Ayogya Review: A rural entertainer that stays engaging throughout

Debutant writer and director Mahesh Kumar’s romantic comedy, Ayogya, has a well-balanced approach towards laughter and love, with a tinge of seriousness. The film effortlessly makes us believe that youth have not forgotten how to love and laugh, and when time comes, to take up responsibilities.

Considering the director’s noble intentions to explore Panchayat politics of an underdeveloped village, he should be given full marks for successfully managing to make the audience connect with the subject. The result is a thorough entertainer.

Director: Mahesh Kumar 
Cast: Sathish Ninasam, Rachita Ram, Shivaraj KR Pete, Giri, Ravi Shankar, Aruna Balraj

Ayogya consists of two parallel stories. Siddhegowda (Sathish Ninasam) from a village called Maragowdanahalli is considered a ‘misfit’. A free-spirited, unemployed youth, he loves to undertake small social service without any reward. But his mother (Aruna Balraj) still searches for a bride for her son and seeks the help of a marriage broker (Sunder Raj). Siddegowda is rejected by every prospective girls’ parents. An interesting twist comes when he falls in love with the marriage broker’s daughter, Nandini (Rachita Ram). He takes the help of her father, who gives tips on woo the girl, unaware that it is his own daughter that Siddhegowda is trying win over.

Running in parallel, is a story of Siddhegowda’s childhood ambition to stand in the Panchayat President election. He contests opposite senior member, Bacche Gowda (Ravi Shankar), a long standing president of the village. The challenges he faces and the risks he deals with to achieve his ambition, takes us through the story. On an off, his romantic pursuits are brought in. But it is the well-stitched plot of rural politics that keeps us invested.

As for Sathish Ninasam, he has pulled off the character with maturity, and has intelligently brought the two shades of a misfit and a responsible citizen. He is well supported by Shivaraj KR Pete and Giri. Rachita Ram has done justice to her character, but one wishes the film had scope for more screen space for the talented actor. Ravi Shankar proves yet again that he is a fine actor. 

With apt dialogues by Maasti and Sharath Chakravarthy, Arjun Janya’s excellent melodies (Yennami Yennami is ruling the charts), and Preeth’s cinematography that uses natural lights, Ayogya is a winner. The edit desk, though, needs to be pulled up for an average job. Overall, with a rural backdrop that brings freshness, Ayogya is engaging, and keeps the audience in good spirits throughout.