The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Cliched college capers FilM Review

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Saturday, Sep 29, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Cliched college capers FilM Review

Run of the mill: A scene from the film ‘Happy Days’.

Film: Happy Days (Telugu)

Cast: Tamanna, Sandesh,

Director: Shekar Kammula

College is not only a place for fun but an institution that creates a foundation for one’s life. There is so much one could learn in those years, with the first few days capable of making or marring the psyche of a student. While ragging in any form is a cognizable and non-bailable offence, Shekar Kammula’s “Happy Days” portrays it as a ‘bonding’ that provides a platform for interaction among students.

It’s all about how a few boys and girls epitomise college life, how they fall in love and out of it, freak out on parties, excursions and how the biggest achievement is to have a girlfriend rather than achieve a university rank. Oops! they could manage that too, as the heroine is a topper. Every other person has a boyfriend, girlfriend and eventually even a studious girl too is shown as falling in love.

Except for the parents being oh so broadminded, there are other predictable scenes like the boy and girl painting the town red on a bike, getting drenched and munching corn (thank god it’s not an ice cream this time), a guy getting infatuated with the lecturer, the thrill of watching a porn movie, winning and failing in love, a collage of personal experiences in college and voila, ‘Happy Days’ is complete!

The movie doesn’t really raise any grown-up questions, but, instead, explores situations more likely to crop up in college life.

The debutants bring a freshness, but the film ends up being another clichéd, teen escapist stuff. Not as uplifting as ‘Anand’ or ‘Godavari’, certainly.

Y. SUNITA CHOWDHARY

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