'Ravanasura', produced by Abhishek Nama and Ravi Teja under Abhishek Pictures & RT Team Works, was released in theatres today.
Plot:
The film begins with a cold-blooded murder that gets captured by CCTV. The murderer's daughter Harika (Megha Akash) approaches Ravindra (Ravi Teja), a criminal lawyer, with the request to take up her father's case. Ravindra takes a keen interest in the case although the evidence against Harika's father is strong.
In a parallel track, ACP Hanumantha Rao (Jayaram) and his team investigate similar murders in the city. There is also a prosthetics maker named Saketh (Sushanth) in the mix. How the multiple threads intersect, resulting in a cat-and-mouse game is what the rest of the film is about.
Performances:
Ravi Teja, after a notorious slackening in the pace of his career and choice of roles, has been back to form of late. After mainstream and safe roles in 'Dhamaka' and 'Waltair Veerayya', he dons a risky mantle this time around. He aces the tough part without being intimidated by the demands of the grey role. He shines but the script fails him.
Sushanth is adept in a role that would have been played by a middle-aged artist in a regular casting instance. Sriram is wasted. Among the many female actors, only Megha Akash gets to display her talent. Anu Emmanuel, Daksha Nagarkar and Faria Abdullah get ill-written roles, while the arc of Pujitha Ponnada's character is okayish.
Jayaram must be congratulated for daring to play an extremely silly cop. Rao Ramesh is routine in the role of a cunning politician, while Murali Sharma and Sampath Raj get elbowed out at the earliest. Harsha Vardhan and Hyper Aadhi fail to evoke laughs.
Technical aspects:
Vijay Kartik Kannan's cinematography complements the dark theme. The colour palette adapts to the needs of the different scenes. Harshavardhan Rameshwar's background score meets the expectations of the suspense thriller. The Ravanasura Anthem and 'Dikka Dishum' could have been better in terms of elevation/picturization. 'Veyyinokka' (remixed version) needed lively picturization. DRK Kiran's art direction and Naveen Nooli's editing are so-so.
Post-Mortem:
The film's story and dialogues have been penned by Srikanth Vissa, while Prashanth Baradi developed the story originally conceived by the former. At its root, 'Ravanasura' is a cat-and-mouse thriller. A cat-and-mouse game is described by Wikipedia as a "contrived action involving constant pursuit, near captures, and repeated escapes".
Is there a "constant pursuit" of the suspect in the movie? Yes, but it hardly looks urgent. It is also barely constant. The investigators take days to figure out that the suspect (Ravi Teja's character) has a girlfriend. The pursuit is not only laidback but also dumb. Ravindra is not arrested on the grounds that there is no concrete evidence to put him behind the bars. That's not how it happens in real life.
Are there "near captures" in the movie? There is one but it is so laughable that you will feel embarrassed to even laugh at it. A female cop tells her boss that the suspect can be eliminated in an encounter now that he is standing in front of their very eyes. And then the suspect pulls off something plainly stupid, instantly sending the cops into a tizzy. Also, if the cops believe that killing a suspect in an encounter is no big deal, why didn't they arrest him days ago? Obviously, an arrest is much less stringent and involves no daredevilry, while an encounter needs immense risk-taking. Anybody with an iota of idea about the workings of the police department would testify to this.
For a thriller, the investigation by the ACP is unbelievably brainless. If the film remains watchable, it is only because of the shock factor, some element of suspense, and Ravi Teja's earnest performance.
Closing Remarks:
'Ravanasura' is largely illogical. It will work only if you don't mind glaring loopholes. Ravi Teja's acting is definitely refreshing.
