Rating: 7/10 (Prabhas all the way)

Ace director Puri Jagganadh has joined hands with Young Rebel star Prabhas for a film called Bujjigadu-Made in Chennai. How is the movie? I liked it but the critics didn't.

Story: A young man named Bujji (Prabhas) who is a die hard fan of Rajinikant treks a journey from Chennai to Hyderabad to find his childhood sweetheart Chitti (Trisha). Whether he finds her or not is the rest of the story.

Performances: Prabhas is an absolute revelation in this movie. The characterization of Bujji is world class and it has all the elements of a one man show. Puri Jagan is known for creating amazing hero characterizations such as Chanti gadu from Idiot, Pandu from Pokiri and Govind from Desamuduru. Prabhas is excellent from start to finish and makes you laugh the entire movie with his improvised dialogue delivery and body language. The way he acts with Sunil and in the bus scene are hilarious. Prabhas carries the movie on his shoulders and no matter who's fan you are, you will like Prabhas in this movie.

Trisha as Chitti is ok and looks good. Sanjanna Galrani of Sardaar Gabbar Singh fame is hot as Chitti 2.0.

Mohan Babu gets a crucial role as Sivanna and his classic dialogue delivery is on point here. But one feels an actor of his caliber is not needed for the role.

Kota, Subbaraju, Ajay, and Supreet do a fine job as the villains.

Sunil is hilarious as Tokyo Johnny and MS Narayana, Ahuthi Prasad, and Hema are equally as competent in the comedy department as the parents of the protagonists.

Brahmaji is alright and so is Satyam Rajesh.

Direction: Puri Jagannadh has done a commendable job with the movie but the problem for this movie is the story. It has no real dhum or strength to it. The idea of the hero joining mafia and helping one eliminate the other reminds one of Pokiri heavily and Puri still seems to be in that hangover as a lot of his films lately feature mafia gangs and dons. The characterization he's designed for Prabhas stands out and he's relied on Prabhas to pull it off and he manages to do so. His dialogues are flawless and the screenplay is decent for the most part with entertainment in the 1st half. Overall, it's a good job by him but a better story would have made it even better.

Technicalities: Music and BGM by Sandeep Chowta are excellent. Bujjigadu has catchy songs and it will stand out in the musical albums in Prabhas's career.  The songs are well shot but come as speed breakers in the film. Dialogues by Puri Jagan are superb and some punchlines written for Prabhas are very good. Editing by Varma is questionable as the 2nd half drags a lot. Cinematography by Shyam K. Naidu is excellent and once again he has done flawless work for a Puri Jagan film. Stunts and Fights by Vijayan are pretty good although they lack creativity and realism. The interval fight stands out with excellent choreography. Production Values by Creative Commercials are sublime and Bujjigadu is a stylish and slickly shot film.

Verdict: Bujjigadu is a mindless film with a once in a lifetime performance by Prabhas that makes it entertaining. Puri Jagan has a routine story at hand with two best friends coming to look for each other after 20 years or so have passed but he has made a sublime 1st half with entertainment being generated by Prabhas and Sunil.

The 1st half runs on comedy until Bujji comes to Hyderabad looking for Chitti and becomes entangled in the mafia wars between Mohan Babu and Kota. The interval bang is impressive and post the interval, the film becomes a but dragged out and the editing department could have come in the clutch here by making the film more crisp. Prabhas still manages to keep you entertained with his hilarious antics in the heroines house in the 2nd half before a bloody climax.

Bujjigadu is not a family friendly film. It has lots of violence some of which is also gory, a staple of Puri Jagan films nowadays.

Overall, Bujjigadu is a decently made film with a weak story but is carried by Prabhas' flawless performance and Puri Jagan's taking. Watch it for Prabhas and be entertained by the character called Bujji.