Arnav718

And this movie beautifully portrays its importance. This movie had a certain feel to it that made me want to watch it, it might be because of the time period, the revolutionaries or the cause, but there was a feeling inside me that I just might love the film. Now, after having watched the film, I can safely say that I absolutely loved it!

Right from the start, we are introduced to the wailings of the oppressed society, and to a man and a woman who wanted to relieve them of their woes. The way through which their struggles and efforts are portrayed to the audience, it all feels relatable and makes us reflect on the difficulties that the lower castes must have felt due to the arbitrary norms imposed upon them. Though less spread, these social evils still persist in our society.

I will start with the negatives first as this would help in clearing out the clutter before delving into the core goodness and importance of the film. Now, these flaws aren't dealbreakers by any means but I thought that I might mention them nonetheless.

1. At the start of the film (for about 15-20 minutes), there are many set pieces and cuts and the characters moving from one place to another place, at a rapid pace. This is bound to take you out of the experience for the time being.

2. A kind of soap opera-like music implementation, where every set piece begins with a transition-like music.

3. Patralekhaa's acting and dialogue delivery, which fall short of the impact to be achieved for some brief moments during this timeframe.

4. Then, a slight pacing problem. From the start, things rocket off but as you cross the 15-20 minute mark (again), things start slowing down, and then the film suddenly gets into a place where almost exactly appropriate attention is given to each of the situations arising from the plot. There are a few hiccups here and there, where the viewer would have felt that certain moments should have lingered for longer, but it never gets jarring. At the end, you come to the conclusion that the runtime couldn't have been increased by much and that 2h 9m was sufficient.

5. One thing that I also must add is that some people might find this film to hold your hand (for brief moments) in some places where the characters state the obvious or explain something for the audience to understand.

These were the problems which I think slightly affected the overall experience, and frankly, this is an achievement in itself. For a film that set out to achieve so much as to portray Jyotiba and Savitribai's life on the big screen in just about 2 hours, these can be considered just some hiccups rather than glaring cons.

Now, that's all the negatives, time for the positives that make this movie such a treat to watch.

1. Let's start with the sets and costumes. This has to be among the top designs I have ever seen in movies. It all feels so authentic which ultimately makes the viewer extremely engrossed in their world and form a bond with it.

2. This authenticity is further added to by the dialogues. They are genuinely one of the best written dialogues that I have heard in a Hindi movie since the past few years. The impact lines are actually hard-hitting or hoot-worthy by themselves, without any dependence on the background music (which we have seen in so many movies). The emotions of the characters are so well-reflected by the dialogues while still adhering to the vocabulary of those times.

3. This brings me to the screenplay, the way characters interact, seem very responsive and natural i.e. It doesn't feel like that they are following a set of directions rather they are actively discussing things or just taking in the moments. This sort of realism just makes the film that much more relatable.

4. The solid acting of the whole cast just helps bind these technicalities together so well that you start feeling for each and every bit of their worries and wish for their alleviation.

5. The background score and the songs help this movie tap into the core of the viewers' emotions as it conveys what words cannot, and that too, beautifully.

6. The stew of emotions (joy, sadness, anger, proud, etc.) that it brews in you are its biggest strengths but they cannot be reciprocated in such a way that would do justice to the film.

After coming out of the theatre, I was left with a sense of guilt for the oppressions that the people of the lower castes had to face in their lives, how much Jyotiba Phule and his wife and those associated with him had to endure for such a cause, and how some of us still keep on encouraging that kind of an inhuman behaviour. It made me reflect deeply on today's society's treatment of women and the downtrodden, I felt apologetic for their hardships due to a system that was created against them. It was a truly humbling experience. The film beautifully captured its resolution (or at least an effort toward it) and provided the viewers the inspiration and motivation to carry on Phule's legacy. This is a film that should be watched by everyone as it imparts the idea of humanity and how we are all in this together, ignoring the boundaries of arbitrary systems created by those who deprived the downtrodden of their freedom for their own benefit.

Right off the bat, I will say that the plot was superbly established, it made you feel the stakes. The main storyline originates from the Mahabharata so the creators really needed to push the boundaries on the execution, which I can say that they did but were they able to pull it off extraordinarily or were there shortcomings? Read on to find out.

I have attempted to break down my thoughts of each major field without giving any spoilers or too much negative connotations.

Dialogues:

Not much to say about these, they are what you would expect from a sci-fi flick (some hi-fi English vocabulary paired with the modern Hindi), and the archaic style Hindi (Sanksritised) that is generally seen in the adaptations of Hindu epics.

