Koncham Ishtam Koncham Kashtam - A feel-good romance/family movie..

Movie - Koncham Ishtam Koncham Kashtam (Telugu)
Director - Kishore Kumar
Producer - Nallamalupu Srinivas
Cast - Siddharth, Tamanna, Prakash Raj, Ramya Krishnan, Nasser, Brahmanandam, Venu Madhav
Music - Shankar/Ehsaan/Loy
Cinematography - Vijay Chakravarthy
Editor - Sreekar Prasad
Story, Screenplay - Kishore Kumar
Release Date - 5th February 2009.




You people must be wondering why am I writing a review of a Telugu movie. I decided to watch this movie because I had heard from some of my friends that this movie was quite good. So I got a copy with subtitles because I dont understand the language. And because Siddharth was playing the lead, I knew the movie would be decent. It was a very good decision I must say. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. Its like the 5th Telugu movie I'm seeing, after Pokkiri, Bommarillu, Happy Days and Oye. (I saw Oye in theatre without understanding a single word and didnt like it very much too). 


The movie falls into the same genre as Siddharth's blockbuster Bommarillu. It is a romantic comedy which has a very nice family angle weaved into it. The first half of the movie is ok. But it is in the second half that the movie scores, which is a rare thing in our cinema. Usually the first half would be good and the audience would be completely let down by the second half. Thankfully, it doesnt happen here. Almost half of the movie is heavily inspired by the evergreen classic Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge. Playboy hero, heroine from conservative family meets hero when she's away from family, slowly love blooms without both of them realising it, hero decides to come for the girl (they both hug each other tight in a similar farmland - the cow was missing here) and he has to win the heart of the girl's dad too. Till the interval, DDLJ plays out to you in a modern Telugu version. You still like it because all of it comes from a movie that you love so much. It is the second half which makes this movie work. The hero has to reunite his disjointed family so that his girl's father is convinced that he values families and relationships. The trouble the hero and heroine go through to reach that goal forms the rest of the story. 


Siddharth plays Siddarth Varma aka Siddhu again. (He was Siddhu in Bommarillu also). He is such a wonderful actor and playing such roles comes easily to him. I am a big fan of his especially for his roles in Rang De Basanti, Aayitha Ezhuthu, Bommarillu, etc. He still looks like a college kid despite being in his 30s. He excels in romance, comic scenes and even the sentimental parts. He has 2 monlogues towards the climax of the film, just like the one he had in Bommarillu. Still, he gives a credible performances and make those scenes impactful. Tamanna looks like an angel and gets almost as much screen space as Siddharth. Her role is also important and she is not reduced to being an eye candy, as in other films. She is nowhere close to Genelia's wonderful Hasini in Bommarillu but still, she emotes well and actually gives a good performance. I always thought she was a great looking bad actress. But she was competent in this movie. Now my hopes have increased for the Jab We Met remake in Tamil in which she is starring - Kanden Kadhalai. 


Prakash Raj gets together with Siddharth as his father yet again. Interestingly, his name is Prakash in the movie. He is an actor who will give a great performance even if you cast him in the worst possible film. So if he is given good material, like in the case of this movie, he is bound to shine. Nobody can match the credibility Prakash Raj gives to a character. This time around, his interactions with Siddharth are on a different level, and it is nice to watch that too. Ramya Krishnan is great too. She has always proved that she is a brilliant actress and she makes sure the opinion about her stays the same through this film also, though she has very little screen time. Nasser as the authoritative father of Tamanna is dot on. Though I wish he had dubbed his own voice for the film. Brahmanandam's comedy track is quite ok. Some of the gags work well. Venu Madhav also does a decent job in a comic role.


The movie starts as a romance, moves on to family values and then tackles the issues of divorce and how children are affected by it and all. All this is said with an undercurrent of humour throughout. That is what makes this movie click. The climax is also well written and the dialogues are great throughout the movie. The director has treated the theme in a fresh manner. The part where Siddharth breaks off into a song in the middle of a fight was done very well. It could have gone terribly wrong if it wasnt done well. 


Cinematography by Vijay Chakravarthy is excellent. This movie has some of the most beautiful frames I've seen on screen this year. Amazing work. Editing by veteran Sreekar Prasad is perfect. And music by top Bollywood composers Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is deadly. Each track has superhit written all over it and are picturised very well too. 


All in all, this movie is a complete feel-good family entertainer. If you have loved films like Bommarillu (Santosh Subramaniam in Tamil), you'll surely love this one too. And your opinion about Tamanna might change after you see this movie, if you dont like her already. If people are not comfortable watching it in Telugu, wait till Jayam Ravi remakes it into Tamil (which obviously wont be as good as this) or else, wait for it to be ruined as a dubbed version in Malayalam. Otherwise, highly recommended!! Lovely movie!!


Rating - 3.8/5