Moving tale of a rural entrepreneur

Tucked between tough terrains on one side and a placid Krishna on the other, erstwhile Nalgonda district was in news time and again, albeit for all wrong reasons, be it fluorosis, Left wing extremism, communal hatred or acute poverty. But, yes, things did change, and Nalgonda is limping to progress and prosperity, thanks to the efforts of many of its political and cultural leaders, and of course, successive governments.

At a time when the whole district was wailing as its adept weavers started committing suicide en masse and the otherwise well-known handloom industry was staring at absolute collapse a couple of decades ago, the nerve and grit of a school dropout resulted in a revolutionary invention that changed the fate of thousands of hapless weavers across the district. The story of Chintakindi Mallesham, who went on to become one of the seven most influential rural Indian entrepreneurs in the Forbes' list and recipient of one of the country's highest civilian awards Padma Sri, is by all means, awe-inspiring. And when you walk down to the nearest cinema to watch a biopic of this extraordinary talent from remote Telangana, you are sure to keep a lot of expectations.

Against the backdrop of melancholic rhythm and movements of threads being spun manually on the loom by a weaver, the film undisputedly presents a heartrending start. For an average filmgoer, who has got sick and tired of mainstream Tollywood tomfoolery, 'Mallesham comes as a soothing experience as the director and cameraman tried their best to be realistic to the core.

What begins with the suicide of four of a weaver's family, the film explores the intricacies of weavers' lives, serenity of rustic settlement, folk arts, traditions, immaculate love and myriad other aspects, while narrating the story of Mallesham and how his determination has finally taken him to success.

Perhaps because it is a biopic, the story closely revolves around the trials and tribulations of Mallesham in his resolve to make a machine to relieve his mother of her pains. The film ends when his mother switches on the Lakshmi Asu Machine and when it starts successfully.

Debut director Raj Rachakonda has undoubtedly made a brilliant attempt to narrate the story of Mallesham, though his infancy in filmdom makes him fall many a time. Involvement of gifted Telangana artist Laxman Aelay gives a sublime artistic touch to the film, enhanced by soothing music by Mark K Robin. However, Priyadarshi, a relatively novice in tinsel town, who plays Mallesham in the movie, has failed to live up to the expectations as his efforts to get into the soul of the protagonist turn to be not up to the mark. Chakrapani Ananda, as Mallesham's grumpy father, presents a sterling performance thanks to his vast experience in the parallel cinema and his hitherto untapped potential as an actor. Mallesham is sure to give a much-needed break to the talented actor-director. Jhansi, as Mallesham's mother, is at her best, while Thiruveer who acted as Veera Pratap looks promising.

Anusha Nagalla has done an exemplary work in this biopic as a bucolic belle with all the intrinsic rustic traits. Despite all the minor slip-ups, 'Mallesham' is a film worth watching.