Rating: 2.25/5

Story:

Vishnu (Sree Vishnu) is a junior lecturer who lives his life by the stars, believing that his entire existence depends on the numbers and the `vastu shastra`. When he falls for his superior, Manisha (Nayana Sarika), their shared desperation to get married seems like a match made in heaven. However, a twist throws them into chaos when Manisha’s secret comes to light. The rest of the story is about how the duo navigates the quirks of their fate.

Performances & Technical Departments:

1. Sree Vishnu: Lately, the actor hasn`t just been playing comedic roles; he has also been reshaping the films` brand of comedy to fit his persona. He excels in Vishnu Vinyasam in this regard, though it lacks the level of perfection seen in some of his recent hits. Additionally, he has started to overextend himself latel, reminiscent of Manchu Manoj during his heyday as a lead.

2. Nayana Sarika: The actress looks duller for her role. The absence of character development shows. She is asked to behave like the archetype of a bad girl in the early rom-com scenes. And she approaches the part not knowing how "bold" she is supposed to look. In the second half, especially in the serious scenes, she has little to offer in terms of performance. As a result, we don`t feel for her.

3. The elders: Goparaju Ramana is boring as the male lead`s father. Srikanth Iyyengar is the heroine`s father with no nuance. Murali Sharma, as the narrator who is being interviewed by Satyam Rajesh, is average.

4. The comedians: It is as if Satya was not informed about the brand of meme-inspired comedy his co-star was indulging in. The tragedy is, many jokes he should have ideally cracked were given to the hero. Srinivas Reddy`s astrologer character had so much potential. Brahmaji is underutilized; as the manipulative colleague of Vishnu, his character should have had takeaways.

5. The technical output: This is a low-effort movie, with the cinematography and the aesthetic coming across as lacklustre. As for Radhan`s background score, it was intended to be cartoonish and frantic. However, nothing registers. It`s not delightfully kooky, something some scenes totally deserved.

Analysis:

You have likely seen the Instagram trend: a beautiful girl smiles, only to shock the male guy by revealing her decaying teeth. Early in Vishnu Vinyasam, this exact idea is lifted for a matchmaking scene. While cinema can legitimately draw inspiration from viral layman humor, a film should elevate its source material. When a filmmaker fails to add value to a readymade meme, it is sad.

The title itself has a philosophical connotation. The hero`s struggles with his bachelor status should have given rise to contemporary comedy. What do his parents do to get him married? Does he feel genuinely upset about his civil status? Without offering a glimpse of his thinking and mindset, how do you expect the audience to buy into his risky decisions?

Vishnu Vinyasam follows the formula of reserving all the serious scenes to the final 20 minutes. Until then, the hero shows only comical frustration even though the piece of information he knows is supposed to make him behave otherwise. Considering this formula, the film needed a couple of more comedians to travel with the hero. A member in the heroine`s family should have been played by a young comedian.

Many ideas are underdeveloped. A party involving the hero and his colleagues becomes the scene of relationship chaos. The only one trying to evoke laughs is the hero. After a point, Sree Vishnu seems to just over-react to his troubles, overdo his excitement, overplay his anxieties.

Verdict:

Vishnu Vinyasam attempts to orbit the charm of Sree Vishnu’s timing. It is watchable as long as it doesn`t overstuff scenes with meme references. The storyline is decent. However, many scenes are underdeveloped.