Oh Manapenne is a film written by Tharun Bhascker and directed by Kaarthikk Sundar. It has screenplay and dialogues by Deepak Sundarrajan, and is the official remake of the Telugu film Pelli Choopulu. Harish Kalyan and Priya Bhavani Shankar play the lead roles while Anbu Thasan and Abishek Kumar play crucial supporting roles. The film is streaming on Disney Plus Hotstar.
Harish Kalyan plays the role of Karthik, a jobless engineering graduate who doesn't take anything serious in life. He is a good chef, but doesn't pursue it seriously. He goes to Shruthi's (Priya Bhavani Shankar) house along with his family seeking her alliance, but they realise it's the wrong house. Karthik's actual alliance wants him to succeed in a business. So he joins hands with Shruthi and starts a food truck business. The film deals with the dynamics of the relationship between the two, and also how the truck plays an important role in shaping their lives.
One of the strongest elements in the film is the cast where everyone is in top form. Harish Kalyan and Priya Bhavani Shankar carry film on their shoulders throughout, and are ably supported by Anbu Thasan and Abishek Kumar. Most of Anbu Thasan's jokes hit the right note and the man's timing is impeccable.
It is this humour which resuscitates the film whenever it dips. The film has a lot of cherry like moments and a lot of them are memorable. However there are 2-3 scenes here and there, where such moments are created, but those scenes feel rushed, not allowing the audience enough time to cherish them.
Apart from this minor, minor flaw, the film almost works like magic. Along with the humour scenes, most of the emotional scenes work, except for initial ones which are middling. For instance, Priya Bhavani Shankar's character isn't established properly at the start. So the scene where she falls in love during college doesn't work that well.
The film also conveys an important message about dowry in a non-preachy manner. The tiny detailing in Harish Kalyan and Priya Bhavani Shankar's rooms add value to the narrative. The former's room has a superman highlighting his masculinity, while Priya Bhavani's room has an image of Wonder Woman, reflecting her character.
The production design is fabulous, and Harish Kalyan's house looks exactly like a middle class household and a lot of youngsters will be able to relate to it. The editing is crisp, the music is soulful and creates a fantasy-like mood. The cinematography compliments the film really well. With the usage of yellow-ish colours, the visuals breeds warmth and creates a positive vibe.
As a standalone film, Oh Manapenne engages you well. There is a social message that is only a subtext. The film has only one job, which is to entertain, and the team has achieved that. With good technical support, the film is definitely worth your time.