When Vicky Donor made a breakthrough in Hindi cinema, Kalyana Samayal Saadham did the same in Tamil movies, which was later made as Shubh Mangal Savdhan in Hindi. The success of these films resulted in more comedies based on sex and unconventional subjects like Badhaai Ho, Dream Girl, Bala, and Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan featuring Ayushman Khurana in the lead. Ek Mini Katha is the latest Telugu film made on exactly similar lines, taking you into a familiar world of weird situations and characters, strongly reminding you of all the above films.
Making a slight deviation from the plot of impotency, this time it’s the ‘Size Matters’ myth that haunts the lead character of the story creating a big mess before and after his marriage with a beautiful girl. The film begins with the father and son visiting a psychiatrist narrating their experiences in a flashback and the script keeps throwing one twist after another maintaining a fast pace despite the songs.
Directed by Karthik Rapolu, it gives you a mixed feeling as the presentation makes you smile and feel irritated together at regular intervals. Though titled Ek Mini Katha, there is too much happening on the screen that also seems to be forcibly done to keep it ‘entertaining’. At times you enjoy the sequences but they also become ineffective and tiring more than often, resulting in a lengthy movie. Besides, it’s the unconvincing climax that disappoints hurriedly ending the film that should have been dealt differently maintaining the dignity of its lead characters.
The performances are between good to average (including a few loud ones) with both Santosh Shobhan and Kavya Thapar looking fine as a charming couple. Establishing a connection with Hindi cinema, where Santosh looks like a young Ajay Devgan, it also features Shraddha Das as a Sadhavi and repeatedly mentions Sonu Sood in the dialogues pointing towards his new image of a saviour. In addition, the film also has funny insertions of a boy getting into depression after a break-up, a girl obsessed with Tik-Tok videos, and a grandpa dreaming about Pooja Hegde’s legs. But more importantly, there is also a sequence of a religious group getting the couples married in parks on Valentine’s Day.
In all, Ek Mini Katha is partially fun making a conscious effort to entertain, overstuffed with many unwanted characters. At the same time, it shows courage experimenting with a bold subject that certainly is an issue for many, who seriously think that ‘Size Matters’. Thankfully, the film never turns vulgar in all its indicative references.
Rating: 2.5 / 5
Direction: Karthik Rapolu
Cast: Santosh Shobhan, Kavya Thapar, Brahmaji, Shraddha Das
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
NOTE : The article was first published in THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Newspaper (Mumbai Edition) on 1st June 2021.
