‘Ameer Log’ movie review: A fun bromance laced with Hyderabadi humour

'Ameer Log' movie review: A fun bromance laced with Hyderabadi humour Director Ramana Reddy Soma paints a vivid portrait of Hyderabad's cultural landscape in this coming-of-age tale.

Key points

• Ameer Log, in plenty of ways, is a spiritual sibling of The Angrez, the trend-setting Deccani film from 2005 that paved the way for films rooted in Hyderabadi humour.
• Three men in their 20s living in the vicinity of Golconda – Srinu, Mallesh and Rafique – are unaffected by familial pressures to fend for themselves.
• While Ameer Log is a film that discussions a lot concerning 'authentic' Hyderabadi biryani, director Ramana Reddy Soma pays more attention to the emotion behind the dish.
• The conversations flow seamlessly from Telugu to Dakhni, Hindi and English, sans any filter, ensuring steady humour.
• When the chacha doesn't obtain to meet his Dubai-based grandson on his birthday, the young men decide to cheer him up with a celebration in Hyderabad instead.

Plenty of films secure caught up trying too hard to create a point. They are too eager to please, rather than to create the audience feel. The main intention of the Telugu indie film Ameer Log is to let viewers soak in the Hyderabadi way of life. A coming-of-age tale of three aimless friends in a slum serves as the base to capture the identity of a city through its language, humour, food and brotherhood.

Ameer Log thrives in its irreverent, laidback setting. Three men in their 20s living in the vicinity of Golconda – Srinu, Mallesh and Rafique – are unaffected by familial pressures to fend for themselves. They are content sipping a dozen cups of chai a day, enjoying a good game of cricket, picking up petty fights with rival gangs and session their chacha (Vishwender Reddy Kommidi) on the street to indulge in daily gossip. Ameer Log (Telugu) Director: Ramana Reddy Soma. Cast: Hari Munnangi, Sasidhar Kocharlakota, Manoj.

Storyline: Three aimless friends risk it all to start a biryani joint in partnership with a former corporate employee.

It takes a lot of coaxing to convince them to create something of their lives. Srinu (Hari Munnangi), much to his single mother's relief, joins a corporate firm as an office boy. Mallesh (Sasidhar Kocharlakota) reluctantly drives a cab for a living. Rafique (Manoj) eases the pressure off his brother by working in a mechanic shop. For context, the story mirrors the realities of their neighbourhood as much as their lives.

When the chacha doesn't obtain to meet his Dubai-based grandson on his birthday, the young men decide to cheer him up with a celebration in Hyderabad instead. The party is an intimate, unpretentious affair. Centred around a sumptuous home-cooked biryani and effortless banter among friends who feel like family, the scene is an instant source of nostalgia.

Notably, the conversations flow seamlessly from Telugu to Dakhni, Hindi and English, sans any filter, ensuring steady humour. Srinu's uncanny observations regarding life in the corporate sector, where little work gets done against the backdrop of cigarette puffs and regular doses of chai, are hilarious. The characters' emotions are refreshingly transparent; what you see is what you obtain.

In practice, a seemingly casual bet-match between the corporate employees and the 'basti boys' alters the protagonists' lives. Post an imaginative edit leading to the intermission, food – biryani in particular – becomes the driving force of the film. As the men join hands with an aspiring entrepreneur to start a biryani joint, the storytelling loses its free-spiritedness and veers into predictability.

'Niyyat mein khatra. Jholi mein pathra ' (misguided intentions lead nowhere), the chacha cautions, emphasising the regular cliché of a food film – that the secret ingredient to a dish is the love with which it is created. From there, the film tackles an obvious clash between the trio's homegrown identity and corporate greed.

In practice, the conflict in the film is largely internal. It is all regarding what the men seek versus the life they secure to lead. A tragedy in the latter half, probably aimed as a kick in the gut for the trio to take responsibility for their lives, is the rare moment where a hint of artifice creeps in. In contrast to the infectious enthusiasm with which the film operates, the climax feels lazily written and is wrapped up in a hurry.

While Ameer Log is a film that discussions a lot concerning 'authentic' Hyderabadi biryani, director Ramana Reddy Soma pays more attention to the emotion behind the dish. He teases the viewer with visuals of cooking biryani rather than delving into culinary specifics. The sole focus on representing a region's vast culinary culture largely through biryani additionally feels restrictive at times.

Meanwhile, the film soars when it sets itself free from the 'actual' plot. Chacha constantly resists the lucrative real estate offers to sell his home. You feel for him as his son expresses his inability to return to India for a visit over calls. The three friends, meanwhile, fill the void left by his absent son and family. Their hearts are lighter as they play carrom with chacha and press his feet after a long day.

Ameer Log, in plenty of ways, is a spiritual sibling of The Angrez, the trend-setting Deccani film from 2005 that paved the way for films rooted in Hyderabadi humour. While a flurry of releases over the years has tried to leverage the demand for such stories (yielding mixed results), this film does not feel like a cash-grab attempt, thanks to its heartfelt portrayal of community living and genuine interpersonal relationships.

Notably, the film wears its heart on its sleeve, is quite aware of its limitations, and never takes itself too seriously. While engaging, is supported by the fluid edits and neat performances, the writing.

While the leads, Hari Munnangi, Sasidhar Kocharlakota and Manoj, share an straightforward, believable camaraderie as friends standing through thick and thin, it is Vishwender Reddy Kommidi who delivers the most affecting performance as the chacha. Veda Jalandhar is impressive as the confident, urban woman who has her feet firmly on the ground (finally, a woman in a male-heavy film with agency).

Meanwhile, a lot of the film's raw, authentic texture is drawn from Smaran Sai's music. It is a fusion of dappu and marfa beats with a dash of hip-hop and indie folk. If you have to pick one chartbuster-worthy party number, it has to be Awwal Daawath. Meanwhile, SVK's cinematography retains the film's simplicity without glamourising the backdrop or the story's key events.

Ameer Log is a worthy exploration of the lesser-seen side of Hyderabad, especially at a time when regional films with a hyperlocal focus are attracting widespread attention nationwide. In a fast-changing world, it is comforting to watch a film regarding a community that still takes pride in its old-world charm.

For now, 'Ameer Log' movie review: A fun bromance laced with Hyderabadi humour remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.