Yamadonga

Well, Jr. NTR rocks in his new slimmer avatar. And Yamagola, sorry Yamadonga, has initiated the process of being a big, very big hit.
Those who have seen Yamagola will be in for a pleasant surprise if they watch Yamadonga. Yamadonga is loosely based on Yamagola, the hit comedy of the late seventies. Yamadonga is vastly different from Yamagola. Except for the main protagonist getting killed before his time, a few yamaloka scenes, and both Yama and Chitragupta descending on earth, the two movies do not converge on any other count.
Raja (NTR) is a thief. Mahi (Priyamani) is the daughter of a rich village land lord. Mahi lost her mother when she was still a child and soon her father also dies. Her uncles (Jaya Prakash Reddy and Raghu Babu) and aunties are unscrupulous people. They are hell bent on usurping Mahi's wealth of around 200 crores that her father has bequeathed in her name. They are constantly scheming to achieve their target. They torture her and treat her like a servant.
Mahi always dreams that her prince charming would one day come to rescue her. And her dream comes true when she meets Raja in a very filmy situation.
Mahi's uncles hire professional killers to kidnap her and kill her so that they can acquire the wealth she owns. Luckily, she gets a chance to escape from the clutches of the goons. She meets Raja while she is on the run. Raja is immensely capable of fending off hired killers and self seeking relatives of Mahi. But can he put off death that seems to be chasing him prematurely?
Raja is supposed to live for hundred years. But in an inebriated condition he dares and hurls abuses at Yama (Mohan Babu), the God of Death. So Yama wants Raja dead even before he is actually supposed to. What can Raja do to ward off the wrath of Yama and save Mahi?
Yamadonga holds the answer.
Yamadonga is a good movie on many counts. First, it mixes heavenly (or should we say hellish) characters with human characters perfectly. Second, the songs are good and a lithe NTR dances better accomplishing some difficult steps to send the crowd in to raptures. Third, the sets and costumes are impeccable. Yamaloka and the costumes of Yama leave no room for complain. Four, the choice of actors (Mohan Babu for Yama) is perfect. A better actor than Mohan Babu for that role cannot be thought of.
To top it all Rajamouli's near flawless direction complimented with NTR and Mohan Babu's superlative acting takes the movie a level up.
In the final analysis Yamadonga may not be a critic's movie, but its very much a viewer's movie. People are going to enjoy the comedy as well as the drama thoroughly.