Nari Nari Naduma Murari Review: Comedy clicks

Nari Nari Naduma Murari: What’s the story about?

Gautham (Sharwanand) meets Nithya in Kerala while both are working there. After returning to Hyderabad, Nithya joins an architecture firm and informs her father Sampath, a renowned lawyer, about Gautham. He initially agrees to their marriage but changes his mind after visiting Gautham’s house. The reason is Gautham’s father (Naresh), who, in his sixties, has married a woman 30 years younger (Siri Hanmanth) and is expecting a child with her.

Fearing loss of respect if a grand wedding is conducted with relatives in attendance, Nithya’s father insists that the marriage take place at a registrar office instead. Though hesitant, Gautham agrees. When Gautham and Nithya visit the registrar office to fix a wedding date, a shock awaits them. The registrar, Sathyamurthy (Sunil), turns out to be the same person who witnessed Gautham’s marriage years ago to his college mate Dia (Samyuktha).

Why did Gautham marry Dia and keep it a secret? What happened to her? And will Nithya ever discover the truth?

Analysis

Director Ram Abbaraju earlier delivered the hilarious “Samajavaragamana” and the partly funny “Vivaha Bhojanambu” during the COVID period. He now returns with “Nari Nari Naduma Murari,” once again proving his strength in extracting comedy. This time, he picks a story point that is not entirely rehashed. The two women enter the hero’s life at different stages, not simultaneously, making it different from a regular triangle drama. The premise stands apart from routine films where a male protagonist juggles two relationships.

Ram Abbaraju begins the film by establishing the love story between Sharwanand and Sakshi Vaidya, while running parallel to it is the track of Sharwanand’s 60-plus father and his “malli pelli” angle. It is this latter thread that delivers the most laugh-out-loud moments. Ram Abbaraju, along with dialogue writer Nandu Savirigana, goes all out with fun one-liners and sharp satires on current trends.

Naresh’s comedy track strongly mirrors his real life, especially his recent marriage to actress Pavitra Lokesh at the age of 61. As a result, the jokes about his naughty-at-sixty moments click effectively. Vennela Kishore’s character works as a neat satire on people who show exaggerated respect in the name of “Guruji.”

Another standout episode involves Satya helping a woman assuming she is pregnant, only to realise it is just her belly. The film is filled with such humorous moments that work better than the overall narrative.

Like many recent Telugu films, Nari Nari Naduma Murari falters in the second half and begins to drag after a point. However, it continues to supply a steady flow of jokes. Interestingly, even the climax is largely driven by the VK Naresh track, clearly reflecting the director’s intent.

Sharwanand has been out of form lately, and this film serves as a better comeback for him. He looks comfortable and delivers a neat performance. Sakshi Vaidya pairs well with him and puts in a competent act. The real scene-stealer, however, is Naresh, whose episodes are consistently hilarious.

Sampath, as Sakshi’s father, and Vennela Kishore, in a lawyer’s role, get good moments. Sree Vishnu appears in a cameo. Samyuktha gets her moment only in the final episode, while her portions before that feel dull. The film’s technical work is fairly decent.

Bottom line: “Nari Nari Naduma Murari” offers enjoyable fun moments and a reasonably engaging narrative. Despite a draggy second half and some routine stretches, Naresh’s track and the overall humorous tone work in its favour. The film needed tighter trimming for better impact.

Rating: 2.75/5

By Jalapathy Gudelli