Most Eligible Bachelor

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Most Eligible Bachelor
Most Eligible Bachelor Poster.jpeg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBommarillu Bhaskar
Written byBommarillu Bhaskar
Produced byBunny Vas
Vasu Varma
StarringAkhil Akkineni
Pooja Hegde
CinematographyPradeesh Varma
Edited byMarthand K. Venkatesh
Music byGopi Sundar
Production
company
Distributed bySarigama Cinemas (United States)
Southern Star International (Australia and New Zealand)
Release date
  • 15 October 2021 (2021-10-15)
Running time
148 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Box office₹51 crore[1]

Most Eligible Bachelor is a 2021 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Bommarillu Bhaskar. It is produced by Bunny Vas and Vasu Varma on GA2 Pictures. The film stars Akhil Akkineni and Pooja Hegde with the music composed by Gopi Sundar. Pradeesh Varma and Marthand K. Venkatesh are the cinematographer and editor respectively.

The plot follows relationship between Harsha (Akkineni), an NRI and Vibha (Hegde), a stand-up comedian. It was released on 15 October 2021 after being repeatedly postponed because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[2] It grossed more than 50 crores at the box office.[3]

Plot[]

A couple drives along the road. All of a sudden, they hit a flock of lamb. The couple get a shock on noticing a man among the flock. The man is introduced to be Harsha (Akhil Akkineni). They asked why he was there and he starts narrating his story.

Harsha is an NRI who lives in New York with aspirations to get married as soon as possible. His family then sets up a marriage for him that has to be completed within 20 days. Excited, Harsha buys himself a house and flies to India for his marriage. In India, he is set to meet 20 prospective brides and he ends up liking the first one he meets. However, his family insists on meeting more to see which one is the perfect match for him. Meanwhile, Harsha's mother tells him to drop a certain bride's details off since their horoscope did not match. Harsha opens the envelope to see that it is Vibha (Pooja Hegde) but he still goes to her father and gives back the details. He then realizes that Vibha's father is Subbu (Murali Sharma) with whom he had a horrible interaction earlier. On top of this, he loses Vibha's picture so Subbu holds his friend captive. In an attempt to find the picture, he meets Vibha at her stand-up comedy show and asks her for her picture. Vibha then asks a series of questions that disrupt Harsha's mentality about marriage. By being with Vibha, he realises that he wants to marry her.

Unexpectedly, Harsha has his marriage set with another girl. In an attempt to get together with Vibha, he goes to Subbu to convince him. However, in a turn of events, Subbu files a case against Harsha for being vulgar in each of his meetings with the brides. Vibha realizes that it was her words that affected Harsha and convinces Subbu to take back the case. Harsha, wanting answers, goes to Vibha and admits to liking her but she says she rejected him over twenty days ago as his mentality about marriage is not the same as hers. An enraged Harsha leaves for New York and tries to understand what went wrong. After attending Ganesh's 25th wedding anniversary and talking with his brother-in-law (), he discovers that their marriage is toxic and that he shouldn't compromise at all.

Nine months pass by and Harsha is a completely changed man with a new mindset. In an attempt to merge his and Megha's companies, he makes her fall for him. Megha's parents want her to marry Harsha even though Harsha still likes Vibha. With his marriage in 20 days, he decides to leave for India early so that he can see Vibha again. On returning to India, he finds out that Vibha does not want to get married due to a painful experience she has. So anonymously, Harsha tries to get Vibha to change back to her old lifestyle and manages to make her fall for him. However, Harsha's parents find out and make him leave Vibha while Subbu simultaneously lets Vibha know that Harsha is getting married and to give up. At his wedding, Vibha shows up to do a stand-up show and Harsha is shocked to see her there. She then narrates her experiences in life with Harsha and then sadly leaves. Megha, who knows all of this, allows Harsha to reunite with Vibha and he manages to convince everyone. In the end, Harsha and Vibha get married and go back to New York.

Cast[]

Cameo appearances

Production[]

Development[]

In February 2019, director Bhaskar teamed up with Akhil for GA2 Pictures production under Bunny Vasu.[5] In May 2019, the film was officially launched at Film Nagar Temple, Hyderabad with a pooja ceremony. The music is composed by Gopi Sunder while V. Manikandan and Marthand K. Venkatesh were signed as the cinematographer and editor respectively. Manikandan later replaced by Pradeesh Varma, due to the former's exit citing schedule conflicts.[6] Director Vasu Varma is co-producing along with Bunny Vas.[7][8] The title was announced as Most Eligible Bachelor in February 2020.[9] The film is presented by Allu Aravind of Geetha Arts.

