Jai Lava Kusa: When the villain turns out to be the real hero

Close to 16 years after he made his acting debut on September 27, 2001 and more than 25-odd films, NTR Jr. comes up with a mega venture- Jai Lava Kusa- a home production which has him essaying three roles for the first time.

Basing the film’s premise on how humiliation and rejection can be potent negative stimuli leading to disastrous outcomes, director K S Ravindra gives it a mythological backdrop.

Using the live appeal of theatre at the beginning and at the end, he weaves a story of three brothers, where the eldest is neglected because of his stammering and the other two given more than their due. How it works on the young child’s mind and what it leads him to be and become is the underlying theme of the film.

The trio is shown being involved in staging plays of Ramayana and its various episodes, which give ample opportunities for Ravindra to gently play up the virtues of Ravana as against the favoured status of Lord Rama. In an attempt which can be classified as open glorification, the third role, which actually is the pivot around which the film revolves in the second half is that of the anti-hero.

Without resorting to too much counterargument on the epic story, the film moves at a brisk pace. NTR has his three roles well-etched, with two of them interconnected right from the start and the third coming in post-intermission. The heroines – a slimmer Raashi Khanna and the Mallu sizzler Nivetha Thomas- are both eye candy and good counterfoils to the hero.

The villains- Abhimanyu Singh and Ronit Roy- are not menacing but stay till the end to challenge the rampaging Ravana, based out of Bhairanpur in neighbouring Odisha, which is the character lovingly etched out. NTR carries it off pretty well, investing the right kind of aggression and emotion even as the other two are shown underplaying themselves.

The last hour of the film is engaging with a good mix of emotional bonding between the gruff elder one and the beseeching younger ones. This in fact, makes the film elevate itself a little higher even as the director covers all his bases by including a sultry item number by Tamannaah and letting DSP put up his booming music. A good entertainer for sure, Jai Lava Kusa turns out to be.

Film Name : Jai Lava Kusa

Cast : NTR, Raashi Khanna, Nivetha Thomas, Ronit Roy and Abhimanyu Singh
Direction : K S Ravindra
Genre : Action drama
Likes : NTR Jr
Dislikes : Length of the film