‘Epic – First Semester’ review: A personal coming-of-age story with mixed result – Telugu Cinema

What’s “Epic – First Semester” about?

Much against his wishes, Aditya (Anand Deverakonda), whose passion lies in filmmaking, goes to the UK to pursue a master’s degree. His father (Shivaji) believes a foreign degree will lead to a better career, while his mother (Vasuki) believes it will help him get a good dowry.

Having never even flown on a domestic flight, Aditya suddenly finds himself on an international flight and at a university in the UK. His lack of proficiency in English and limited exposure to the outside world do not become major hurdles, thanks to the introduction of a Telugu girl, Kadali (Vaishnavi Chaitanya), whom he meets on his very first day.

Unlike Aditya, Kadali comes from an affluent family in Vizag and is studying in the UK mainly to escape the pressure from her parents to get married. While Aditya is innocent and considers writing scripts his only love, with songs for him meaning Gaddar and Goreti Venkanna, Kadali is bold, modern and practical. She does not believe in emotional attachment and listens to Taylor Swift. They are different as chalk and cheese.

After spending a day roaming around the city with him, Kadali begins to like Aditya and proposes that they become live-in partners, with one condition: no strings attached. For Aditya, this comes as both a shock and a delight. They begin their relationship, but things soon change. Aditya starts losing focus on his first love, writing, while Kadali begins to develop an emotional attachment despite her own rule.

How their lives change from here forms the rest of the story.

Analysis

Aditya Haasan made his mark with the web series “90’s”, which streamed on ETV Win and quickly gained a following. “Epic – First Semester” marks his feature-film debut. In interviews, he has said that the film is not entirely based on his life, though certain portions may resemble his experiences and could also be seen as an extension of his web series.

I have not watched “90’s”, so I entered the theatre with limited knowledge of his writing style. I was witnessing his writing and direction for the first time.

However, it does not take long to understand the personal space in which this film is set. The protagonist is also named Aditya, comes from Wanaparthy in Telangana, and dreams of becoming a filmmaker while making short films. He goes to the UK for further studies, much like the director did in his own life. These similarities give the film a distinctly personal feel.

As the saying goes, some of the best writing comes from personal experiences. We do not know how many of the incidents shown in the film actually happened in Aditya Haasan’s life, apart from the obvious commonalities mentioned above. Yet the look, feel and emotional texture of “Epic – First Semester” suggest a story drawn from a personal space.

Telugu cinema rarely sees such personal-feeling stories.

I liked the way Aditya Haasan has positioned the relationship between the two protagonists, particularly by reversing some gender-specific traits. Generally, men are portrayed as wanting no-strings-attached physical relationships. Here, the heroine wants exactly that, while the hero becomes emotionally overwhelmed after their first sexual encounter.

Kadali is clear about her boundaries. She believes that their different caste and class backgrounds make marriage unlikely and wants their relationship to end once their university life is over. Aditya, on the other hand, wants to marry her and have children. These reversals create some amusing and bold moments, especially for a Telugu film, before the director gradually begins to pull the emotional strings.

Like most romantic comedies, those who do not want to fall in love eventually do, while those seeking love find themselves caught in a dilemma. “Epic – First Semester” follows a similar track in the second half, but adds its own emotional layer.

A scene in which Aditya says that a 24-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman are not viewed the same way by society reflects a certain truth about the gender expectations placed on young people. The sequence involving Aditya’s parents calling him for money also creates a genuine emotional moment.

It is in such scenes that the film shines. Aditya Haasan also leaves his mark in the way he handles lyrics and dialogue, bringing a certain warmth and relatability to them.

However, for all the sincerity and sensitivity the director brings to the film, the middle portions are quite unconvincing and feel somewhat off the mark. The narrative loses its grip during these stretches, and some of the character decisions are difficult to accept. The second half lots of ups and downs.

As mentioned earlier, this feels like a personal film, and perhaps that is also why the story ends before offering a clear conclusion to the protagonist’s journey. It feels less like a complete story and more like the first chapter in his life. The title, “First Semester”, perhaps captures that idea.

Both Anand Deverakonda and Vaishnavi Chaitanya deliver convincing performances and fit their characters well. Anand looks very much like the Aditya the film wants us to see and performs the role with considerable understanding. Vaishnavi Chaitanya’s character is unlike the usual female leads we see in Telugu cinema, and she brings the required confidence and boldness to the role. Their chemistry is one of the film’s strengths.

As the parents, Shivaji and Vasuki are superb. In a brief role, Kalyan Shankar provides some good entertainment, while Gavireddy is adequate.

Hesham Abdul Wahab’s music is a major plus. My personal pick is “Sancharame”, with its lyrics and Goreti Venkanna’s rendition standing out. The other songs are also good. The visuals are bright and suit the film’s youthful setting, while the dialogue writing is relatable.

Bottom Line:

“Epic – First Semester” is a personal-feeling film that is different from the regular Telugu romantic dramas. Despite its flaws and some unconvincing portions, it offers several relatable moments, some fun sequences and an interesting coming-of-age story about a young man caught between his passion and love, family expectations and personal longing. It has its moments and its share of flaws, but is definitely watchable.

Rating: 2.75/5

By Jalapathy Gudelli