By Haricharan Pudipeddi
Film: "Avunu"; Cast: Poorna, Harshavardhan Rane, Ravi Babu, Chalapathi Rao and Rajeswari; Director: Ravi Babu; Rating: ***

"Avunu" by Ravi Babu is a craftily executed thriller film that explores fear in the mind of the protagonist like never before. Barring few renowned filmmakers, others have always struggled with the thriller genre across all languages. Having said that, Ravi Babu's taut thriller is proof to what many established filmmakers couldn't achieve over the years and what many others are aspiring to make in years to come.

By Haricharan Pudipeddi
Film: "Vennela 1 1/2"; Cast: Chaitanya Krishna, Monal Gajjar, Vennela Kishore, Madhu, Harish, Brahmanandam, Thagubothu Ramesh and Raghu Babu; Director: Vennela Kishore; Rating: *

Comedy is embraced and loved by one and all when it comes in the form which is universally accepted. In Hollywood, "American Pie" and "Road Trip" kind of films are loved by some and hated by some too, but that doesn't mean these films are bad.

Film: "Sattai"; Cast: Samuthirakani, Thambi Ramaiah, Yuvan and Mahima, Director: M. Anbazhgan; Rating: ***

"Sattai" is loosely based on Sidney Poitier's 1967 classic "To Sir with Love", where a black teacher embarks on a journey to inspire and reform the lives of white students from the slums. Though not a frame-to-frame copy of "To Sir with Love", "Sattai" deals with a similar subject, very close to the original.

By Subhash K. Jha
Actress Sonam Kapoor, who plays a 17-year-old in Aanand Rai's "Raanjhanaa" is trapped in a strange dilemma. Her character can't get older until a ghost voice is found to sing a song for her.

Rai is looking for a singer, who can express the 17-year-old character's emotions as she falls in love for the first time.