'Kranti' movie review: Darshan delivers entertainment and a strong social message 

Darshan is a bonafide star whose fanbase only expands with every entertainer he delivers. With Kranti he states that revolutions are born of hope. Through the hero’s inner struggles, the film addresses the issues in the education system.

Albeit filled with abundant action for the masses Kranti has a universal message. With 12,000 government schools shut across Karnataka, resulting in about 75,000 jobless teachers, and over 20 lakh students affected, director Harikrishna uses this real-life situation to spin a story of a messiah redeeming people from hopelessness. He seems to have immense faith in Darshan’s star power that he has gone ahead with a simplistic film filled with regular ingredients like action, romance, music, and punch dialogues.

The story revolves around Kranti Narayan (Darshan), a business tycoon, residing in Europe for 20 years abiding by his father Bhargav Narayan’s (Ravichandran) instruction. Being an alumnus of a government school, he is invited by his favourite teacher (B Suresha) to attend the Centenary celebrations of the school. This event changes his life forever and he begins a revolution in the educational system. He takes the fight on with MNCs trying to take over the government schools, and does his effort bear fruits in the end? Tells the climax. 

Darshan's first collaboration with Harikrishna, Yajamana, was based on a village and its fight to keep an oil company at bay, and Kranti yet again is packed with mass entertainment along with a social message. And when the subject is about education, dramatic sequences of the plight of teachers, students, hungry media, corporate builders, and politicians among many other elements come to the fore as common occurrences, and Kranti does not disengage with any of them.

Harikrishna, who has roped in a mass hero to speak about an important issue like education, seem to be unbothered by the film’s duration. Certain sequences set in a train during the first half feel rudderless,  but the events in the second half add a lot of value to the overall output.

The anchor of the story is clearly Darshan’s screen presence and stardom. Harikrishna often says, "Never underestimate the credibility of a star." and he has mounted his film based on this hope. Apart from the usual fights and songs, Darshan delivers impactful messages in Kranti. 

Ravichandran delivers a memorable performance. Tarun Arora is definitely a new addition to the list of stylish villains. The rest of the actors including Ravi Shankar,  Girija Lokesh, Umashree, Sumalatha, Mukhyamantri Chandru, Samyuktha Hornad, Vainidhi Jagadish, and Dharmanna Kadur add value to the film. Rachita Ram is seen in an adequate role, and as a typical commercial heroine appears in two songs.

Harikrishna, who is also the composer of the film, elevates the emotions with his background score. The songs Don't Mess With Him and  Dharani are already ruling the playlists, Pushpavathi by Nimika Rathnakar and Bombe featuring a shirtless Darshan are celebration-worthy for the fans. 

Cinematographer Karunakar scores with his visual pattern and angles. To sum up, Kranti, which comes with rich production value, is ably shouldered by Darshan. Aside from the usual masala, the audiences have a revolutionary message about education to take home while leaving the theatres. 

Director: V Harikrishna
Cast: Darshan, Rachita Ram, Ravichandran, Ravishankar, 
Tarun Raj  Arora, Samyuktha Hornad, Vainidhi Jagadish, Mukhyamantri Chandru, and Umashree
Rating: 3/5