Vikrant Rona review: Kiccha Sudeep holds together predictable Rangitaranga-style revenge saga

Anup Bhandari’s thriller, which is now streaming in Kannada on Zee5, is set in what he calls the Rangitaranga universe

A still from Vikrant Rona

Vikrant Rona

Story: Inspector Vikrant Rona (Sudeep) arrives in Kamarottu after his predecessor is found dead. The village is also plagued by the mysterious disappearances and deaths of young children, which they believe to be the handiwork of a demon. Can Vikrant Rona get to the bottom of this mystery?

Review: I have to be honest – I have mixed feelings about Kiccha Sudeep’s Vikrant Rona. Mixed because the actor was let down by a story that was nothing but a predictable revenge saga thriller. Writer-director Anup Bhandari is still hung up about Rangitaranga, Kamarottu, Yakshagana, mysterious wells, night drives that don’t end well – if you’ve seen the filmmaker’s debut venture you will get what I am driving at. The film rests on a mother-son and father-daughter relationship, only one of which works. 

Having said that, I must add that Vikrant Rona is, no doubt, a good watch. Sudeep, of course, is the driving force of the film and the superstar is an absolute joy to watch onscreen. He looks good, is in supreme shape and is swag personified. While Sudeep holds forte, supporting him ably and elevating the film are B Ajaneesh Loknath’s magic with music, William David’s amazing camerawork and Shivakumar J’s art work.

Ajaneesh’s background score is in pole position as far as technical efforts go. It is no wonder that Anup trusts the music man so much to return to him repeatedly for each of his films. This time he’s got the responsibility of the songs too, but that is a hit-and-miss bouquet. The Gadang Rakkamma song looks fantabulous on the big screen, while the Gumma Banda Gumma song is also spine-tinglingly good. The rest are so-so and don’t leave much of an impression.

William’s photography and Shivakumar’s art work go hand-in-hand, one must say. Brilliantly realistic looking sets, that have been captured beautifully by William. There’s so much detail in every shot even when a scene unfolds in the dark of night. The 3D was a bit of a let-down; it was just adequate with nothing to write home about. The film could have remained 2D after all.

Nirup Bhandari gets a decent role and the actor makes the most of it. The rest of the supporting cast do what’s asked of them; nothing remarkable there. Jacqueline Fernandez’ much-talked about cameo is all of one scene and item number.

One of the features that the film team had advertised was the tie-up with the CineDubs app that would allow audiences to watch it in the language of their choice. I was at PVR Nexus Mall this morning for the early morning show and while the app allowed me to download the audio track in another language, it just wouldn’t play. Apparently, I wasn’t ‘in’ the theatre.

Verdict: Vikrant Rona is a decent one-time watch; the attempt to do something different is, most definitely appreciated, but it is highly unlikely that even hardcore fans will return for a second viewing. If only Anup had given Sudeep a better story, Vikrant Rona could have been mind-blowing, alas, here, it misses the bus.

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Cast and Crew

Jacqueline Fernandez

Actor

Anup Bhandari

Kiccha Sudeep

Vikranth Rona

Nirup Bhandari

Sanjeev Gambhira aka Sanju