The Premante team has been promoting their film as a simple chai-conversation love story. But Priyadarshi’s track record as a solo lead has been inconsistent — films like Darling and Sarangapani Jathakam didn’t click, and his previous release Mithra Mandali was also a washout. Naturally, he pinned hopes on Premante, directed by debutant Navaneeth Sriram. Leon James composed the music, and Jhanvi Narang — representing the third generation of the Narang family — produced the film along with Puskur Ram Mohan Rao. But does the film live up to expectations? Here’s the story and what works or rather, what doesn’t.

Cast: Priyadarshi, Anandhi, Suma Kanakala, Vennela Kishore, Hyper Aadi

Direction: Navneeth Sriram

Madhi (Priyadarshi), runs a security business that sells CCTV cameras, other security equipment. He meets Ramya (Anandhi) at a wedding, and — quite conveniently — both fall for each other at first sight. Their parents approve the match, they get married, and soon move into their own home. Within a month, Ramya confronts Madhi after getting suspicious of Madhi’s odd behavior — that’s when Madhi reveals his big truth: he is actually a thief has been committing robberies to clear his home loan. Madhi at first tries switch to a normal job, but quietly slips back into his ‘profession’ after his salary doesn’t satisfy him. Meanwhile, Asha Mary (Suma Kanakala), a police constable desperate to crack a case, gets the chance to investigate a theft — Madhi’s case. What happens when Madhi returns to robbery? How does Ramya respond? And does Asha Mary finally solve a case? 

We’ve seen similar themes like a couple after marriage having differences and then united, in Telugu cinema before — Pellaina Kothalo explored marital misunderstandings, and veteran actor Chandramohan acted in many such ‘domestic disharmony’ dramas. Unfortunately, Navneeth Sriram brings nothing fresh to the table. Premante lacks emotional weight, entertainment, and in many scenes, even purpose. Several portions feel forced and overstretched. The entire track involving Suma Kanakala and Vennela Kishore, in particular, is poorly written. Suma is known for her spontaneous humor as an anchor, but here, her comedy falls flat because the situations themselves are badly constructed.

The film actually begins on an interesting note — Madhi marrying Ramya and the shocking revelation of him being a thief. But from that point onwards, the narrative collapses. Instead of exploring the conflict meaningfully, the director takes the story into a bizarre zone where Ramya joins hands with Madhi to commit a robbery. The episode is unrealistic, artificial, and downright silly. Things worsen when the couple cleans the house they rob, and Ramya even cooks biryani and leaves it in the refrigerator. The homeowner returns, tastes it, and comments about it. The story defies logic, the humor misfires, and the climax is especially irritating.

The makers earlier promoted the idea that the couple rekindles their love over chai despite small differences — but the film’s story is nowhere close to that sentiment.

Despite being titled Premante, the film hardly has any love, emotion, or genuine conflict. What it has is unnecessary family drama and a screenplay that wanders aimlessly. Technically, the film looks neat. The production values are good, and the cinematography is solid. Leon James’s music is average at best. The dialogues, especially the comedic punches, are poorly written and feel repetitive.

Priyadarshi does what he can, but the character itself is shallow. It neither challenges him nor contributes anything meaningful to his career. If he takes responsibility alone, the writing should be strong, but here it is very poor. Anandhi, though a Telugu girl popular in Tamil cinema, returns home with a decent performance. She is expressive and charming, but her character arc is weakly written. Suma Kanakala’s role is a complete misfire, with her scenes feeling forced and disruptive. Vennela Kishore repeats his usual routine, offering nothing new. Comedians Hyper Aadi and Auto Ramprasad also appear, but their tracks do not land.

Premante offers nothing except forced comedy and a tiring narrative. Not a single scene stays with you, and the film struggles right from its beginning to its end. Debutant director Navaneeth Sriram gets a solid opportunity but squanders it with a weak script and an uninspired execution.