Saturday, November 8, 2008

Balayya unimpressive at Yuva Garjana


Desaraju Surya

Guntur: Actor Nandamuri Balakrishna has not lived up to the expectations. To put it simply, he was unimpressive. The stage was grand for his formal political debut but he could not deliver the best, not even anything better. In his 20-minute address at the mammoth Yuva Garjana (roar of youth) rally organised by the Telugu Desam Party, which witnessed a turnout of over 12 lakh people, Balakrishna merely recited a speech that he has obviously memorised. Just like a school kid would recite a lesson in a classroom. Noted Telugu film writer Paruchuri Gopala Krishna scripted the speech for Balakrishna with all the elements – the Telugu glory, NTR's legacy, the TDP's development policies and, of course, a vitriolic attack on the ruling Congress party. The script was punchy enough but not the actor. Walking across the dais, Balakrishna hurriedly blurted out what all was in his memory and often fumbled. Only towards the end of his address did Balakrishna – the son of TDP founder-president and legendary Telugu actor N T Rama Rao – gave glimpses of his dialogue delivery prowess. He was emotional all through but appeared to be equally hasty. A couple of times he was distracted when his brother Harikrishna and other TDP leaders tried to prompt something to him. Balakrishna's only "powerful" moment was when he characterised various castes and proclaimed "I am a man of all castes. I am Nandamuri Balakrishna, truly yours and one among you." He got a warm hug from his brother and TDP MP Nandamuri Harikrishna upon completion of the speech while other senior leaders of the party too complimented him.

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