‘Janaka Aithe Ganaka’ movie review: An earnest Suhas cannot salvage this messy courtroom drama

Suhas and Sangeerthana Vipin in the Telugu film ‘Janaka Aithe Ganaka’

Telugu cinema has consistently portrayed stories where protagonists embody middle-class values — from Needi Naadi Oke Katha and Middle Class Melodies to Middle Class Abbayi (MCA) and The Family Star. Interestingly, Dil Raju, the producer behind two of these films, also backs Janaka Aithe Ganaka this week.  The Sandeep Reddy Bandla directorial, starring Suhas, aims to acknowledge and appreciate the bread-winners of middle-class households, in the guise of a courtroom drama.

Prasad (Suhas), a married man, is a salesperson for a washing machine manufacturing company. Dissatisfied with having been brought up with compromises, and fearing that he and his wife may not be financially able to raise a child, the couple decide against parenthood, until their decision backfires.

The film takes off in style as Sandeep establishes the interpersonal relationships in Prasad’s family with a hint of satire. Prasad keeps quarrelling with his father Ramana over the latter’s bad real estate investments, shares a love-hate relationship with his grandmother, and buys jalebis for his wife in the evenings. He beats weekday work blues at a bar with a lawyer friend. 

A scene where Prasad justifies his reasons for not having a child is a laugh riot. However, after Prasad files a petition against a condom manufacturer and the action shifts to the court, the film falls apart gradually. Moving beyond the slice-of-life, relatable setting, the filmmaker takes too many cinematic liberties to generate (substandard) humour. 

Janaka Aithe Ganaka is a film with an identity crisis. It starts by painting a realistic portrait of middle-class life, makes a mess of the courtroom proceedings with weak, vague arguments and caricaturish characters and fails to give any agency to Prasad’s wife. The female lead only smiles, eats jalebis and reiterates the line ‘maa ayana anni chuskuntaru’ (my husband will take care of everything).

Alternating from misleading condom advertisements to livelihood issues, the difficulties of raising a child and problems plaguing the education system, there’s no focus in the storytelling. A pre-interval scene, where a judge is desperate to know more about Prasad’s ‘equation’ with his wife, is in poor taste and raises doubts about the director’s intent. 

At no point is Prasad genuinely challenged in the court. It’s surprising how a middle-class man, leading a hand-to-mouth existence, quits his job out impulsively and fights a case in a court with a novice lawyer. The inherent perversion in the characterisation of the advocates representing the condom manufacturer dilutes the story further. Worse, there is an unnecessary, dangerous generalisation about abortion.

The repeated spotlight on Prasad’s financial status makes for a tedious watch. The climax is too hurried, with the sudden and convenient transformation of the characters.

Murli Sharma’s entry as the defence lawyer doesn’t provide much momentum either; the sparks are too intermittent to offer any respite. The tale of a common man pitted against a corporate giant in a court is inspired by some Ayushmann Khurana starrers, OMG 2 and Jolly LLB. Janaka Aithe Ganaka too tries to tackle a social stigma using humour and a handful of visual metaphors, but the treatment is insensitive and tone-deaf. 

The casting decisions evince no interest. It’s tiring to see Suhas play different variants of the same character — of an ordinary man stuck in an extraordinary situation. Though he’s a performer of terrific mettle, the film doesn’t offer him much scope to try anything new. Goparaju Ramana, as the Chetak-riding father, is hardly tested in a familiar role. 

Sangeerthana Vipin’s warm screen presence is under-utilised in a poorly etched character where femininity is reduced to domesticity. Vennela Kishore is the only actor who enlivens the screen even in beaten-to-death situations. Rajendra Prasad and Prabhas Sreenu get a few moments to shine but the treatment of their characters leaves a lot to be desired. 

Cinematographer Sai Sriram’s lively colour palette is certainly a silver lining. Vijai Bulganin’s background score complements the narrative, while Karthik’s song ‘Nuvve Naku Lokam’ is the pick of the lot. Debutant director Sandeep Reddy Bandla handles family drama and humour better than the high-stakes sequences, which he stuffs with too many ideas. 

If handled well, Janaka Aithe Ganaka could have been a conversation starter on several pertinent issues — the idea of not having children, the stigma around condom usage and misleading advertisements. For now, it is just another missed opportunity.  

(Janaka Aithe Ganaka is currently running in theatres)