Vinod Anantoju’s Telugu debut Middleclass Melodies is a small-town comedy about a small-time village chef on a mission to move to Guntur and open a small restaurant that serves the best “Bombay Chutney ”. While the film details the little things in life, including a layered portrait of the warm middle-class family, nothing about the film’s impact is small. It went on to win over audiences and critics alike when it dropped on Amazon Prime Video in November 2020, two years ago.
The film revolves around Raghava (Anand Deverakonda), who runs a small eatery in Kolakalur with his gruff father (Goparaju Ramana). But when he harbours a dream to move to Guntur and start a restaurant, the real problems begin, as he goes on to hilariously tackle financial and logistical roadblocks. The film, which also co-stars Varsha Bollamma, Chaitanya Garikipati, Divya Sripada, and Tharun Bhascker (in a delightful cameo), was appreciated for its warm and earnest portrayal of small-town dynamics and eccentricities.
