Release Date: February 11, 2022
Rating: 2.5/5
Starring: Ravi Teja, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Dimple Hayathi, Arjun, Anasuya Bharadwaj, Vennela Kishore, Rao Ramesh
Director: Ramesh Varma
Producer: Satyanarayana Koneru
Music Director: Devi Sri Prasad
Cinematography: Sujit Vaasudev, GK Vishnu
Editor: Amar Reddy
Khiladi is the first biggie that has come out in the third wave of Covid. Directed by Ramesh Varma, this Ravi Teja starrer is out now. Let’s see how it is.
Story:
Mahatma Gandhi (Ravi Teja) is a happy family-oriented man who gets involved in a money laundering case worth 10,000 crores. He gets arrested and a psychology student played by Meenakshi Chowdhury saves him and gets out of jail. As soon as Gandhi comes out, he gives everyone a big shock. What is that shock? Who is Gandhi in the first place? and what’s his connection with the 10,000 crores? To know the answers, you need to watch the film on the big screen.
Plus Points:
Khiladi is a tailor-made role for Ravi Teja and he excels in it. He had to showcase two variations in the film and he did it with aplomb. Khiladi is filled with a good supporting cast and each character has good scope for performance.
Dimple Hayati goes all out and exploded on screen. The masses will love her glamor show in the film. Off late, Anasuya is getting good roles and in Khiladi too, she has surprised with a good twist. Vennela Kishore, Murali Sharma, and Sachin Khedekar do their roles well.
One more advantage of the film is the hit music by DSP. Even though some songs feel like speed breakers, they have been shot well. Action king, Arjun does well in his role of a cop.
The first half has decent humor and the pre-interval twist and interval bang are the highlights of the film as it leaves the audience in a high. Meenakshi Chowdhury gets a good role and performs well in all the scenes.
Minus Points:
The film starts on a simple note and basic comedy keeps the audience engaged. But things get high with a solid interval bang. One would think the real flashback of the hero will be interesting in the latter part. But that does not happen as the film goes down with way too many twists which were not needed at all.
Also, the hero gets away with way too many crimes so easily. The motive for him to play smart is not established at all. The film keeps fluctuating once in a while and bores the audience. The emotion in the second half goes completely missing.
Also, the character played by Arjun is made a mockery off in many scenes. He gets hold of Ravi Teja in several scenes but fails to arrest him. The film is filled with such loose ends and fails to have a grip on the proceedings. The climax looks way too silly and there was no need to open the threads for a sequel.
Technical Aspects:
The production values of the film are pretty good. But the camera work is just about okay. Action blocks are good in the first half but look over the top in the second. DSP’s music is good and so was the BGM. Styling for Ravi Teja is not proper as he looks dull and de-glam in many scenes.
Coming to the director Ramesh Varma, he has done a disappointing job with the film. He narrated the film well in the first half and ran out of ideas in the second. He makes a mess of the proceedings and tries to play smart as the film’s caption but fails miserably. There is absolutely no seriousness in his narration during the second half and transforms the hero’s character in a second from bad to good. This leaves no impact on the audience.
Verdict:
On the whole, Khiladi is a half-baked crime thriller that works only in the first half. Decent comedy, good songs, and interval twists are basic assets. But the film takes a nosedive in the second half and never recovers making Khiladi a boring and rushed-up affair for the audience.
