Kshana Kshanam

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Kshana Kshanam
File:Kshana Kshanam poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRam Gopal Varma
Produced byK. L. Narayana
Y. Lakshmana Chowdary
Written byRam Gopal Varma
Dialogue bySatyanand
StarringVenkatesh
Sridevi
Paresh Rawal
Rami Reddy
Music byM. M. Keeravani
CinematographyS. Gopala Reddy
Edited byShankar
Production
company
Sri Durga Arts
Release date
  • 9 October 1991 (1991-10-09)
Running time
158 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu

Kshana Kshanam (transl.Every Moment) is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language road thriller film written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma.[2] The film stars Venkatesh, Sridevi, Paresh Rawal, and Rami Reddy. The plot follows Satya (Sridevi), a young woman who is hounded by a gang of robbers headed by Nayyar (Rawal) and the police. With the help of a pickpocketer Chandu (Venkatesh), she escapes into the forests.

The soundtrack and background score composed by M. M. Keeravani received positive reviews.[3] The film is one of the highest-rated Telugu films on the Internet Movie Database. The narrative by Varma and the cinematography by S. Gopala Reddy were appreciated.[4][5]

Kshana Kshanam won five state Nandi Awards, including Best Direction, Best Screenplay, and a Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu to Sridevi. Varma later adapted Kshana Kshanam in Hindi as Daud, and produced caper films such as Thiruda Thiruda, Anaganaga Oka Roju and Road.[6]

Plot[edit]

Narayana and his accomplice, working for Nayar, break into a bank in Hyderabad and rob 1,00,00,000. Found out by the police, the group engages in a shootout and later a chase, during which one of the gang members and the policemen are killed. Narayana, going rogue, kills his accomplice and betrays Nayar, hoping to keep the loot for himself. With the police watching all routes out of Hyderabad, Nayar and his men track Narayana to his brother's photo studio. Before he gets caught, Narayana hides the clue to where he hid the money in one of the photo envelopes.

Caught and tortured, Narayana reveals the clue, but before they can retrieve it, the envelope is taken by Satya, a middle-class working girl. Before dying, Narayana reveals the truth and the clue to his brother. Heading home, Satya is accosted by one of Nayar's men, who demand the envelope. Trying to escape, Satya accidentally stabs him, after which her nosy neighbor calls the police on her. While on the phone, the thug gets up again, only to fall down dead, a knife lodged in his back, which later is shown as being thrown by Narayan's brother.

Meanwhile, Chandu is a small-time thief posing as a police officer to con and steal from people. While relaxing at a Dhaba, Satya enters the place and calls her friend to inform her about what happened, unaware that the police were listening in. Chandu inadvertently saves her from being assaulted by a gang of hoodlums, and while she is thanking him, the police arrive. Thinking that they are after him, Chandu takes Satya hostage and escapes into the jungle with her. Meanwhile, Nayar and his men also join the pursuit.

Chandu and Satya face a few challenges in avoiding the police, Narayana's brother, and Nayar in the forest, gradually growing closer to each other. They run into Nayar, where he demands to know where the envelope is. Escaping the police led by Inspector Yadav and Narayana's brother, Chandu deduces that the clue to the money is hidden in that envelope. They eventually stumble across Nayar's truck, which they use to escape the jungle and into the city. Knowing that Satya's apartment is a crime scene and will be guarded, Chandu and Satya decide to scale the building from outside through her neighbour's apartment. They eventually find the envelope, which contains a storage receipt for the cloakroom at the railway station. Evading Nayar's henchmen and the police, Chandu and Satya face off against one of Nayar's henchmen at Chandu's apartment and tie him up. While Chandu goes off to meet his friend and decide what to do with the money they found, Satya is left to guard the henchman, who breaks free and subdues her, then calls Nayar.

Meanwhile, Chandu decides to keep half the money and return the rest but is ambushed by Nayar's henchmen and brought to his apartment, where he is forced to hand over the receipt. However, the police are tipped off to their location by a police informant, and a shootout ensues. Chandu manages to subdue Nayar and get the receipt, and they head for the station with Nayar and the police in pursuit. The duo reaches the station and retrieves the money bag. They then climb the train to escape Nayar. At the next station, Nayar and his men board the train, leading to a fight between Chandu and the goons. Left with Nayar and one of his men, Nayar holds Chandu and Satya at gunpoint, demanding the money. In response, Chandu hangs the bag over the side, threatening to drop if he shoots. Left with no options, Nayar decides to have the train stopped so that he can shoot them and retrieve the money, only for his henchman and the train driver to struggle and fall out of the train. Chandu unhooks the engine from the rest of the train, jumping back to grab the bag and jump off. With the engine out of control, it plows through a number of houses before finally ramming a wall and slowing down.

Nayar is arrested by the police, and Chandu returns the money to Yadav, after being forced to do so by Satya. The film ends with Satya asking Chandru to drop her home, offering to introduce him to her mother, and an amused Chandu agreeing.

