iSmart Shankar
| iSmart Shankar | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Puri Jagannadh |
| Written by | Puri Jagannadh |
| Produced by | Puri Jagannadh Charmme Kaur |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Raj Thota |
| Edited by | Junaid Siddiqui |
| Music by | Mani Sharma |
Production company | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 141 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Telugu |
| Budget |
|
| Box office |
|
iSmart Shankar is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language science fiction action film directed by Puri Jagannadh, who co-produced with Charmme Kaur. It stars Ram Pothineni, alongside Satyadev Kancharana, Nabha Natesh, Nidhhi Agerwal, Ashish Vidyarthi and Raj Deepak Shetty. The music was composed by Mani Sharma, while cinematography and editing were handled by Raj Thota and Junaid Siddiqui. In the film, an assassin helps the cops to investigate a high-profile case when a slain cop's memories are transferred into his brain.[7]
iSmart Shankar was released theatrically on 18 July 2019 and became commercially successful at the box office.[4] A spiritual sequel titled Double iSmart was released on 15 August 2024.
Plot
[edit]iSmart Shankar, a street-smart assassin, works under another assassin Kaka. One day, Shankar falls in love with Chandini and tries various ways to impress her. Despite being annoyed at first, Chandini reciprocates his feelings. Under Kaka's orders, Shankar kills CM Kasi Vishwanath and escapes to Goa with Chandini. However, the cops learn about their location and a shootout ensues in which Chandini gets killed in a cross-fire and Shankar gets arrested.
Meanwhile, Sara, a neuroscientist, is working on memory transfer and has achieved successful results with rats. Sara's fianceè Arun, a CBI officer, is investigating Kasi Vishwanath's death and deduces that a higher force has planned and killed him. Shankar escapes from prison and deduces that Kaka had a major role in Chandini's death and has been ordered to kill Shankar. Kaka tries to escape, but Shankar shoots Kaka in Sara's car.
When Arun is about crack the case, he gets killed by the goons. Chandrakanth, Arun's superior and CBI chief, is desperate to know about the killer, where they transfer Arun's memory to Shankar with Sara's help, knowing that Arun's memory will remove his past. Shankar wakes up and experiences memories that are not his own, where he gets enraged after Sara reveals the truth to him and realizes that he will forget about Chandni in a few days.
Shankar experiences brief flashes when he becomes Arun, but reverts to being Shankar. Shankar finds Arun's house and discovers a bag that has evidences about the killer, where he calls Chandrakanth to meet him in Goa. When Arun is about to reveal the identity of the murderers, he reverts back to Shankar and escapes with Sara at knifepoint. After a few events, Shankar reverts to Arun and reveals to Chandrakanth that Kasi Vishwanath's son Devendra and brother-in-law Central Minister Ramamurthy are the masterminds behind the assassination.
Arun devises a plan to arrest Devendra and Ramamurthy with the evidence in Varanasi. Devendra gets exposed and escapes and Arun follows him, but Devendra and his men continuously beat Arun in his head, which results in Arun getting reverted to Shankar. Sara tells Shankar that Devendra is behind Chandni's death. After an intense fight, Shankar kills Devendra, thus avenging Chandini's death. Sara and Arun leave for Hong Kong on a vacation and Arun proposes to Sara, who happily agrees, but Arun reverts to Shankar.
Cast
[edit]- Ram Pothineni as Ustaad "iSmart" Shankar / Arun
- Satyadev as Arun, a CBI officer
- Nabha Natesh as Chandini
- Nidhhi Agerwal as Dr. Sarah
- Sayaji Shinde as CBI Chief Chandrakanth
- Ashish Vidyarthi as Ramamoorthy, Central Minister of India
- Raj Deepak Shetty as Devendra Viswanath
- Tulasi as Viswanath's wife
- Getup Srinu as Shankar's friend
- Aziz Naser
- Puneet Issar as CM Kashi Viswanath
- Madhusudhan Rao as Kaka
- Vikas Sethi as DCP Dharam
Cameo appearance
[edit]- Gangavva as a woman in lorry
- Lekha Prajapati in "Bonalu" song
- Puri Jagannadh as himself in the song "iSmart Theme"
Production
[edit]Principal photography began in January 2019 in Hyderabad. The first schedule finished in February 2019.[8] The second schedule took place in Goa on March 2019.[9] The action sequences were shot in April 2019 and the third schedule took place in Varanasi.[10] The filming wrapped in May 2019.[11]
Soundtrack
[edit]| iSmart Shankar | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |||||
| Released | 4 July 2019 | ||||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | ||||
| Length | 21:09 | ||||
| Language | Telugu | ||||
| Label | Zee Music South | ||||
| Mani Sharma chronology | |||||
| |||||
| |||||
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Dimaak Kharaab" | Kasarla Shyam | Keerthana Sharma, Saketh Komanduri | 4:40 |
| 2. | "Zindabad Zindabad" | Bhaskarabhatla Ravi Kumar | Sarath Santhosh, Ramya Behara | 4:40 |
| 3. | "iSmart Theme" | Bhaskarabhatla Ravi Kumar | Anurag Kulkarni | 4:12 |
| 4. | "Undipo" | Bhaskarabhatla Ravi Kumar | Anurag Kulkarni, Ramya Behara | 5:09 |
| 5. | "Bonalu" | Kasarla Shyam | Rahul Sipligunj, Mohana Bhogaraju | 5:51 |
| Total length: | 21:09 | |||
Release
[edit]Ismart Shankar was released on 18 July 2019.
