Movie Review - SURYAKANTHI (Kannada)

DIRECTOR: K M Chaitanya
ACTORS: Chetan, Regina, Nasser, Ganesh Yadav

There is a notion that art house kannada film directors cannot make masala flicks. But director K M Chaitanya proves the thought wrong. Suryakanthi has all the ingredients a commercial movie should have including action-packed scenes that Chaitanya’s earlier movie Aa Dinagalu did not have.

A case of mistaken identity forces Rohit (Chetan), an orphan brought up to be a contract killer by Stalin (Ganesh Yadav), to step into the shoes of Surya, a Harvard graduate who has come to India to take up job as a CEO in a company. Surya gets killed in place of Rohit by Stalin’s rival. Rohit a.k.a Surya not only ends up being the CEO but also gets engaged to the company owner’s daughter Kanthi, played by newcomer Regina. Kanthi, who is against the relationship, takes off to her grandfather Malanna Bahadur’s (Nasser) house in Belgaum where Rohit follows her. The rest of the film goes to show how true love transforms him into a good guy.

Nasser lights up the screen as Malanna Bahdur, a Gandhian in Belgaum who is stuck in the ’40s era. He gives a powerful performance with the right amount of emotions. Chetan’s acting gets better by the day and Regina too has done a decent job. Ganesh Yadav as Stalin is brilliant in his role. The music is just about okay. The cinematography is commendable. All in all, the direction by K M Chaitanya has worked wonders this time too. Free download kannada film songs here.