As student films go, Vanaja is a knockout achievement. Written and directed by Rajnesh Domalpalli as part of his master's thesis at Columbia University, the movie is equal parts coming-of-age tale and an uncompromising examination of India's rigid caste system. While hardly seamless, Vanaja possesses a vitality and speaks to the considerable talents of a promising filmmaker.

Mamatha Bhuka stars as Vanaja, a 14-year-old girl in southern India who dreams of becoming an accomplished dancer of Kuchipudi, a classical Indian dance. Her most formidable obstacle is her impoverished station in life, but opportunity arises when her alcoholic father gets her a job as a house servant for a wealthy landlady, Rama Devi (Urmila Dammannagari). The older woman, a former dancer, is taken with Vanaja's pluck and tenacity. Rama Devi eventually agrees to teach the girl Kuchipudi.

But Vanaja's dreams are complicated with the arrival of the landlady's handsome 23-year-old son, Shekhar (Karan Singh), who returns to the area with plans to run for public office. Vanaja is attracted to Shekhar, and she spies on him in the shower. But Vanaja is no Cinderella and Shekhar is no prince. After the girl inadvertently embarrasses him, the young man enacts revenge by raping her. Nine months later, Vanaja finds herself caring for a child she cannot afford.

Domalpalli's assembled cast of non-professionals is more than up to the task. The most remarkable discovery is Mamatha Bhuka as the title character. While Domalpalli's screenplay occasionally drifts toward Charles Dickensian melodrama, Vanaja does not fit the bill of the victimized waif. She is complex, a sullen and immature girl but also a strong-willed heroine who chafes against the harsh realities of the country's caste system. Bhuka's performance is thoroughly engaging, and she also does a fine job in the movie's periodic dance sequences.

The movie's production values are equally impressive. Domalpalli shot the film over several years, and reportedly on a $20,000 budget, but Vanaja boasts rich visuals and sweeping camera movement that highlights the characters' picturesque environs. Much of the credit belongs to Milton Kam's vibrant cinematography.

But Vanaja ultimately is one of those pictures easier to admire than enjoy. The film has earned a number of honors, including best feature debut at the Berlin Film Festival and two Independent Spirit Award nominations, but much of the film feels dramatically inert, hindered by a pace that barely lurches forward. There is a line between slice-of-life realism and tedium, and Vanaja -- which feels long at 112 minutes -- crosses it more than a few times.

I am unable to conclusively judge the picture quality since the reviewer screener was a check disc that does not represent final product. That said, the widescreen 1.85:1 picture looks magnificent, with bold lines and a vivid, warm color palette. There are a few brief flashes in a couple of bright daytime scenes.

As is the case with video quality, the check disc supplied for review makes it impossible to rate audio. The Telugu language mix in Dolby Digital 5.1 is clear and sharp, if unremarkable. Sound is asynchronous in the last 15 minutes of the screener that was provided. The English subtitles are easy to read, although there is a misplaced apostrophe in one caption.

None were included in the screener provided to DVD Talk.

By any measure, Vanaja is an impressive feature-film debut, particularly one shot over several years by a guy pursuing a graduate degree. It has its problems, but this coming-of-age story reveals a promising new filmmaker in Rajnesh Domalpalli.