Home media
[edit]The satellite and digital streaming rights of the film were sold to Zee Network. The film was dubbed in Hindi by Aditya Movies.[12]
Reception
[edit]iSmart Shankar received mixed reviews from critics with praise for the Ram's performance, music and action sequences, but criticized its script.
Critical response
[edit]123telugu gave 3.25/5 stars and wrote "iSmart Shankar is an unapologetic full on mass masala entertainer aimed at the masses."[13] Hemanth Kumar of Firstpost gave 3/5 stars and wrote "Despite its crassness at times, iSmart Shankar strikes a chord largely due to its story, Puri Jagannadh’s conviction, and Mani Sharma’s compelling background score."[14]
Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "In this make-believe world, when rules change by-the-minute, it’s hard to give a damn."[15] Sify gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "iSmart Shankar is aimed at frontbenchers. Despite the idea of transplantation of memories being new, the rest of the story and its treatment are over-the-top and too clichéd. This is a loud mass action-thriller."[16]
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Date of ceremony | Award | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 January 2020 | Zee Cine Awards Telugu | Best Director | Puri Jagannadh | Won | [17] |
| Best Producer | Charmy Kaur | Won | |||
| Best Music Director | Mani Sharma | Won | |||
| Sensational Star of the Year | Ram Pothineni | Won | |||
| Best Actor (Male) | Ram Pothineni | Nominated | |||
| 18 September 2021 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Director – Telugu | Puri Jagannadh | Nominated | |
| Best Cinematographer – Telugu | Raj Thota | Nominated | |||
| Best Actor – Telugu | Ram Pothineni | Nominated | |||
| Best Music Director – Telugu | Mani Sharma | Nominated | |||
| Best Male Playback Singer – Telugu | Anurag Kulkarni for "iSmart Theme" | Won |
Sequel
[edit]In September 2022, it has been reported that the film's spiritual sequel is currently being developed due to Puri Jagannadh's film Jana Gana Mana being shelved after the box office disappointment of Jagannadh's previous film Liger.[18] An official announcement of the spiritual sequel titled Double iSmart has been announced in May 2023.[19] Double iSmart was released on 15 August 2024, coinciding with Independence Day, which became a box-office bomb.
Notes
[edit]- ^ Deccan Chronicle estimates the film's budget to be ₹150 million.[2] The Hans India estimates the film's budget to be ₹200 million.[3]
- ^ The Times of India estimates the film worldwide gross to be over ₹750 million.[4] Sakshi Telugu estimates the film worldwide gross to be ₹780 million.[5] Sakshi Post estimates the film worldwide gross to be ₹850 million.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ Hooli, Shekhar H. (18 July 2019). "iSmart Shankar movie review and rating by audience: Live updates". www.ibtimes.co.in. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
- ^ "Tollywood 2019". Deccan Chronicle. 30 December 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
- ^ "Ismart Shankar pre-release business report". The Hans India. 16 July 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
- ^ a b "iSmart Shankar completes 100 days; Ram, Puri and Charmme reminisce the success". The Times of India. 25 October 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- ^ "2019లో భారీ వసూళ్లు రాబట్టిన సినిమాలివే." [Highest grossing films of 2019]. Sakshi (in Telugu). 31 December 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
- ^ "iSmart Shankar Closing Collections: Ram Pothineni Ustad Of Tollywood Box Office". Sakshi. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- ^ ""Only inspiration, no copy": Puri Jagannadh clarifies about 'iSmart Shankar' similarities with 'iBoy'". The Times of India. 17 July 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
- ^ "ISMART SHANKAR' DONE WITH HYD SCHEDULE, TO GO TO GOA". India Glitz. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ Neeshita Nyayapati (23 March 2019). "Puri Jagannadh and Ram Pothineni's 'iSmart Shankar' wraps up Goa schedule". Times of India. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ "'iSmart Shankar' moves to Varanasi". Telugu Cinema. 30 April 2019. Archived from the original on 1 June 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ "'ISMART SHANKAR' WRAPS UP TALKIE PART, LOCKS TEASER DATE". India Glitz. 12 May 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.
- ^ iSmart Shankar Full Hindi Dubbed Movie | Ram Pothineni, Nidhi Agerwal, Nabha Natesh, 16 February 2020, retrieved 19 September 2022
- ^ "Review : iSmart Shankar – Ram's Massy treat". 123Telugu. 19 July 2019.
- ^ "iSmart Shankar movie review: Ram's pulsating energy meets its match in Puri Jagannadh's irreverence". Firstpost. 18 July 2019.
- ^ "ISMART SHANKAR MOVIE REVIEW". The Times of India.
- ^ "iSmart Shankar review: A loud, over-the-top mass action-thriller". Sify. Archived from the original on 18 July 2019.
- ^ "Zee Cine awards Telugu 2020: Samantha Akkineni, Chiranjeevi and Nani win top laurels". Hindustan Times. 12 January 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
- ^ "Puri Jagan To Do iSmart Shankar-2 Now?". indiaherald.com. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
- ^ "Puri Jagannadh confirms the sequel to 'iSmart Shankar'; Title registered as 'Double iSmart'". The Times of India. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
External links
[edit]- 2019 films
- 2010s Telugu-language films
- 2019 science fiction action films
- Indian science fiction action films
- Films directed by Puri Jagannadh
- Fiction about memory
- Films shot in Hyderabad, India
- Films shot in Goa
- Films shot in Uttar Pradesh
- Films about contract killing in India
- Indian films about revenge
- Indian vigilante films
- 2010s vigilante films
- Indian science fiction films