Chaavu Kaburu Challaga - The Long Road

 

Chaavu Kaburu Challaga

2021, Telugu

Director: Pegallapati Koushik

Stars: Sri Simha, Lavanya Tripathi, Bhadram, Aamani, Srikanth Iyengar

Mohan's Measure:  ⭐⭐⭐

As we enter another year of what Indian cinema calls "OTT," directors are finding desperate times call for desperate measures.  Aha's Chaavu Kaburu Challaga offers us a rom-com in a very bizarre way; but, surprisingly, it works.

Sri Simha plays an uneducated man who learns early that there is money to be made in death - as long as it is not one's own.  A freelance mortuary driver, images of Shiva and the title "Swargavahini" adorn the stylish van that becomes the last ride for people of all faiths.

It is in providing this service to a Catholic family that his character, Balaraju, falls in love at first sight with Mallika, who just happens to be the widow to the deceased.  Using this as backdrop, the movie examines questions of love, death, and existential meaning on levels Telugu film has not tried in quite awhile.

Ms. Tripathi offers us her usual charm as the attractive young woman who bereaves her husband for what the hero thinks is too long.  After all, he says, losing someone is something all of us have experienced; for him it is an everyday occurrence.  Should not the living continue to live?

A promising story, however, is weakened by the archetypal acting of Murali Sharma and Srikanth Iyengar, who in turn bring a plasticity to what could have been a deep, enriching story about hope and love in, around, and sometimes, because of, the fact we are all mortal. Ironically, they do so by playing pivotal characters in the story.

Navigate around them and enjoy this interesting slice of life rom-com.