iSmart Shankar
iSmart Shankar
| iSmart Shankar | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Puri Jagannadh |
| Produced by | Puri Jagannadh Charmme Kaur |
| Based on | Criminal |
| Starring | Ram Pothineni Nabha Natesh Nidhhi Agerwal Satyadev Kancharana Puneet Issar |
| Music by | Mani Sharma |
| Cinematography | Raj Thota |
| Edited by | Junaid Siddiqui |
Production company | Puri Connects Puri Jagannadh Touring Talkies |
Release date |
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| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
| Budget |
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| Box office |
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iSmart Shankar is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language science fiction action film written and directed by Puri Jagannadh, produced by Puri Jagannadh and Charmme Kaur with music composed by Mani Sharma.[6] It stars Ram Pothineni, Nabha Natesh, Nidhhi Agerwal, Satyadev Kancharana, and Puneet Issar. The film follows a contract killer who helps the police when a slain police officer's memories are transferred to his brain. The film is loosely based on the plot of the 2016 American film Criminal[7] and 2017 British film iBoy.[8]
The film was released theatrically on 18 July 2019. It was a commercial success, running for more than 100 days at the box office.[3] A sequel titled Double iSmart has been announced.[9]
Plot[edit source]
Shankar is a contract killer who works under Kaka. Under Mama's orders, he murders a high-profile politician named Kasi Viswanath. Vishwanath's son Devendra and his brother in law Ramamoorthy swear revenge on Shankar. The film opens with Shankar escaping from jail while being chased by the police. He beats up the police and escapes in a truck where he recollects the past.
While extorting money from an apartment builder, he encounters Chandni, who is a fearless girl and even goes to the extent of slapping Shankar. He gets impressed by this and falls for her. After a few altercations, she reciprocates. Once Shankar murders Kasi Vishwanath on Kaka's orders, he escapes to Goa with Chandni.
However, the police find out his location and track him down. While escaping, Chandni is shot and killed. Shankar is beside himself with grief and swears to kill the person who killed her.
In a parallel storyline, Sara is a neuroscientist who is working on memory transfer and has achieved successful results with rats. Her boyfriend, Arun is a CBI officer who is trying to crack the case of the murder of Kasi Vishwanath. He believes there is a higher force that planned and killed him.
Shankar finds out that Kaka was ordered to kill him as well and murders Kaka when he plans to escape in Sarah's car. He flees while Sarah calls Arun. Arun catches a guy running but the guy is killed when a car hits him. Arun's higher-ups are after him to find the killer and while Arun is about to crack the case, he is shot and killed by goons. The CBI is desperate to know who the murderer is, so with Sarah's help, they transfer Arun's memory to Shankar, knowing full well doing so will remove his past.
Shankar wakes up and experiences shocks and memories that aren't his own. He gets enraged when Sarah reveals the truth to him and realizes that he will forget Chandni in a few days. He experiences brief flashes where he becomes Arun but reverts to being Shankar.
He finds Arun's house and discovers a bag that has all the proof who the murderer is, who turns out to be Ramamoorthy and Devendra. Shankar then fully looses his memory becoming Arun. He then pursues them under the guise of Shankar and in the end, however, Arun suddenly reverts back to Shankar and he finds out that Devendra is the one who killed Chandini and he kills him. The film ends with Arun and Sarah going to Hong Kong and proposing marriage to Sarah on 14 Feb, like Arun had planned with Sarah.
Cast[edit source]
- Ram Pothineni as Shankar / Arun
- Nabha Natesh as Chandni
- Nidhhi Agerwal as Dr. Sarah
- Satyadev Kancharana as Arun
- Puneet Issar as Chief Minister Kashi Viswanath
- Ashish Vidyarthi as Ramamoorthy, Central Minister
- Sayaji Shinde as Chandrakanth, CBI Officer
- Madhusudhan Rao as Kaaka
- Raj Deepak Shetty as Devendra Viswanath
- Tulasi
- Getup Srinu as Shankar's friend
- Gangavva in cameo appearance
- Aziz Naser
- Lekha Prajapati as a festival song in "Bonalu" Song
- Puri Jagannadh as himself in the song "iSmart Theme"
Production[edit source]
The Hyderabad portion of scheduled filming finished in February.[10] Filming in Goa completed in March.[11] The action scenes of the film were shot in Varanasi during April.[12] Filming completed in mid May.[13]
Soundtrack[edit source]
| iSmart Shankar | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |||||
| Released | 4 July 2019 | ||||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | ||||
| Length | 21:09 | ||||
| Language | Telugu | ||||
| Label | Zee Music South | ||||
| Mani Sharma chronology | |||||
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Reception[edit source]
Critical reception[edit source]
Firstpost gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "iSmart Shankar is proof enough that Puri Jagannadh is back with a bang. It might not be his best film, but it’s certainly his most watchable film in years. And Ram is a ball of energy. iSmart Shankar might have its roots in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but Puri Jagannadh gives it his own spin and reimagines it as a quintessential Telugu mass film.".[14]
The Times of India gave 2.5 out of 5 stars stating "In this make-believe world, when rules change by-the-minute, it’s hard to give a damn".[15]
Sify gave 2.5 out of 5 stars stating "iSmart Shankar is aimed at frontbenchers. Despite the idea of transplantation of memories being new, the rest of the story and its treatment are over-the-top and too clichéd. This is a loud mass action-thriller".[16]
Awards and nominations[edit source]
| Date of ceremony | Award | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 January 2020 | Zee Cine Awards Telugu | Best Director | Puri Jagannadh | Won | [17] |
| Best Producer | Charmy Kaur | Won | |||
| Best Music Director | Mani Sharma | Won | |||
| Sensational Star of the Year | Ram Pothineni | Won | |||
| Best Actor ( Male ) | Ram Pothineni | Nominated |
Notes[edit source]
- ^ Deccan Chronicle estimates the film's budget to be ₹150 million.[1] The Hans India estimates the film's budget to be ₹200 million.[2]
- ^ The Times of India estimates the film worldwide gross to be over ₹750 million.[3] Sakshi Telugu estimates the film worldwide gross to be ₹780 million.[4] Sakshi Post estimates the film worldwide gross to be ₹850 million.[5]
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