raja kesari

Kantara - My view - The Shetty gang strikes again Folklore based movies are a tough nut to crack. Usually movie makers resort to this theme for horror or myth based movies as there is always an element of superstition involved. My favourites in this category would be Tumbbad and Bulbul. Some exceptions of late have been the metaphor dense Karnan by Dhanush and the amazing thriller web series Suzhal by Pushkar-Gayatri. But, Kantara elevates much above all of them for one simple reason - a deep philosophical interpretation of Man and nature based on a simple folk story (and hence the tag line “Danta kathe”). The movie at its core, is about the ownership of forest (or land) between the villagers, the original “Dani family” (descendants of King’s family) and the Government who want to convert the forest into a reserve area. But inter-weaving the elements of panjurli (demi-God) dance, Kambala festival and the beautiful use of Varaha avatara of Vishnu (Varaha avatara, again, is a Boar who protects Earth or land out of the cosmic ocean), makes Kantara a satisfyingly unique experience in today’s movie landscape. Kantara doesn’t ridicule or trivialize any of the rituals of Dakshina Karnataka, but embraces them wholeheartedly to remind us that rituals are a way of life in India and needs an introspection instead of blindly rejecting them. +ve points: - All the panjurli sequences! If you think Raj B Shetty’s tiger dance in Sojugada song was good, watch out for Rishab’s avatara in the climax. The bar has been raised!! - The Kambala race. I wish, there was more footage of this sequence - The amazingly funny motely bunch of Shiva’s friends. Some of the one liners are funny by themselves and the Mangalore accent, makes them even more enjoyable - The love track, even though a bit Arjun Reddy in nature, is very well integrated in the story - Some of the one liners are nuggets of brilliant writing. Sample this - “Maleyalli vadde aagi bandya? Illa Shuddhi aagi Bande” or “Gadiyaara yalli? Time kooda namma side aa?” or “Kona prannakke oodidare, Manushyange medal sigutte” -ve points: - The sudden change of heart by the Forest officer is a bit unconvincing - Shiva’s mother’s acting is a bit filmy or over the top. (Interestingly she is a famous YouTuber who went viral with her kannada songs for kids during the lockdown) - Shiva’s constant rage and hitting everyone becomes repetitive after a point My rating: Story - 1. Its a beautiful amalgamation of Danta Kathe and its modern day repercussions Screenplay - 0.75. The interweaving of panjurli, land ownership, a love track and comedy is done very well. Acting - 0.75. Rishabh and Achyuth Kumar stand out with their power packed performance. The others, even though commendable, pale in comparison Other departments - 1. The Music, the cinematography, the VFX all blend in seamlessly into the story telling. This is how VFX should be. As a compliment to the main story, not as a distraction Overall package - 1. If you want to experience something unique in today’s OTT world, something that will make you re-think about Indian rituals and rich culture, don’t even think beyond Kantara. A must watch for any movie buff. Total 4.5/5 P.S - Kannada movies are hitting it out of the park off late with the advent of OTT and the confidence provided by K.G.F. After a long time, I am feeling hopeful of the future projects in KFI