Cast: Naga Shaurya, Kashmira Kulkarni, Yamini Bhaskar, Sivaji Raja, Ajay, Jayaprakash Reddy
Director: Srinivas Chakravarthy
Fresh from the success of Chalo, Naga Shaurya’s @Nartanasala evokes some interest because the promos hype his gay act. The film is produced by Shaurya’s mother Usha Mulpuri and helmed by debutant Srinivas Chakravarthy.
Radha Krishna (Naga Shaurya) runs a boxing school for women and saves Manasa (Kashmira), who is being harassed by a man (Satyam Rajesh), and falls in love with her. His father Kalamandir Kalyan (Sivaji Raja) arranges his marriage with Satyabhama (Yamini Bhaskar), daughter of a powerful leader (Jaya-prakash Reddy). To avoid this marriage Radha Krishna claims he is gay. The marriage is cancelled, but trouble starts as Radha Krishna gets a proposal from a man.
Director Srinivas Chakravarthy adopts a cliched approach to a routine subject. The protagonist lying to escape from something is not new in Telugu films; it’s just that @Nartanasala uses the gay tack.
The film does not start off well, going overboard with Sivaji Raja over the protagonist. After a few boring episodes, the interval scene gets an interesting twist. The second half is located in Jayaprakash Reddy’s house, and Chakravarthy introduces some scenes which are more silly than comical. Naga Shaurya is a proven actor but is just okay in @Nartanasala. Ajay has an important role turns in a genuine performance.
The cinematography is neat and Mahati Sagar’s music features two good songs. The dialogues dealing with the gay episode are not good. @Nartanasala was supposed to be a comedy but Chakravarthy turns in sub-par work. The gay angle does not work even though @Nartanasala gets its name from the old classic, which dealt with the Arjuna episode from the Mahabharatha.
