Movie Title: Epic – First Semester
Genre: Romance/ Love Drama
Casting: Anand Deverakonda, Vaishnavi Chaitanya, Sivaji, Vasuki, Rohan and Johannes Imomoh
Director: Aditya Haasan
Producers: Suryadevara Naga Vamsi & Sai Soujanya
Production: Sithara Entertainments & Fortune Four Cinemas
Presenter: Srikara Studios
Music: Hesham Abdul Wahab
Release Date: September 11, 2026
Filmycycle.com Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
EPIC: Feel Good Love Drama (3/5)
HIT pair Anand Devarakonda and Vaishnavi Chaitanya are back again after Baby with a film titled, EPIC. Directed by Aditya Hassan, the movie is bankrolled by Naga Vamsi under his Sithara Entertainments banner. The film is carrying good expectations among the youth audience and is scheduled for a release on September 11, 2026 but had its premiers on September 10th. Let’s Review EPIC movie.
Synopsis:
Aditya (Anand Deverakonda) is the younger son of Chandrasekhar (Shivaji) and Rani (Vasuki). He dreams of becoming a movie director. However, influenced by others, Chandrasekhar sends Aditya to the UK for higher studies.
There, Aditya meets Kadali (Vaishnavi). The two become very close within a single day. Soon after, Kadali moves into Aditya’s room. Later, they decide to get married and settle down together.
However, due to certain circumstances, they eventually decide to break up. What exactly leads to their separation? Do Aditya and Kadali reunite in the end? The rest of the film answers these questions.
Performances:
Anand Deverakonda and Vaishnavi, who became a super-hit pair with Baby, are the biggest strengths of this film. Anand delivers a very natural performance as an innocent young man . His body language is also quite good in the film. Compared to his previous movies, Anand has clearly improved as an actor.
However, it has to be said that Vaishnavi scores slightly higher than Anand. Choosing a role like this at this point in her career itself can be considered a challenge. After Baby, Vaishnavi faced some criticism, and in an attempt to overcome it, she took up films like Love Me and Jack, which lacked strong content and somewhat affected her image.
However, she fits perfectly into the role of Kadali. Whether it is her makeover, the love-making scenes, or the emotional sequences, Vaishnavi gives her best. That said, the ending given to her character in the climax does not feel entirely convincing for some reason.
Meanwhile, Shivaji delivers his role as the father with great ease and naturalness. Vasuki also does a good job. Their characters leave you wishing they had been given a few more scenes. Kalyan Shankar’s role also becomes important to the story. Some of the dialogues delivered by him are sure to connect strongly with the youth. Srinivas Gavireddy also performs well. The rest of the cast is decent.
Analysis:
As the team mentioned at the pre-release event, this is indeed a simple story. But it is a story that has been narrated with great strength. There are no commercial twists, no interval bang, and no bloodshed in the climax. Despite that, several scenes in the film work exceptionally well.
For instance, if we look at the first half, there are only two or three major sequences. The hero comes to America, meets the heroine, starts a live-in relationship with her, and eventually becomes physically intimate with her. That’s pretty much it! However, director Aditya handles even these situations very well. More importantly, he creates magic through his writing.
Some of the conversations that explore the hero’s confusion and the heroine’s insecurities are particularly effective. The emotional nuances in these dialogues add depth to their relationship and make the otherwise simple narrative engaging.
The second half feels even more sensibly handled, right up until the climax. Director Aditya deals with the difficulties the heroine goes through during her periods, and the way the hero understands and supports her, in a very mature manner.
Later, the heroine tells her friend, “The daughter he has someday will be very lucky.” It is a simple dialogue, but there is a lot of depth to it as well. Similarly, the phone call sequence between the hero and his father is handled in a way that allows everyone to connect with the emotions.
However, the way the climax is wrapped up rather suddenly is somewhat disappointing. The director has also taken quite a few cinematic liberties throughout the film, and not everyone may be convinced by them.
Technical Support:
Putting those above mentioned aspects aside, the production values are good. The makers have not compromised on the story anywhere.
The music is also a major plus point for the film. All the songs are good, and the background score complements the mood of the film very well.
The cinematography also adds richness to the overall presentation. Coming to the editing, it would have been tighter.
Verdict:
Altogether, EPIC- First Semester is a feel good love drama that is laced with enough youthful elements. This is a film made entirely with the youth in mind. It attempts to address issues such as the confusion young people often have about their careers, their insecurities about the future, and the loyalty they should have towards their parents, presenting these themes in a sensible yet bold manner. Once it becomes available on OTT, it might get a wider reach.
