Ex-minister Cheluvarayaswamy has introduced his son Sachin in the lead role in the film Happy Birthday. He has spared nothing to make sure the film is mounted lavishly. Mahesh Sukhadhare, who has made films like Sainika and Ambareesha earlier has directed this film. The film is set in the backdrop of Mandya district and relies heavily on local language and sentiments. Happy Birthday is both a romance story and an action story. The director also mixes lots of commercial elements that is required for introducing a new hero. Sachin has managed to hold his own and it is one of the better debuts we have seen in recent years. It is a perfect vehicle for a launch.

The film is about a 24-year-old who lives with his brother and sister-in-law. He is not very well studied and also very poor in holding on to a job. He manages to lose jobs within days if not weeks. Such a person falls in love and slowly manages to win the heart of the girl. The girl has only her father for a relative. To win the girl's heart, the hero leans teh art of stick fight from the enemy of the girl's father. Unexpected developments make him the villain in front of her. How he manages to solve his issues with the villains, the girl and her father forms the rest of the film.

It is a neat narrative which has some melodious songs in between. Harikrishna has given some excellent tunes and there are some good meaningful lyrics too. The photography is pleasing and shots taken from the drone of landmark temples and places in Mandya is eye catching.

Sachin is good for a debutant and shows lots of promise for further improvement. Samskruti Shenoy has also made an impressive debut. Achyuth, Chikkanna, Sadhu Kokila and Bullet Prakash add good value to the film. If you want to watch something new, Happy Birthday is a good family film.

Chitraloka Rating 3/5