Casting[]

The film's casting crew auditioned over 100 actresses and models for leading actress role.[10] Pooja Hegde and Eesha Rebba were finalized as the leads in August 2019.[11] Murali Sharma, Vennela Kishore, Jayaprakash, Pragathi and Aamani were cast in supporting role[4] Akkineni's role was Harsha, an NRI (non-resident Indian) while Pooja Hegde featured as a stand-up comedian named Vibha.[12] In an interview with The Indian Express, Akhil told about the film that "We tried perfecting it more and more, and it has come to where it is today because of the time we had. I am so happy that finally after two years I am having a release".[13]

Filming[]

The principal shooting of the film took place in July 2019 in Hyderabad.[14] Hegde joined the sets in September 2019.[15] The film is shot extensively in major portions of New York in mid-January 2020. Filming took place in Hyderabad in mid-March 2020, however, came to a halt after Akkineni was injured in the sets.[16] Filming was further delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in India. Filming was resumed in September 2020.[17] Akkineni and Hegde joined the shoot the same month.[18][19] The filming was completed in March 2021.

Soundtrack[]

Most Eligible Bachelor
Most Eligible Bachelor Soundtrack.jpg
Soundtrack album by
Gopi Sundar
Released12 October 2021
Recorded2020–2021
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length21:25
LanguageTelugu
LabelAditya Music
ProducerGopi Sundar
Gopi Sundar chronology
Tuck Jagadish
(2021) 		Most Eligible Bachelor
(2021) 		Anubhavinchu Raja
(2021)
External audio
audio icon Audio Jukebox on YouTube
Singles from Most Eligible Bachelor
  1. "Manasa Manasa"
    Released: 1 March 2020
  2. "Guche Gulabi"
    Released: 13 February 2021
  3. "Ye Zindagi"
    Released: 5 April 2021
  4. "Leharaayi"
    Released: 15 September 2021

The music was composed by Gopi Sundar, who earlier collaborated with Bhaskar for the 2016 Tamil film Bangalore Naatkal.[20] On 2 March 2020, the film's first single titled "Manasa Manasa" sung by Sid Sriram and written by Surendra Krishna was unveiled on social media platforms.[21] Less than a year later, on 13 February 2021, the second song "Guche Gulabi" sung by Armaan Malik and written by Ananta Sriram and Sri Mani was released.[22] On 5 April 2021, a third song "Ye Zindagi" sung by Haniya Nafisa and Gopi Sundar and written by Ramajogayya Sastry was released. On 15 September 2021, the fourth song "Leharaayi", written by Sri Mani and sung by Sid Sriram was released. On 11 October 2021, four days before the film's release, the fifth song "Chitti Adugu" was released. The song is written by Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry and sung by Zia Ul Haq.

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Manasa Manasa"Surendra KrishnaSid Sriram4:13
2."Guche Gulabi"Ananta Sriram, Sri ManiArmaan Malik4:42
3."Ye Zindagi"Ramajogayya SastryHaniya Nafisa4:05
4."Leharaayi"Sri ManiSid Sriram4:05
5."Chitti Adugu"Sirivennela Seetharama SastryZia Ul Haq4:15
Total length:21:25

Original Non-film Track List

All music is composed by Gopi Sundar.

No.TitleLyricsSingerLength
1."Leharaayi"Sri ManiNutana Mohan1:51

Release[]

Most Eligible Bachelor's release was scheduled for 2 April 2020, during Sri Rama Navami,[23] but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[24] It was pushed back to January 2021, then to April 2021.[25] In February 2021, the film's release date was announced as 19 June 2021.[26] With the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic impacting India and shutting down cinemas again, the release was again delayed.[27] In August 2021, the film was scheduled to be released on 8 October 2021.[28]

Sarigama Cinemas have acquired the film's distribution rights in the United States.[29]

Home media[]

In late September, the release date was rescheduled to 15 October 2021, on the occasion of Dussehra.[2] Digital streaming rights of the film were acquired by both aha and Netflix. The film was premiered on aha on 19 November 2021 while it premiered on Netflix on 23 November 2021.[30][31]

Reception[]

Critical response[]

The film met with mixed to positive reviews from critics, praising its plot, performances, direction but criticized its screenplay and second half.

Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India gave a rating of 3 out of 5 and cited it as "a breezy rom-com that lacks emotional depth". She further added that "Most Eligible Bachelor remains the story of a man who thinks he has it all to make a good husband and a woman giving him a reality check.".[32] A critic of Sify too cited the same and rated it 2.75 out of 5, writing " Most Eligible Bachelor looks patchy, and goes all directions but Gopi Sundar's lilting songs and feel-good romantic moments save it".[33] Firstpost also gave a rating of 3 out of 5, praising Bhaskar's work but giving mixed response to the story and screenplay.[34] In their review, The Hans India wrote that "Most Eligible Bachelor has a thin storyline but it has got a lot of scopes to explore. Director Bhaskar who made a comeback to Tollywood is already known for dealing with strong yet sensitive emotions. However, for this project, the director put his focus on delivering the entertainment rather than pulling the project off with emotions. The first half looks fun and entertaining with a lot of interesting elements. However, the second half falls flat with weak writing and it gets into a preachy mode".[35] The News Minute's Balakrishna Ganeshan cited that "the film makes progressive take on arranged marriage with a few misses", giving a rating of 3 out of 5.[36]

Writing for Cinema Express, Ram Venkat Srikar wrote that the romance is boring and the comedy is forgettable. Srikar felt that most of the film's second half feels like a spin-off to the filmmaker's 2010 film Orange. He further wrote: "Most Eligible Bachelor holds its intentions in high regard and in the process, ends up being a tiring watch".[37] The Hindu's Sangeetha Devi Dundoo felt that "Most Eligible Bachelor has technical finesse, a pleasing lead pair, offers a few laughs and hummable songs, but doesn’t sweep you off your feet. Pooja Hegde is lovely as Vibha and shows that she has more acting potential waiting to be tapped. Akhil Akkineni shows a lot of improvement as an actor and is good as Harsha. Among the melee of supporting actors, only Murali Sharma stands out."[38]

J Jagannath of Business Standard opined that the director seems to have set out to write an Alice Munro-like story only to end up with something straight out of the slushpile every production house in this country is bombarded with, adding that "The movie has the soul and ambience of a fitting room at Zara. Apart from Akhil, Pradeesh Varma’s eye-pleasing cinematography and Gopi Sundar’s peppy soundtrack are the movie’s redeeming factors".[39] Jeevi of Idlebrain in his review stated – "The climax of the film is preachy with Bommarillu Bhaskar trying to recreate the climax from his classic Bommarillu. Most Eligible Bachelor is not a bad film and it's better than most of the recent releases. However, it falls short of being a good film. The packaging of the film, music and Dasara holidays will do good for the film".[40]

Box office[]

On the opening day, the film collected a gross collection of ₹8 crore worldwide.[41] It collected a gross of ₹3 crore worldwide, on its second day. Thus, making the worldwide total two-days box office collection as ₹11 crore.[42] Its third day gross collection was ₹15 crore.[43] At the Australian box office, the film collected a gross of A$60,150 in the first three days. By the second day of release, it has collected a gross of $450,000 at the United States box office.[44] After one week of its release, the total worldwide gross collections of the film were ₹20 crore.[45][46] The film grossed ₹50 crore worldwide after 17 days of its release and is a commercial success.[47]

References[]

