Is Babu Bangaram the return of Bobbili Raja or Gharshana?

"Bobbili Raja is back," announces Prudhvi Raj in Babu Bangaram's trailer. Prudhvi is the new Brahmanandam. The King of comedy in Telugu cinema, Brahmanandam, has started losing his sheen.

His dialogue delivery doesn't ignite laughter anymore. He may soon make a comeback with refreshing vigour, but till then, there's Prudhvi, making efforts to make us laugh.

The focus of Babu Bangaram's trailer is not Prudhvi; it's Venkatesh, who returns to the big screen after a year and a half. His previous film, Gopala Gopala, released in January, 2015. Before that, he played the role of a dad to two daughters in Drishyam (2014).

Both films were remakes. In Babu Bangaram, he's doing it again. He's falling for a young woman - Nayanthara is a junior (just more than two decades, of course).

Venkatesh constantly aims a gun loaded with age-related jokes at himself. Superstar Rajinikanth too does this in a way when, in his films, he is ridiculed for his complexion. If you make sarcastic comments about yourself, who'd have the guts to go an extra mile to come up with punch lines?

Nayanthara and Venkatesh have previously starred together in Lakshmi and Tulasi. They are called a hit pair in Telugu cinema as the success rate of their films is high. Will Babu Bangaram see a repeat of the magic this time?

Maruthi, the director of the latest action comedy, started off by making small films. He hit the jackpot last year with the Nani (Lavanya Tripathi) in Bhale Bhale Magadivoy. While releasing BB's theatrical trailer online, Maruthi tweeted that he has made a film according to the expectations people have of a Venkatesh starrer. Does that mean there's going to be lots of comedy and action?

Hell, yes!

If you have watched the trailer, you'll know that it's filled with clichés invented by Venkatesh - a pretty woman, a love story, a couple of comedians, a villain, and some romantic songs shot in nice foreign lands.

Babu Bangaram might be the return of Bobbili Raja. But, for me, it is truly a spin-off of Gautham Menon's Gharshana. Just take a look at the trailer.

Doesn't it look like a funnier, rebranded image of Menon's cop drama? But a film made by Maruthi will no doubt be different, and won't carry any of Gautham's hallmarks. Nevertheless, I hope to find a connection between the two when BB releases later this month.