Bellamkonda Sreenivas, who is reeling under flops, has teamed up with director Ramesh Varma Penmetsa for a psychological thriller Rakshasudu, a remake of Tamil film Ratsasan.
The film is all about an aspiring director, Arun (Bellamkonda Sreenivas), who make futile attempts to find a prospective producer for his crime thriller (script) inspired by several real-life incidents.
As fate would have it, he was forced to give up his direction plans and gets appointed as the sub-inspector of police on compassionate grounds.
He works closely with his brother-in-law CH Prasad (Rajeev Kanakala), who is also a cop and runs a love story with a school teacher, Krishnaveni (Anupama Parameswaran).
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Merely a week into his job, a series of gruesome murders of schoolgirls rock the city and Arun, who was caught in the middle of these things determines that it was done by a psycho killer.
In the process, he suffers a personal loss and that incident increases his resolve to catch the culprit behind these serial killings.
Usually, thriller films rely on building a sense of nail-biting tension and some loud noises to get you in the mood of the tale.
But Rakshasudu uses the compelling background score and enough drama that throw surprises and twists at every turn to keep you on your toes.
The film introduces us to a few interesting characters – a senior police officer who is envious of Arun’s research and a hot-tempered Mathematics teacher, who brings a real element of mystery to the drama.
The director in this hour treats you intelligently asking you to decide how you feel about his characters and their actions without giving away too many plot details.
The climax twist in the original was packed with the shock factor which clicked big time and it almost leaves a similar impact in this remake and all credit to Ramesh Varma for not diluting the essence in the process of claiming his ownership! And one must say, he gets all the aspects that worked in the original’s favour right.
This film will easily go down as one of the best works in Bellamkonda’s career and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
On the flip side, when you are directing a remake, the very purpose of it is, one would think, is to improve upon the original.
It would have been good if the core plot was retained and Ramesh Varma would have incorporated a few changes to the film and its characters.
However, the director has played it really safe without reproducing any scenes or characters and stays faithful to the original.
Right from Arun’s name and characterisation to Christopher’s haunting music and looks, there isn’t anything that makes Rakshasudu any different from its original.
Also, for someone, who, by now have watched Ratasasan, its less exciting to watch this remake, no matter how engrossing it may be!
Bellamkonda Sreenivas fits the bill perfectly as an underdog. He emotes through his eyes and has come up with a matured performance.
He was well backed by Rajiv Kanakala, who have got some wonderful moments in an otherwise suspense-laden narrative.
Anupama Parameswaran, though looks good for the part, doesn’t quite bring the believability to the character that was brought by Amala Paul in the original.
Again, her performance might appeal to those who have not watched Ratsasan.
Rakshasudu, more or less, is a tribute to the original. The film may take you by surprise in terms of its narrative and characterisations, but it doesn’t hit the right notes if you have seen Ratsasan.
Film: Rakshasudu Cast: Bellamkonda Sreenivas, Anupama Parameswaran, Rajeev Kanakala Director: Ramesh Varma Penmetsa Rating: 3 stars |
(This story originally appeared on cinemaexpress.com)