  1. ^ "'Most Eligible Bachelor' hits half-century at Tollywood box office". The Times of India. 2 November 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b K., Janani (26 September 2021). "Akhil, Pooja Hegde's Most Eligible Bachelor postponed again. Oct 15 is the new release date". India Today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Akhil Akkineni, Bommarillu Bhaskar film titled Most Eligible Bachelor; title poster unveiled". The Times of India. 4 February 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Akhil's next with Bommarillu Bhaskar set to kick-off from summer - Times of India". The Times of India.
  6. ^ "Akhil's 4th film with Bommarillu Bhaskar launched - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  7. ^ Bhaskar, Bommarillu (24 May 2019). "Akhil Akkineni's will be working with Bommarillu Bhaskar for his next". in.com. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019.
  8. ^ "నడిరోడ్డుపై చెప్పులు లేకుండానే అక్కినేని వారుసుడు.. అయ్యే ఇదేం గతి." News18 Telugu. India: CNN-News18. 8 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  9. ^ "Akhil Akkineni, Bommarillu Bhaskar film titled Most Eligible Bachelor; title poster unveiled - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  10. ^ Prakash, B. V. S. (4 August 2019). "Akhil & team thumb down 100 divas?". The Hans India.
  11. ^ "Pooja Hegde Roped in to Romance Akhil Akkineni in Bommarillu Bhaskar's Next". www.news18.com.
  12. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor: Pooja Hegde turns into Vibha, the most eligible Bachelorette - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  13. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor actor Akhil Akkineni: I can't take up projects just because they are safe". The Indian Express. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  14. ^ "Akhil Akkineni's fourth film goes on floors; Bommarillu Bhaskar yet to finalise the female lead - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  15. ^ Geetha Arts [@GeethaArts] (20 September 2019). "Welcoming @hegdepooja on her Day 1 shoot of #Akhil4 today" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor: Akhil Akkineni gets injured on the sets of the film; shooting on hold - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  17. ^ "Spotted: Akhil Akkineni and Pooja Hegde shooting for Most Eligible Bachelor in the city - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  18. ^ "PIC Talk: Pooja Hegde resumes shoot for Akhil's 'Most Eligible Bachelor' - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  19. ^ "Spotted: Akhil Akkineni looks dapper as he wraps up shooting for Most Eligible Bachelor for the day - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  20. ^ "Akhil's 4th film with Bommarillu Bhaskar launched - Times of India". The Times of India.
  21. ^ "Manasa Manasa Song From Akhil Akkineni-Pooja Hegde Starrer Most Eligible Bachelor Released". News18. 2 March 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Guche Gulabi from Akhil Akkineni's Most Eligible Bachelor released; Pooja Hegde calls it a mesmerising melody". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  23. ^ Geetha Arts (26 November 2009). "Geetha Arts on Twitter: "Journey of our #MostEligibleBachelor starts now with this step". Twitter.com. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  24. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor release pushed until October, due to Coronavirus Pandemic - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  25. ^ "New poster of Most Eligible Bachelor featuring Akhil Akkineni, Pooja Hegde out". Hindustan Times. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  26. ^ Kameshwari, A. (4 February 2021). "Pooja Hegde, Akhil Akkineni's Most Eligible Bachelor gets a release date". The Indian Express. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  27. ^ "Akhil Akkineni's 'Most Eligible Bachelor' will release only in theatres, spokesperson confirms". Times of India. 25 May 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  28. ^ K., Janani (28 August 2021). "Akhil Akkineni and Pooja Hegde's Most Eligible Bachelor to hit the theatres on October 8". India Today.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  29. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor USA Premieres on Oct14". www.ragalahari.com. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  30. ^ "Watch Most Eligible Bachelor | Netflix". www.netflix.com. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  31. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor to have its OTT release on aha". Yovizag.com. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  32. ^ Most Eligible Bachelor Movie Review: A breezy rom-com that lacks emotional depth, retrieved 20 October 2021
  33. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor review: Breezy, yet patchy!". Sify. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  34. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor movie review: Akhil Akkineni improves, but Bommarillu Bhaskar not so much-Entertainment News , Firstpost". Firstpost. 15 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  35. ^ hansindia (15 October 2021). "Most Eligible Bachelor Movie Review & Rating". www.thehansindia.com (in Telugu). Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  36. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor review: A progressive take on arranged marriage with a few misses". The News Minute. 16 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  37. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor Movie Review: The romance is boring, the comedy is forgettable". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  38. ^ Dundoo, Sangeetha Devi (16 October 2021). "'Most Eligible Bachelor' movie review: Part-fun, part-preachy story of finding love". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  39. ^ Jagannath, J. (23 October 2021). "Most Eligible Bachelor review: A slick, soulless movie that goes nowhere". Business Standard India. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  40. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor jeevi review - Telugu cinema review - Akhil Akkineni, Pooja Hegde". www.idlebrain.com. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  41. ^ "Akhil's Most Eligible Bachelor Day 1 Box Office Collection". Sakshi Post. 16 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  42. ^ "'Most Eligible Bachelor' box office collection day 2: Akhil Akkineni, Pooja Hegde's film off to a great start - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  43. ^ "Akhil's Most Eligible Bachelor Day 3 Box Office Collections". Sakshi Post. 18 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  44. ^ Staff, News9 (18 October 2021). "Most Eligible Bachelor Day 2 box office collection: Akhil Akkineni, Pooja Hegde starrer continues to shine". NEWS9LIVE. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  45. ^ "'Most Eligible Bachelor' day 4 box office collection: Akhil Akkineni, Pooja Hegde's film earns Rs 10 crore after first weekend - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  46. ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor Day 4 Collections: Akhil Movie On A Roll at Box Office". Sakshi Post. 19 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  47. ^ "MEB Does The Trick For Akhil". Sakshi Post. 2 November 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2021.

External links[]

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