Banner: Eetharam Films
Cast: Gopichand, Bhavana
Direction: B.V.Ramana
Production: Pokuri Baburao
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First things first- Ontari is a clean love story. Also, it’s the violent revenge story of a lonely lover. BV Ramana, whose last film was Navdeep’s Premante In the, four years ago has tried his hand to deal with the psychological disorder of “visual hallucination”. It is more or less the same as the disorder suffered by the hero of 7-G Brindavan Colony. You will also find that the director is influenced by the screenplay of Ghajini. The way in which the romance between the hero (Gopichand) and heroine (Bhavana) is developed makes you recall Gopichand’s last film Lakshyam. If the audiences expect any entertainment from all this mish-mash, it is at their own risk.
Vamsi Krishna (Gopichand) hails from a rich joint family in Vizag. Parents, brothers and their wives love him like anything. He falls in love with an orphan girl Mahalakshmi alias Bujji (Bhavana). After playing petty pranks, he wins her love. Panda (Ajay), brother of a dreaded Hyderabad-based rowdy Lal Mahankali (Asish Vidyarthi) comes to Vizag and teases Bujji. Vamsi beats him black and blue and makes him lick the girl’s feet! The rowdy-brothers kidnap Bujji when she is about to marry Vamsi. The girl is raped and killed as the lover looks dazed in a pool of blood. The revenge drama forms the rest of the story.
As usual, Gopichand displayed hectic energy as a mass hero, dominating in stunts, handsome in romantic scenes and pathetic at times of tragedy. Bhavana, the proven Tamil heroine, made her debut. She looked beautiful and glamorous as well. Her agility in dance sequences is a major plus point. It shows, Bhavana has come to stay in the minds of the Telugu audiences.
Ajay, who played the rapist, did his job to perfection. Asish Vidyarthi, the villain, is ruthless in his acting. Rajiv Kanakala’s entry and exit are interesting. He plays the role of a legislator, who can do anything to achieve his goal. Sayaji Shinde played the honest and brilliant cop, who plays the regular scene, allowing the hero go scot free after making butchery of his enemies. Despite having Sunil and Ali, the comedy element is missing. Ali’s mannerism as Sivaji (Rajnikanth) comes as a relief for few seconds. Venkateswara Rao’s characterization as the hero’s dad and his moving revelation of the hero’s plight are interesting. Other than this, the roles played by others have no significance.
The story is just a regular masala mix of love, sentiment and action. The screenplay is badly marred by flashbacks borrowed from various films. By the time, the audience comes out of the theatre; they would be in a dilemma to fix the scenes properly. The entire first half is wasted without any 
happenings. The second half is tedious as the revenge drama unfolds in tune with films in same genre. However, the director deserves appreciation for maintaining the suspense over the heroine’s death till the climax.
The stunts are good. In one fight sequence, the hero (Gopichand) takes on the rowdy (Ajay) and his henchmen. They roll in tar and soot, with the hero baring his chest. But, the chase scene followed immediately shows the hero clean and tidy, giving the audience an odd feeling. Similarly, the rowdy’s den in Vizag is shown twice. But to enter it, one has to pass through the serpentine cellars of the Kutubshahi Tombs of Golconda. Showing the popular shots (used and overused in many films) in the backdrop of Vizag has only damaged the quality of entertainment. Songs are average and nothing special about Mani Sharma’s music and BGM.