Kunal Kohli’s debut film Next Enti releases on December 7, facing competition from Bellamkonda Sai Sreenivas, Kajal Aggarwal and Mehreen Pirzada’s ‘Kavacham’ and Sumanth and Eesha Rebba’s ‘Subrahmanyapuram’. But expectations are high on ‘Next Enti?’ particularly due to various factors given. The film’s promotional material, including posters, teaser, trailer and even songs were received exceptionally well. The film’s shoot was reportedly wrapped within 24 days but there was a massive delay in release. The rom-com is rumoured to be based on the 2004 Bollywood film,‘Hum Tum’, starring Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee. However, none of the film’s cast or crew has confirmed these rumours, so it remains to be seen.
Here are five reasons why you should watch the film:
Kunal Kohli’s debut in Telugu
Kunal Kohli had a sprawling career in the North, first as a film critic and later as a music video and television series director. He later made his debut in Bollywood with the Hrithik Roshan, Rani Mukherjee and Kareena Kapoor starrer ‘Mujhse Dosti Karogi!’. He later went on to deliver hits like Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee’s ‘Hum Tum’, changing the tone of his films with Kajol starrer ‘Fanaa’. Now, the director is making his debut in Telugu with ‘Next Enti?’ making it in the same urban tone as his previous Hindi films. So this is one to watch out for.
The men and women of ‘Next Enti?’
While the story of ‘Next Enti?’ seems to revolve around characters played by Sundeep Kishan and Tamannaah, the film also stars Navdeep and Larissa Bonesi in key roles. While Sundeep Kishan is a regular in Telugu films, he recently gained fame with his Tamil work too. Despite his last Telugu film ‘Manasuku Nachindi’ bombing, he’s still ever-dependable to deliver a good performance. The same holds true when it comes to Tamannaah. Despite her last Telugu film ‘Naa Nuvve’ bombing, she seems like she delivered a good performance from the trailers. Navdeep will be seen essaying the role of a much older man than his age and Tamannaah’s boyfriend while Brazilian model Larissa Bonesi will be seen playing Sundeep’s girlfriend.
Leon James’ tunes
The film’s OST consists of five numbers composed by Leon James, with some of them received well. The peppy and upbeat number ‘Oh No Never!’ sung by Ash King and MM Manasi was received exceptionally well, so was the recently released romantic track ‘Na Nuve Na’ crooned by Shashaa Tirupati and Kapil Nair. Love’otsavam featuring Benny Dayal and Jonita Gandhi’s vocals too recently released. The music director who’s also making his debut in Telugu cinema with this OST wrote, “Very happy to share the full audio jukebox of my debut Telugu film ‘Next Enti’. Please do listen to all the songs and let me know which is your favorite track in the comments below! Hope you love the music and the film!”
The urban vibe of the film
The first thing that stands out with ‘Next Enti?’, be it the film’s music or even the posters and teaser is that it seems like the perfect urban rom-com. Shot extensively in London, the dialogues in the trailer too have an urban vibe to them, being extremely relatable. Talking about the film’s script, Tamannaah had stated in various interviews that she found it bold and that the film is a slice-of-life genre that will let everyone leave with huge smiles on their faces. The film also deals with the themes of love, lust and relationships, all of which are relatable.
The derivation from formulaic narrative
While any Telugu audience loves the slow-motion entries, punch dialogues, hero elevation scenes, duets in exotic locales, random comedy and whistle-worthy moments as much as anyone else, it is refreshing to see Tollywood come up with cinema that deviates from the same ol’ template. ‘Next Enti?’ seems to be one such film that doesn’t have an ounce of Tollywood formula in its blood, with the story, characterisations, dialogues and music seemingly refreshing. But it needs to be seen if Kunal Kohli will attempt to bring in his formula of films to Telugu cinema, making it an old wine in new bottle or has created something unique much-needed for Tollywood.
