Sehari review: Harsh Kanumilli's romantic comedy is refreshing and funny

3/5

Story:

Varun is a confused youngster who is yet to take charge of his life and lives in a happy-little cocoon with his friends and family. Though his love life with his college junior, Subbalakshmi, is heading nowhere, Varun is hopeful of marrying her soon. Reality hits him hard when she breaks ties with him and in a fit of rage, he asks his parents to find apt matches for him. Despite an awkward first meeting, Varun agrees to marry Alia, a family friend. In a strange turn of events, he realises he has the hots for Alia's elder sister Amulya. Will Varun's marriage go as per plan?

Review:

If one were to summarise Sehari in a nutshell, it's a Pelli Choopulu-meets-Hasee Toh Phasee tale smartly reimagined for a new audience and is ably complemented by good performances, eye-catchy visuals and foot-tapping music. The story is about a early 20s youngster, who, on the cusp of marriage, falls for the prospective bride's sister. Debutant writer Harsh Kanumilli, director Gnanasagar Dwaraka don't try to reinvent the wheel here but have a thorough understanding of what it takes to infuse an urban-centric romantic comedy with the right local flavour, vigour and energy.

Romantic comedies and coming-of-age tales are all about the vibe they have and it's refreshing that none of the lead characters in Sehari takes themselves seriously. The atmosphere is always easy going, light-hearted and the tone doesn't get heavy even in supposedly dramatic situations. The comic book-styled storytelling makes for a fun watch though the inspiration from the Tharun Bhascker brand of cinema (if there's one) is quite evident. 

Sehari sticks to the plot of a youngster overcoming the many confusions in his love life and never tries to preach much. The characters are more or less a privileged lot, keep taking a dig at one another, have little or no existential issues. For a major part of the film, you see the friends driving in cars, having a bottle of beer at the terrace, hitting on girls. Yet, the lifelines of the film are its wacky characters, free-flowing and unfiltered conversations and how the director mounts with an element of class without losing the raw flavour.

This is a fantastic debut for actor, writer Harsh Kanumilli and given his pitch-perfect understanding of the lead character's psychology, he brings its spirit alive quite well and has an energetic screen presence. He along with Abhinav Gomatam and Praneeth Reddy Kallem make for an electric trio and are in perfect sync with each other's comic timing. The rap battle between Abhinav Gomatam and Pranav Chaganty starts off well but ends rather abruptly.

Simran Chaudhary not only looks like a diva here but lends the part an earthiness and vulnerability with her casual charm. Music composer Koti's on-screen debut is a big surprise and he pulls off the challenge quite effortlessly, and looks like he's here to stay in front of the camera for a while. Akshithaa, Sneha Velidindi and Rajeswari Mullapudi are passable in their brief parts. Aravind Viswanathan's cinematography and Prashanth R Vihari's memorable album are the icing on the cake.

Verdict:

Sehari is a refreshing romantic comedy buoyed by terrific writing and spirited performances by its lead actors Harsh Kanumilli, Simran Chaudhary, Abhinav Gomatam and Praneeth Reddy. Wonderfully filmed and with a super-energetic score by Prashanth R Vihari, it has all the ingredients to be a perfect Valentines Day watch.