BOTTOM LINE
Big Ambition, Zero Substance
RATING
1.5/5
Story, Screenplay& Director: Abhishek Nama
Cast: Virat Karrna, Nabha Natesh, Aishwarya Menon, Daksha Nagarkar, Jagapathi Babu, Murali Sharma
Music Director: Junaid Kumar, Abhe
DOP: Soundar Rajan S
Editor: RC Pranav
Producers: Kishore Annapureddy, Nishitha Nagireddy
Presented By: NIK Studios & Abhishek Pictures
Production Company: NIK Studios & Abhishek Pictures
U.S. Distributor: Zee Studios
Related Links: Trailer
What Is the Film About?
Evil forces, Bairagi and Abdali, want to rule the world by obtaining the secret text that will grant ultimate power. The movie’s basic plot is how Rudra becomes the chosen one and stops this destruction.
Performances
Virat, playing the lead role, has the physicality for the part, but when it comes to expression, he is lacking. There are many moments when he could have shown the difference, but he remains calm, expressing little. It’s not a role that would eventually take him to the next level.
Nabha Natesh starts as another normal character, but she gets a few moments that feel alright for her presence. She doesn’t change things enough to make an impact, but she’s okay.
Ishwarya Memon’s role starts interestingly, but the way it ends up is forgettable. She is overall okay with what is given to her.
Analysis
Abhishek Naama directs Nagabandham. The movie is a devotional drama with action and thrills blended in, set against the backdrop of Indian mythology.
The movie starts on an intriguing note, introducing what Nagabandham is and how it could impact the world if one came into possession of the items.
But it doesn’t take long for the narrative to unfold, leaving one feeling disconnected from the proceedings. The first thing is the villain’s intro and how it’s presented in relation to the main story. The whole thing feels overdone. But it doesn’t end there.
We then have a new setting and a new backdrop. We have new characters and a world. It would still be fine if the narrative stuck to them. However, that doesn’t happen, and we’re introduced to another world later.
Nagabandham, after a point, feels like where it’s going and how things are going to connect. But, there is no Surprise how that happens, and that is the biggest issue with the movie, the sheer predictability.
Once the different worlds are introduced, one knows how the narrative will shape up. But when, within thin predictability, the proceedings take place in a way that makes it look like one thing is not related to the other. Everything looks disconnected.
One disconnected thing leads to another, and by the time we reach Interval, it feels like an entire movie has been completed.
The interval especially needs a special mention as it’s too long and the various emotions it thinks work together don’t work at all. It is too much, without any emotional connection at all.
Post-interval, one already knows where things are headed and fears that it will happen as expected. For a brief moment, things get elevated, but it immediately returns to normal.
The second half, too, follows the same pattern as the first, i.e, disjointed narrative, only here there is a flashback.
However, the flashback doesn’t throw any surprise. We know how it would play out, and it exactly happens that way, and then when things resume in the current time, it feels like things are done double time.
Nagabandham, despite its intriguing premise, offers no surprises or exciting moments in a movie that runs more than three hours. There are hardly ten minutes of content that bring any tension or drama. The rest are the usual possible scenarios with the worst possible outputs.
Overall, Nagabandham aims to be high-quality, blending many of the genre’s big, entertaining aspects. However, what it delivers is an exhausted narrative, barring a few set pieces. It’s an immediately forgettable movie, as a result.
Performances by Other Actors
One of the biggest assets of Nagabandham is its casting. We have so many known faces from Jagapati Babu, Jayaprakash, John Kokken, Anasuya Bharadwaj, John Vijay, Murali Sharma, Saranya Ponvannan, etc., but none have an impactful role. They all disappear after a point.
Music and Other Departments?
Abhe and Junaid Kumar provide the music for the film. The songs are forgetful, but the background score offers some redemption even though it’s too loud. The cinematography isn’t at the level one would expect given the budget. The editing gives the movie a patchy feel throughout. It is a huge minus for the movie. The wiring is non-existent for a major part. The production values are grand.
Highlights?
Basic Setup
Only a few minutes post-interval
Drawbacks?
Terrible Execution
Screenplay
Editing
Zero Emotional Connection
Patchy Proceedings
Loud BGM
Writing
Did I Enjoy It?
No
Will You Recommend It?
No
Nagabandham Movie Reviewed by Kalyan