Characters:

I am sorry to say but the chemistry between is Bhairava & Bujji was almost non-existent. They did talk about stuff other than bounties and work but the final result was too many puns and attempts to make the audience laugh which left nothing to be established between them.

The portrayal of Prabhas' character got a bit tiresome at the start. The interactions between Bhairava and anyone were very, very boring. Apart from that, he wasn't exactly a formidable force either, and so wasn't Ashwatthama.

I genuinely feel that the creator didn't give any character the power that they deserved. For instance, Ashwatthama's powers are bound to the plot, they only work in last resorts. Bhairava does godlike damage as a human. "Other enemies" are literally Stormtroopers and some times really dumb.

Then, the character of Deepika Padukone. It was appropriately executed according to her and the plot, so no complaints there.

The remaining characters are nothing to write home about, nothing of that gravity as of the main 3 characters.

Story & Execution:

The start of the first half was stretched too much, with a lot of that stretched time going to Bhairava (intro & fillers). Then again, his interactions with others were extremely dull.

There were many continuity errors, like skipping somewhat essential bridging scenes and abruptly changing the theme of the scene altogether.

Apart from that, the story (pertaining to the Mahabharata) was told superbly. The flashbacks of Ashwatthama were really good (so was his character). You could really feel the high stakes throughout the movie.

So in essence, the plot was well planned out, but the execution on the character part fell a tad bit short.

VFX:

I went in with high hopes and I came out both surprised and disappointed. At some parts, the VFX was outstanding, but in some places, it was the exact opposite (like the de-aged AB looking like he came straight out of "Motu Patlu").

The bad VFX was best visible during fighting sequences and JUMPS (with some scattered across the film). I cannot stress this enough when I say that the jumps (and the flying) were very inorganic, it was so cable-y, everyone was hovering around. The film was really jump and flight heavy, and given the fact that there are humans of godly stature and a 'Chiranjeevi' involved (enemies being thrown around and protagonists jumping 20 feet), this shouldn't come as a surprise.

Cinematography:

Pretty standard, nothing too extravagant. Overall, a solid setup.

Music:

An absolute treat to the ears. I loved Ashwatthama's theme (right from the announcement). The Bhairava theme was the only thing that felt out of place (but that just might be me). Also, maybe I am nitpicking too much now, but the mixing and the abrupt change in tones across scenes affected the experience a bit. Nevertheless, the music complimented the scenes perfectly.

Influences:

As you know, this movie is inspired by the Mahabharata. I would say that the references to the epic and the sci-fi present day story were well balanced. It all made sense and after all, the essence is that of the Mahabharata's depiction.

In conclusion, the plot was extremely good, story was told really well. It however, lacked in the department of VFX and a special department named "Bhairava". So, the execution was a bit of a miss. However, even with its downsides, the intriguing story and some goosebumps moments (especially towards the end) make this a worthwhile watch!

This movie is the story about Srikanth Bolla and his rise despite of being a visually impaired and wrongfully discriminated against person. Now the idea in itself is very inspirational, but the execution part is where this movie falls short.

I am writing this review approximately 10 minutes after I got home from watching it, and believe me when I say this that I don't remember about 80% of the movie, that's because of how overly rushed it was. There were a bunch of people who played a critical role in his life but they were literally glazed upon for 2-3 minutes and then life just went on, same with any key happenings in Sri's life.

See, this movie is a biopic (which involves a fair bit of drama as well) but it doesn't feel like one. Despite of R. Rao checking all the boxes for a beautiful portrayal of acting skills, he unfortunately couldn't save the rushed screenplay.

The feeling of attachment with the protagonist, feeling as if you are actually in his/her place right now, all this contributes to a heart touching story but that was clearly not present here.

Then there were some dumb scenes where because of the silliest of reasons and opportunities presenting themselves out of nowhere (very conveniently), everything just worked out which made the movie feel inorganic and even cringe at some points.

Lastly, I would say that it's visible throughout the film that the makers wanted to make this a touching story but again, because of the quick overviews, conveniently presented plot points and the overall lack of deeply fleshed-out characters, you don't feel for the protagonist in any manner nor for any other character.

The only two positives that I can think of are - 1. R. Rao's great acting, and 2. A good score

In short, you get a highly condensed video summary of Srikanth's life which fails to do justice to the main idea, leaving behind just bits and pieces of faint memories.