Rudratandava: The rise of the common man

Updated - March 02, 2015 08:36 am IST

A still from Rudratandava.

A still from Rudratandava.

After experiencing a fresh breeze in Mythri and Benkipatna , the audience get a taste of the quintessential revenge drama in Rudratandava . The much talked about movie is story of a “peace-loving” common man who takes on the granite mafia. One part of the story reminds one of the murder of Indian Oil Corporation officer Shanmugam Manjunath by the petrol mafia in 2005.

The film is a remake of PandiyaNaadu (Tamil) starring Vishal and Lakshmi Menon.

Besides celebrating violence, Guru Deshpande cashes in on strong family bonds to keep viewers engaged in the story. The film moves slowly when the focus is on family drama and romance, but post-interval leads to an engaging climax.

The story is about Shivaraj (Chiranjeevi Sarja), a humble man who does not want to invite troubles in his life. He falls in love with Janhavi (Radhika Kumaraswamy), a schoolteacher.

His brother (Kumar Govind) is an honest government official who falls in the bad books of mafia don Narasimha (Ravishankar) and is killed. Shivaraj and his grieving father Guru (Girish Karnad) resolve to take revenge. Rudratandava is also the story of Kolar, known as Kolahalapura during the middle ages, meaning ‘violent city’, as it was the battlefield for the warring Chalukya and Chola kingdoms.

Though Chiranjeevi Sarja is in the lead, veteran actor Girish Karnad steals the show. Ravishankar gives a good performance. Chikkanna excels as Chiranjeevi’s sidekick and provides much-needed comic relief.

Rudratandava (Kannada)

Director: Guru Deshpande

Cast: Chiranjeevi Sarja, Radhika Kumaraswamy, Girish Karnad, Ravi Shankar, Kumar Govind, Chikkanna

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