Cast[edit]

Actor / Actress Character Name
Venkatesh Chandu
Sridevi Satya
Paresh Rawal Nayar (Mastan)
Rami Reddy Inspector Yadav
Brahmanandam Store Manager
Narsing Yadav Narsing
Hema Sarala
Horse Babu Narayana
Jack Gaud Ungan

Production[edit]

Bijon Das Gupta was the production designer for the film. Filming was done in Hyderabad, Nallamala forests, and Mudumalai National Park. Sridevi's acclaimed performance of an innocent girl stuck in a tight spot won her awards. She also sang the soundtrack "Kingu La Kanipisthunnadu" which was shot in The Leela Mumbai.

Soundtrack[edit]

Kshana Kshanam
Soundtrack album by
Released1991
Recorded1991
GenreSoundtrack
Length28:37
LabelSurya Audio
ProducerM. M. Keeravani
M. M. Keeravani chronology
Aswani
(1991)
Kshana Kshanam
(1991)
Laati
(1991)

Music composed by M. M. Keeravani. The song Jaamu Raatiri written by Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry with vocals by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and K. S. Chithra is considered as an evergreen song.[7] It was released on 13 August 1990. Rekindled version of the song was released on 23 August 2019 through Vel Records.[8] Vedala Hemachandra, Kaala Bhairava, Manisha Eerabathini, Deepu, Damini, Mounima, Shruthi, Noel Sean and Prudhvi Chandhra have performed the vocals of the song.[9][10]

Track-List
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Jaamu Raatiri"Sirivennela SitaramasastriSP Balu, Chitra4:59
2."Jumbaaye"VennelakantiChitra, Mano6:55
3."Ammayi Muddu"Sirivennela SitaramasastriSP Balu, Chitra5:37
4."Andanantha Etta"Sirivennela SitaramasastriSP Balu, Chitra5:18
5."Ko ante koti"Sirivennela SitaramasastriSP Balu, Sridevi5:25
Total length:28:37

Release[edit]

Kshana Kshanam was released on 9 October 1991.[1] The film was dubbed and released in Tamil as Ennamo Nadakudhu in October 1992.[11]

Reception[edit]

Griddaluru Gopalrao of Zamin Ryot wrote his review on 18 October 1991, appreciating the performances of the lead cast and the action sequences. Gopalrao, however, opined that the writing could have been better. He felt that the suspense was diluted because the audience is fed with the details which the characters themselves are not aware of.[12] On 16 October 1992, Malini Mannath of The Indian Express termed the film a "comic-thriller." She wrote that "The climax scene on a train has been superbly directed."[11]

In July 2020, The News Minute's Balakrishna Ganeshan opined that the Kshana Kshanam tells the story from a female perspective which is rare in Indian cinema, however, he added that the film still suffers from male saviour complex. On the lead cast, he wrote: "Sridevi and Venkatesh are understated and subtle in their respective performances." Appreciating the cinematography, he stated: "S Gopal Reddy's cinematography too deserves mention. The film has a lot of top angle shots during the chasing sequences, which establish the chaos and keep the film fast-paced."[13]

Awards[edit]

Nandi Awards[14]
Filmfare Awards South

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Kshana Kshanam". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  2. "Kshana Kshanam (Ram Gopal Varma) 1991 – Indiancine.ma". Indiancine.ma.
  3. "No Limit for Adventure, Situational Comedy and Action- Kshana Kshanam Part 3". Marapuraani Chitralu.
  4. Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema- Kshana Kshanam, Pg(503)-Professor of critical Studies-Paul Willemen-2014
  5. "telugu cinema – Good Films – Kshanakshanam – Venkatesh, Sridevi – Ram Gopal Varma – S Gopal Reddy – MM Keeravani". idlebrain.com.
  6. "Edouard Waintrop on the New Indian Cinema : UP Front – India Today". India Today. 18 May 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
  7. Dasagrardhi, Madhuri. "A soothing lullaby turns 30". Telangana Today. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  8. "This rekindled version of Jaamu Raathiri song from Kshana Kshanam will make your day - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 11 July 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. "'Jaamu Raathiri': Rekindled version becomes a big hit - Telugu News". IndiaGlitz.com. 17 August 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  10. "'జామురాతిరి జాబిలమ్మ' మరోసారి సక్సెస్." Samayam Telugu (in తెలుగు). Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  11. 11.0 11.1 Mannath, Malini (16 October 1992). "Sridevi sizzles". The Indian Express. p. 7. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  12. Gopalrao, Griddaluru (18 October 1991). "చిత్ర సమీక్ష: క్షణ క్షణం" (PDF). Zamin Ryot (in తెలుగు). p. 7.
  13. "Revisiting 'Kshana Kshanam': The Sridevi-Venkatesh crime drama that remains a classic". The News Minute. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  14. "నంది అవార్డు విజేతల పరంపర (1964–2008)" [A series of Nandi Award Winners (1964–2008)] (PDF). Information & Public Relations of Andhra Pradesh. Retrieved 21 August 2020.(in Telugu)

External links[edit]