Auto Shankar (film)

Infobox_Film
name = Auto Shankar


director = D. Rajendra Babu
writer = Screenplay & Story:
Ajaykumar
Dialogue:
B. L. Venu
starring = Upendra
Shilpa Shetty
Radhika
producer = Ramu
music = Guru Kiran
distributor =
released = 2005
runtime =
language = Kannada
budget =

"Auto Shankar" is a 2005 Kannada film starring Upendra, Shilpa Shetty, Radhika and Sudharani. [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0466361/fullcredits#cast Auto Shankar (2005) - Full cast and crew] ] The film was directed by D. Rajendra Babu and produced by Ramu, of Ramu Enterprises.

The movie was filmed in a variety of locations including Austria, the Bangalore Palace situated at Bangalore, Finland and the Mysore Lamps Factory, Mysore. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0466361/locations Auto Shankar (2005) - Filming Locations] ]

Plot

Auto Shankar, played by Upendra, is an auto driver belonging to the middle class section of the society. He is friendly and jovial. Shilpa Shetty, who plays a money-lender, is brought up in a rich family. She is portrayed as a boorish character. She is unscrupulous in recovering loans given to the poor and has designed crude methods to recover the money. She is also the daughter of a lady don.

Shankar defends the poor and fights the moneylenders. Several interesting battles follow, after which the money-lender loses all her property and prestige. It is also revealed that she is not really the daughter of the lady don. She then learns a lesson that reforms her attitude. She makes amends and Shankar embraces her as the two fall in love. Meanwhile, the other female lead in the movie also falls in love with Shankar and yearns for him.

Response

The movie is considered a flop since it bombed at the box office. Critics reviewing the movie have said that it failed due to the lack of a strong story and script. [http://www.nowrunning.com/film/review.asp?movieNo=2475 Auto Shankar at NowRunning.com] ] The movie has been received as a masala entertainer, purely showcasing Upendra's character and Shilpa Shetty's ravishing role as the film's lead female character. Shetty's performance was criticised in certain scenes, although her performance in the song sequences were praised. The music and the cinematography were critically acclaimed.

Shilpa Shetty's role in the film has earned her the name of "the new Gabbar Singh of India". [http://123india.santabanta.com/cinema.asp?pid=8427 Desi Lara Croft - Shilpa Shetty] ] Shilpa herself has called her role in the film as an ode to Gabbar Singh; a view reinforced by Industry critics [ [http://www.bollywood.com/archives/2005/06/shilpas_ode_to.html Shilpa's Ode To Gabbar Singh] ]

Controversies

The movie sparked off a controversy with regard to a photo of Shilpa Shetty from the movie. [http://www.nerve.in/auto+shankar/news:25350011150 I won't endorse vulgarity: Shilpa Shetty] ] A Madurai based lawyer filed an obscenity case against Shetty. Shetty however, protested by saying that "It (the photo) is not vulgar. I am an actor and an entertainer and I won't endorse vulgarity."

References

External links

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0466361/ Imdb.com profile - Auto Shankar (profile)]
* [http://www.viggy.com/english/current_auto_shankar.asp Review of the film]