Maharshi Review – Mahesh Babu Starrer Trumps Its Promise

Mahesh Babu’s Maharshi, THE movie of this summer season, released worldwide today, with zillions of fans thronging theatres to watch their idol do what he is best at doing, mesmerising them. Maharshi, as everyone is aware, created a buzz all over India, from Bollywood to Kollywood.  Celebrities like Salman Khan and Karan Johar were keen to watch the movie and the trade pundits already put their money on prospective remakes of the movie in other industries.  
So, how is Maharshi? Did it come out with flying colors? Did it meet the fans’ expectations?  Let us examine the niceties of Maharshi.
Movie Details:
Cast: Mahesh Babu, Pooja Hegde, Allari Naresh, Prakash Raj, Jayasudha and Jagapathi Babu.  
Director: Vamshi Paidipally
Music: Devi Sri Prasad
Cinematography: K. V. Mohanan

Story:

Rishi Kumar (Mahesh Babu) comes from a middle class family. He aspires to become a successful businessman and achieves his ambition by studying abroad and becoming a millionaire in the USA. However, is it what he really wanted to achieve? Or more than that? Rishi wants to return to his roots and work for the main backbone of India, the farming community. He wants to use his riches to the perusal of rejuvenation of farming techniques, the money credit system and the paraphernalia delivery system.

Review:

Rishi and Ravi (Allari Naresh) as fellow students steal the show in the first half.  Allari Naresh is definitely a revelation in his new avatar as a naive, quiet being who befriends Rishi in college (set in Vizag.) He is the catalyst who changes the mind of Rishi to go back to his roots and serve the people. Pooja (Pooja Hegde,) Rishi’s love interest, plays her part well.

Mahesh’s character goes through three shades—an ambitious student, a business tycoon and a farmer. Yes, you heard it right, a farmer who works in the paddy fields, toe in toe with the agricultural labourers.  The main debate of Maharshi is ‘nourishing the natural resources of India through the use of technology.’

Mahesh Babu displays a plethora of emotions in his character arc which starts as a rebellious youth, a determined student, a suave entrepreneur and finally, a farmer. The scenes where he interacts with the farmers, argues with the press and converses with his father are particularly heartwarming.

Another important aspect of Maharshi is the cinematography by K.U. Mohanan, with its differentiation of framing to suit the milieu. Be it a village, a middle class home or a palatial bungalow, the framing is spot on and tasteful.  

As is with Devi Sri Prasad’’s music, he does satisfy Mahesh’s fans with the songs Padara Padara and  Paala Pitta, a foot tapping number. The energy of Mahesh is contagious in his college days scenes and the press conference scene, where he questions the authority and lackadaisical behavior of the government machinery in delivering benefits to farmers.

All the supporting cast members shine, though they share meagre screen time compared to Mahesh Babu and Allari Naresh. Prakash Raj and Jayasudha as Rishi’s parents score the most with their emotional outbreakings.

The main triumph of Maharshi lies in its message is to save the natural resources and not deplete the ecosystem. Maharshi is going be remembered for its portrayal of a responsible citizen by Mahesh Babu and its theme based on rural development.

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