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu revolves around the middle-class Shankara Vara Prasad (Chiranjeevi), who essays the role of a national security officer. Prasad falls in love with Sashirekha (Nayanthara), the high-flying daughter of an uber rich businessman, GVR (Sachin Khedekar), who is successful in her own right, and they get married.
However, things take a turn after the birth of their children and their relationship breaks down. Prasad, who's forced to stay home and run the house, tries his best to woo his wife and set things right but it gets to the point of no return, and the couple become estranged. He misses his children whom he hasn't seen for nearly seven years and when he joins the security team of a Union Minister (Sharat Saxena), Prasad narrates his heartache.
When a serious life threat is issued to Sashirekha's father (Sachin Khedekar), the Minister assigns him to head this security team and he comes back into Sashirekha's life. Do Sashirekha and Prasad eventually make up? Is there a happily ever after to what started as a fairytale?
Director Anil Ravipudi has built his career on high-energy commercial entertainers that blend broad comedy with strong emotional hooks. His films are driven by simple conflicts, exaggerated humour, and crowd-pleasing characters, making them highly accessible and likeable for family audiences. The director has delivered nine hits and Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu was also expected to continue this successful run.
Unfortunately, the narrative structure of Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu resonates with the tropes of cinema of the 1980s and 1990s. At its core is the classic relationship between an arrogant, egoistic wealthy woman and a man whose dignity is rooted more in self-respect than material status. And marriage, instead of resolving these differences, becomes the space where class and ego begin to clash and everyday arguments transform into symbolic battles over authority, respect, and identity.
What the director has done is add layers of comedy and emotional connect by making Prasad a genial, lovable man and adding whimsical secondary characters (Catherine Tresa, Harsha Vardhan, Abhinav Gomatam) to lighten situations. The plot is not new and neither is the treatment - the jokes (e.g. OTP) fall flat and really don't hit the high notes at any point.
The first half of the film proceeds at an uneven but steady pace and is engaging thanks to the kids but things start to go downhill in the second half as predictability sets in. Even the characterisation of Prasad and Sashirekha are cliched and throwing in Venkatesh as a wrench in their relationship, doesn't seamlessly blend into the story. We have seen such romantic quagmires in dozens of films earlier - the only difference here is that the couple and the new romantic interest are all in their 40s.
For Chiranjeevi, this Sankranthi movie, which sees him play a loving family man, gives him scope to do what he does best - entertain the masses. However, it is not a film that is career-defining but one in which we see one of Megastar's most dignified and controlled performances.
Venkatesh Daggubati had a blockbuster last Sankranthi and this year teams up with Chiranjeevi to make you reminisce about the films of the 80s and 90s, especially when the two set the screen alight with their dance number. Nayanthara returns to Telugu cinema after a while and she appears classy as the rich businesswoman. Unfortunately for her, the writing limits her narrative agency and her cliched role bogs down the film. The children, though, deliver a stand-out performance in the first half and regale the audience to a great extent.
Looking at the technical aspects of the film, the movie's cinematography and songs are quite mid. Director Anil Ravipudi has an outstanding record of delivering nine hits in a row and Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu is probably the first film where he has failed to live up to the expectations of the audience. The movie rests solely on Chiranjeevi's shoulders and while it is a fun-filled Sankranthi film, it clearly falls short.
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Chiranjeevi, Nayanthara, Venkatesh Daggubati
