SitaRamam - A Knight and His Lady

Sita Ramam

2022, Telugu

Hanu Raghavapudi... Director

Dulquer Salmaan...Ram

Mrunal Thakur...Sita

Rashmika Mandanna...Afreen

Sachin Khedekar...Brigadier Tareeq

Sumanth...Brigadier Vishnu Sharma

Mohan's Measure ⭐⭐⭐

Ladies, I will let you in on a little secret, men like sweeping romances, too. For me, the mythos takes on meaning when the hero is an average Joe, one who doesn't have anything other than the reputation for being a good guy. Kinda like Gregory Peck in Roman Holiday, which ranks at the top of my favorite comfort films.

That kinda guy has class. And, friends, Mr. Salmaan is Class with a capital C, all the way. Dressed in the timeless clothing he wore in Mahanati, Dulquer is Ram, a soldier, a hero, but an orphan who finds a family in letters he receives. He is now on leave, looking for a woman he never met, a woman who claims is his wife. Could she be the Lady Fair to this Lonely Knight? 

Very few Indian women of today could pull of the role of Princess. She must be feminine, poised, with a little hint of damsel in distress, yet project strength and dignity in being a woman. Think Audrey Hepburn in the above mentioned favorite film. For taking this delicately balanced role, Ms. Thakur should be given an award. We see her at once radiant, poised, confident, someone who is beyond us, yet someone who could be a best friend. She envelopes the screen with her presence, and when paired up with her hero, she brings Victorian charm to fantastic chemistry. The audience is falling in love. 

But, it is in the second half where beauty turns to duty, and a poetic story must turn to seemingly contrived explanations to shift from beautiful moments into tragedy. The director had worked very hard to create a unique and poetic aura in the first half. We can only wonder at his turning to stereotypes and apologetics in the second one. 

Perhaps because it is directed towards an Indian audience that pragmatism must outdo romance. I found myself leaving the theater with a tear of disappointment.