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Adipurush Review: Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, Saif starrer is an underwhelming adaptation scarred by poor screenplay
Planning to watch Adiprush this weekend? Read Pinkvilla’s review of this Om Raut directorial.
Name: Adipurush
Director: Om Raut
Cast: Prabhas,Angad Bedi,Saif Ali Khan,Kriti Sanon,sonal chauhan,sunny singh,vatsal Sheth
Writer: Om Raut,Manoj Muntashir
Rating: 2
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video,Netflix
When one attempts to showcase an epic like Ramayana on screen, an exemplary portrayal of it is expected as the audience is emotionally and spiritually invested in the story. Director Om Raut's Adipurush headlined by Prabhas, Kriti Sanon, Saif Ali Khan, Sunny Singh and Devdatta Nage is sensitive to that sentiment. Full marks to the makers for taking on this mammoth task of bringing India’s most loved saga on the big screen, however, many times just bravery is not enough. It is the execution here that fails the intent.
Plot
Adipurush begins with a very impactful introduction of Raavan aka Lankesh establishing the character’s might and supremacy. The narrative then moves to several years later when Raghav and Janaki are in exile in the forest, battling their daily challenges. Their difficulties later escalate as Shurpanakha approaches Raavan. She asks her brother to seek revenge from Ram for rejecting her, by abducting Sita. What follows is Raghav collaborating with Bajrang and Sugriv to free his wife from the claws of the demon king.
What’s Hot?
Now this might be considered as a backhanded compliment, but director and adapted story and screenplay writer Om Raut has made a sincere attempt to narrate the entire story of Ramayana in this 179 minutes run time of Adipurush. He has tried to add as many important elements as possible from the original text, and that comes across on screen. So kudos to Raut for attempting that and getting the crux of the story right. But, now comes the backhanded part of the complement. In an attempt to narrate such a detailed story in three hours, the filmmaker has rushed the screenplay thus devoiding the audience a chance to feel the emotions.
Furthermore, the star of Adipurush is background music composed by Sanchit Balhara and Ankit Balhara. It adds life to the overall narrative, even lifting sequences that needed better writing and execution. Director of photography Palani Karthik’s lens has captured some beautiful shots especially the ones set in the woods, however, the frequent use of wide shots especially in the second half could have been limited. VFX is above average, and Ajay-Atul’s music leaves an impact.
What’s Not?
As mentioned above, the screenplay had a lot of scope of improvement, and so did the dialogues penned by Manoj Muntashir Shukla. Lines like ‘Yeh teri bua ka bagicha hai?’ or ‘Jiski jalti hai vahi janta hai’ trivializes the dignity of the story. Editors Ashish Mhatre and Apurva Motiwale Sahai could have also collaborated with Om Raut to work on the pace of the film. This would have helped to add more feelings in the overall narrative, especially in the second half that ran too fast making the climax even more underwhelming. The end fight sequence between Ram and Raavan executed by action directors Ramazan Bulut and Pradyumna Kumar Swain (PK) is a let down too.
Another thing that doesn't work for me is the portrayal of Raavan, who has been reduced to just a demon king with little to no respect to his intellect and skills. What makes the character more rounded are these and more such aspects of his personality, which doesn’t come across in Adipurush. This makes the part look caricaturish and far less intense, thus one not taking it seriously. Even the imagination of a dark and brooding Lanka doesn’t work for me. Costume designer Nachiket Barve could have done a lot more with all the characters, especially with Raavan.
Performances
Prabhas as Raghav is limited in his performance with restrictive expressions. However, the actor shines in two sequences where he motivates his army. Kriti Sanon as Janaki lives up to her part and delivers a balanced performance. Though I wish she had more screen time in Adipurush. Saif Ali Khan has aced Raavan with his expressions, but it is the overall body language that doesn’t work. To show his large demeanor the makers have adapted to the Hulk walk, which doesn’t truly connect with the character. Sunny Singh as Lakshman seemed restricted in his performance, but Devdatta Nage as Bajrang and Vatsal Sheth as Indrajit deliver a good performance.
Final Verdict
Om Raut’s Adipurush is a sincere attempt but a not so sincere adaptation of Ramayana. Its biggest let down is the writing, and could have done much better if it was was divided in two parts.
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