Story
Pushpa Raja is a locksmith who is involved in the world of ebony smuggling. At the same time, he is not afraid to make enemies.
Review
With Pushpa’s The Rise, Sukumar ventures into uncharted territory with a quaint masala film, with raucous dialogues, characters speaking a Chittoor dialect, and a story deeply rooted in the region where it was shot. Rangastha raised high hopes, but turned out to be overlong, sometimes disappointing, and failed to deliver on its promises.
Pushpa Raj (Allu Arjun) is one of the many poor people in Sesachalam who illegally cut red sandalwood and sell it by kilo to influential people. In a syndicate of many actors, Pushpa slowly learns to find his way and work his way up the career ladder until the man who used to cut trees becomes a manager. His Achilles heel is not his lover Srivalli (Rashmika Mandanna) nor the great kings Konda Reddy (Ajay Ghosh), Jolly Reddy (Dhananjay), Mangalam Srinu (Sunil), and his wife Dakshayani (Anasuya Baradwaj).
The fact that his brother (Ajay) won’t let him confess his origin makes Pushpa go from zero to a hundred in no time and is often the reason why this rude, sarcastic, arrogant and even funny man loses his temper. And just when he’s where he wants to be, along comes a cop, Bhanwar Singh Shekhawat (Fahadh Faasil), who threatens to upset Pushpa’s carefully constructed order.
Pushpa The Rise is based on a story that has been explored time and again in the world of cinema the rise of the underrated film. Therefore, Sukumar has nothing new to reveal. What is new is how he develops the plot and creates the character of Pushpa more than three hours before the auction begins. And this move may not be to everyone’s liking, because despite all the hype, the film is just that.
Pushpa has made many enemies, but none of them can match his indomitable character. At least until Shekhawata comes to town. Sukumari’s film is good as long as it sticks to the real story and focuses on the intricacies of redshirt smuggling. Pushpa’s contribution to normalizing the situation, etc. The film weakens when it tries to create a strange (and problematic) romance between him and Shrivalli, which doesn’t always work and doesn’t even contribute to the real story. Sure, Pushpa has the opportunity to become a gentleman. But he seems to steer the story in a direction he would have taken anyway. Even the final showdown between Pushpa and Shekhawat doesn’t have the desired effect. It feels rushed and the character at the end is unconvincing.
The visual effects, art design, editing, and sound design are also unconvincing in some scenes. The team is responsible for Pushpa. The Rise makes no secret that they had to rush to get the film out on time, and it shows. Considering the length of the film, which already seems inordinate, the technical shortcomings are even more glaring.
Pushpa The Rise excels in terms of acting, direction, cinematography, costumes, and, above all, music. Granted, Devi Sri Prasad’s music is disappointing at times. But it more than makes up for it, as it fits the story well. Cinematographer Miroslav Kuba Brozhek and director Sukumar seem to have found. The perfect environment for this film and they complement each other in their work. Pushpa’s character traits change according to his place in the world. Even the supporting actors get a chance to shine. Though at times they are limited to playing inappropriate characters. Even Rashmika seems out of place in this testosterone-filled film. On the other hand, Anasuya has a scene with Sunil that proves she fits in this world. Samantha’s role in Oo Antava won’t surprise anyone.
All in all, Pushpa Ascension is the work of Allu Arjun alone, who shines as this down-to-earth. Seemingly tough but sensitive character in a way that others cannot see. Fans of Allu Arjun may enjoy it. When he briefly twirls his legs in numbers like Saami Saami and Eyy Bidda Idhi Naa Adda. But he really shines when he gets into a power struggle with Peter Hein and Ram-Laxman and comes out with impressive action scenes.
