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After the 1996 blockbuster Indian/Bharateeyudu, legendary actor Kamal Haasan and acclaimed director Shankar Shanmugam reunite for the highly anticipated Indian 2/Bharateeyudu 2. The sequel, surrounded by immense buzz, hits theaters today. Dive into our review to find out if it meets expectations.

 

Story:

Chitram Aravindhan (Siddharth) and his team at The Barking Dogs YouTube channel expose city corruption, which lands them in jail. Upon their release, they realise that only Senapathi (Kamal Haasan) can effectively combat India’s corruption. Through the #ComeBackIndian campaign, they bring Senapathi back from Taipei, and upon arrival, he urges the youth to cleanse their families of bribery. Did the youth heed his call? Did the police capture Senapathi? Does the country truly need him? Watch the film to discover the answers.

 

Plus Points:

When the sequel was announced, many wondered how Shankar would bridge the 28-year gap between the original and the sequel, especially in presenting Senapathi as an older man. Shankar skillfully connected the dots, convincingly portraying Senapathi as a 106-year-old man, satisfying the audience.

Kamal Haasan is decent in his role, entertaining with his usual expressions. Siddharth shines with a satisfactory performance, particularly in emotional scenes.

Samuthirakani does well despite minimal screentime. Bobby Simha and others are satisfactory in their roles.

 

Minus Points:

While Shankar’s vision of bringing Senapathi back to a modern, advanced, yet corrupted India is intriguing, the execution falls short. The expected emotional drama, a hallmark of Shankar’s movies, is notably missing.

The screenplay is weak in many areas, particularly in the second half. Emotional scenes lack depth and could have been written better.

Rakul Preet Singh, Priya Bhavani Shankar, SJ Suryah, and others have limited roles and have little impact in this sequel. Their presence might be felt more in the next installment.

A significant drawback is the music, which should have elevated many scenes. Anirudh’s lackluster score leaves many moments appearing flat.

 

Technical Aspects:

Shankar deserves credit for the concept of reviving Senapathi to fight corruption in a modern context. However, the lack of compelling drama and a weak screenplay result in a subpar experience.

As said above, Anirudh’s music disappoints, failing to enhance the film. The cinematography by Ravi Varman is adequate, but a tighter edit by A Sreekar Prasad would have improved the pacing. Production values are good.

 

Verdict:

On the whole, Bharateeyudu 2 is a slow but passable film. Compared to the original, it has a few drawbacks, indicating that Shankar has missed the mark. Kamal Haasan is decent, and Siddharth delivers a satisfactory performance. However, the slow-paced screenplay, lack of emotional depth, and mediocre score are significant shortcomings. If you still want to watch it, keep your expectations low.

123telugu.com Rating: 2.75/5

Reviewed by 123telugu Team

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