‘Viraatapalem: PC Meena Reporting’ series review: Abhignya Vuthaluru-starrer is undone by a bland narrative

On the floor, the premise of Viraatapalem: PC Meena Reporting, the Telugu internet sequence from Zee5, could seem to carry some promise. Meena (Abhignya Vuthaluru), a younger feminine constable who’s new to a village, is decided to unravel the story when she suspects that incidents of crime involving ladies are conveniently written off as a curse upon the village.

For many who don’t usually tune into the digital area, the story could maintain some intrigue. Nonetheless, the broad storyline is on the traces of comparable narratives explored in internet sequence and cinema, of late. Author-director Surya Vangala’s brooding Telugu crime thriller Brinda, starring Trisha, is an instance of an intriguing story of crime fixing that additionally lays naked the interior conflicts of the protagonist. Prakash Dantaluri’s Telugu movie Yevam, led by Chandini Chowdary, is one other instance of an underdog story of a feminine cop punching above her weight.

Viraatapalem: PC Meena Reporting is in an analogous zone. Directed by Krishna Poluru, the sequence has screenplay by Vikram Kumar Kandimalla and story by Divya Tejaswi Pera. Whereas one doesn’t count on every story to interrupt new floor, a layered narrative helps to carry viewers’ curiosity over a number of episodes. In any case, long-format storytelling is an area that may assist writers and administrators transcend the confines of mainstream cinema, with out the crutches of getting to cater to the field workplace. That is the place Viraatapalem wobbles.

The story unfolds in a pre-smartphone period. The seeds for the story are sown by an incident within the early Nineteen Eighties when a younger bride throws up blood and dies quickly after her wedding ceremony. Comparable incidents comply with and folks consider the village to be cursed. Nobody will get married within the village. Those that transfer away to different cities, don’t return. The occasional ones who dare to get married within the village or return publish marriage meet with a tragic finish. Years later, the concern and stigma stay.

The sequence spans seven episodes of 17 to 25-minute length every. The primary two episodes serve to introduce the important thing characters. No surprises for guessing that the police station is perfunctory, with out doing a lot crime fixing. Meena, who involves the village accompanied by her mom, finds an unlikely ally within the teaseller, Kittu (Charan Lakkaraju).

The needle of suspicion factors in the direction of a number of highly effective women and men within the village; the narrative packs in a sub plot a few household torn aside owing to variations that come up when a girl desires to marry a person from a special social strata. As soon as these characters and their tales are revealed, the intrigue wears off. Not one of the supporting characters are written with depth. The narrative makes a number of the characters seem suspicious and this repetitive narrative device will get weary. Add to that, not one of the different cops are proven to carry out their duties with the required tenacity. This lack of sturdy characters makes the story insipid.

Meena goes about her investigation in a quite easy method with no room for tact. The various photographs of her misplaced in thought whereas sipping tea at Kittu’s stall get repetitive. Her fast turnaround in relation to marriage is unconvincing. Abhignya tries to shoulder the sequence however the lack of depth in writing limits her scope. 

The ultimate episode raises some extent in regards to the lack of empathy with which society treats those that undergo a disaster and what’s thought-about auspicious or what isn’t. Nonetheless, the argument fails to ring a bell for the reason that story barely explores the mindset of the characters concerned. 

(Viraatapalem: PC Meena Reporting streams on Zee5)