Rudhramadevi ReviewBOTTOM LINE
Honest attempt that falls flat.

OUR RATING
2.25/5

CENSOR
‘U/A’ Certified, 158 mins.

Anushka Rudhramadevi ReviewWhat is the film about?
As the title suggests the film is a biography about the iconic Telugu queen Rani Rudhramadevi. Her journey to become the queen with discovery of womanhood in the way is what the film is all about.

How is Anushka’s performance?

Quite frankly at the moment no one is South Indian cinema can be seen playing lead in epic films like these. This is one of the biggest reason the actress is cast often in films these epic but does she make impact in all of them? The answer would be clearly no. She looks the part without any doubt and she has few moments but without proper handling no matter how well she looks in the costume or how prepared she is physically for the role, the impact is missing.

Playing the titular role and that too of an iconic princess one would expect at least a couple stand out moments but barring posturing at few instances and fights, there is nothing in the film that stands out in terms of performance. Doesn’t mean it’s bad but it is flat without any thrill associated with such character. The few thrilling moments designed are unfortunately led down by poor graphics.


Gunasekhar Rudhramadevi ReviewDirection By Gunasekhar?
They say a director is the captain of the ship and it’s true without any doubt. A captain can get away with poor performance on a flat deck (typical commercial film) where someone else rises up to the occasion and saves the day. But with a film like Rudhramadevi, all the key players (actors and technicians) look up to the captain to guide them through and create an impact. Here in Rudhramadevi Gunasekhar toils, sweats profusely making us believe he is working hard but the end result is a nothing but a whimper.

The disappointment is bigger and louder because the story had the material to make a powerful statement, one that also has a contemporary ring to it it in terms of women empowerment. Unfortunately nothing works here barring few sequences involving Gona Ganna Reddy. With everything else that is going on this character is very easily highlighted and it brings much required energy into the muddled narrative moving at snail’s pace. The climax is rendered toothless due to the subpar effects and execution even though that’s when ‘queen’ takes charge and provides bit of momentum. In the end Gunasekhar just provides us a glimpse of what could have been a truly inspirational and memorable film but fails to deliver one.


Allu Arjun Rudhramadevi ReviewAllu Arjun, Raana and other artists?
As one might have guessed by now, it’s Allu Arjun who stands out in the film. His diction is good and the characterization elevates his presence further. It does get one dimensional as we see him more but luckily the role has a finite length. Rana is a wasted completely as Chalukya Veerabhadra. Apart from them Nithya Menon has a decent role and she manages to stand out from the crown as usual with a scene. It is the same case with actor Prakash Raj who also stands out courtesy of a scene where he tells greatness of women. The rest of actors ranging from Suman, Krishnam Raju, Vikramjit Singh Virk etc do what’s usually expected from them without any surprise. Baba Sehgal debuts in Telugu with this film, is unintentionally hilarious where as the actual comedians fail to provide any laughs.

Ilayaraja Rudhramadevi ReviewMusic and other departments?
Music by Maestro Ilayaraja has been a big disappointment and this also includes the background score which fails to register. The rest of the technical departs (cinematography, editing and special effects) is a mess and they combined happen to be the biggest reason for the failure of the film. Dialogues are mixed bag with few good one’s here and there.


Highlights Rudhramadevi ReviewHighlights?
Allu Arjun
Anushka
Few dialogues
Interval

Drawbacks?
Everything technical
Direction
Story


Drawbacks Rudhramadevi ReviewAlternative Take
There is a film within this film that actually could have made a huge impact and resonated with the audience today. It is the female empowerment aspect that is realized through the character of Rudramadevi. The transformation from Rudradeva Maharaju to Rudramadevi, gender inequalities, should have created a solid emotional impact but despite tacking that aspect director fails here. An alternative take would be bringing out that aspect at its full potential.

Did I enjoy it?
No, except Allu Arjun parts.

Will you recommend it?
Only if you are extremely curious to know about Rudhramadevi.

Rudhramadevi Review by Siddhartha