'Operation Gold Fish' review: Sai Kiran Adivi's failed operation showing life of Kashmiri Pandits
Director Sai Kiran Adivi’s Operation Gold Fish (OGF) has gathered so much steam for the last three months after the central government’s decision to repeal Article 370 and Article 35A of the Indian Constitution. It is pitched as a story that depicts the overwhelming problems faced by the Kashmiri Pandits in their homeland.
However, the director gives a simplistic sight into the actual problems and punctuated with a boring campus love story which itself is a huge distraction as well as disappointment. These sequences make you restless and don’t help from being invested in the outcome.
Set against the Kashmir issue, OGF is a story of Arjun Pandit (Aadi Sai Kumar), an NSG commando, who grew up with an extremely untiring motto of nabbing/killing the dreadful Ghazi Baba (Abburi Ravi), the leader of a Islamic jihad militant group and the man behind the genocide of Kashmiri Pandits.
The film begins with Arjun facing court-martial proceedings against him for refusing to obey the orders of his superiors in connection with Ghazi Baba’s case. There is a back story as to why he has been charged and being held the guilt. Meanwhile, four college students – Karthik (Karthik Raju), Solomon (Nookaraju), Tanya (Sasha Chettri) and Nitya (Nitya Naresh) go on a trip to Lambasingi and lands in trouble after militant Farooq Iqbal Iraqi (Manoj Nandam) abducts them demanding the release of Ghazi Baba.
And Arjun gets into action to protect the students and foil the plans of the anti-nationals. What follows is an old-fashioned revenge drama treated in that melodramatic and over-the-top style.
OGF is made in the format of a mainstream Telugu film, touched upon the issues that were widely discussed at the international scene like Kashmiri Pandits massacre, abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A and the surgical strikes.
As the story unfurls, it reminded me of Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Main Hoon Na, which also deals with a similar point of an Army officer protecting a college student from terrorists.
The film has liberal use of adult jokes and the campus sequences in the first hour are tedious, repetitive and involve more talk than action. The narrative goes off the rails for the most part into the second half, when it is clear that the script has run out of ideas.
Much time is wasted on the Lambasingi sequences like Krishnudu trying to play cupid to the four students, establishing a father-daughter bond and Arjun’s lookout for Farooq Iqbal Iraqi. By the time everything falls into place, you are completely exhausted.
On the performance front, Aadi Sai Kumar is rooted in his character of an NSG commando. But there is some inconsistency in his character as the director didn’t define whether he is a Kashmiri or belongs to a Telugu family once lived in Kashmir. Writer Abburi Ravi makes a respectable debut in a full-length role of that of an antagonist.
He looks believable, competent and displayed authority and angst through his eyes. Manoj Nandan shines as in a brief role. Rao Ramesh, Anish Kuruvilla tried hard to match to their potential, but end up as mere caricatures.
Of all the youngsters, Parvatheesam managed to bring in a few laughs with his inane jokes. Krishnudu played a considerably less interesting character that lacks much spark, and his only distinguishable feature is the fact that he’s a watchman, who suffers poor memory.
Overall, Operation Gold Fish is a film that doesn’t have enough meat to hold your interest for over two hours and even the fans of the action-romance genre will find themselves yawning.
| Movie: Operation Gold Fish Cast: Aadi Saikumar, Abburi Ravi, Sasha Chettri, Nithya Naresh Director: Sai Kiran Adivi Rating: 2/5 |