PremiumGaradi movie review: An uncharacteristic Yogaraj Bhat film that fails to impress
Yogaraj Bhat's Garadi may work sparingly as a sports drama but on the whole, there is very little that's worthwhile about the film.
Last Updated: 01.08 PM, Nov 10, 2023
Story:
Soori (Yashas Surya) wishes to follow in the footsteps of his late father and become a kushti or wrestling champion, but he is forbidden from undergoing any training by the village's legendary coach Rangappa (BC Patil). The reason, of course, is related to his past but unbeknownst to Rangappa, he masters the sport on the side and all he needs now is one opportunity to show what he's worth. However, when he does find that opportunity, after all, things do not go as planned and instead take a drastic turn - can Soori pull himself out of trouble and achieve his ultimate goal?
Review:
It's highly likely that you will buy a ticket to watch Garadi expecting a trademark Yogaraj Bhat but walk out of the cinema hall feeling slightly appalled, confused. The post-credits of the film do read out 'Yogaraj Bhat', no doubt, but the film you have watched may not seem to be anywhere in the league that the seasoned filmmaker is famed for. In fact, it might even seem like a typo of some kind because nothing about Garadi has the quintessence of the same man who has made landmark films like Mungaru Male, Gaalipata and Pancharangi. You won't find Bhat's famous wordplay, the heavy dosage of poetry and music, nor the relatable characters that most often guided his narratives. Garadi, if anything, is likely to stick out like a sore thumb in his filmography because, despite a story, a conflict, an emotional core and whatnot, it doesn't feature the unique personality and worldview of Yogaraj Bhat. And that should pretty much sum it up for you.
The film, in essence, is a tale of two halves because the first half is the sports drama we all expect and the remainder is a shrieking mess. The story takes place entirely in a village named Rattehalli and is centred around the lives of all the local wrestlers or pailwaans, including their legendary coach Rangappa. For Rangappa, mastering the sport is as much about the skills as it is about being ethical and principled. Very early on in the film, he vows that the next champion in the kushti tournament will be from Rattehalli and a scene or two later, he banishes one of the top contenders because he broke a rule. It's clear that he is the Dronacharya equivalent here (a character even refers to him that way) and Soori, played by Yashas Surya, is the Ekalavya, the eternal underdog. We see it coming that Soori has to emerge as the answer to Rangappa's quest for that ideal wrestler but before it happens, we would want that relationship to evolve, to deliver some classic feel-good moments. The Yogaraj Bhat we all know and like would have explored this kind of dynamic with a lot more finesse and care, like how he did in Gaalipata, Pancharangi and others, but it's left unattended here because the narrative meanders needlessly all throughout, leaving no space for the characters to breathe or evolve.
And perhaps that is why the wrestling portions don't work as well as they were meant to. We see Soori, the underdog, rise beyond his confines as ordered but those thumping moments don't necessarily evoke the expected emotion in us because we have never been given the chance to get to know him. There are a few exciting moments scattered all over but they come in extremely short spurts and quite abruptly even. It feels odd because the filmmaker at the helm here is known to be extremely fond of his protagonists and has often found exceptional ways to introduce them to us. Yogaraj Bhat's protagonists, male or female, have never needed one particular 'build-up' scene to make acquaintance with the viewer and instead have often grown in stature over the course of a narrative. In Garadi, however, we never really get to know who Soori is or what separates him from the rest. Similarly, the female lead, played by Sonal Monteiro, is rendered rather one-dimensional and has very little 'substance' to offer to the story. Again, very uncharacteristically, the weakest link in this film is the love story or the romance angle and when was the last time you said that about a Yogaraj Bhat film.
As far as the second half is concerned, perhaps the less said, the better. Some of the most unbelievably outmoded moments which even qualify as cringe exist in this portion and the film reaches a certain point after a set of half-baked sequences that it's almost irredeemable after that. There's a rape scene that's extremely unpalatable and unnecessary, a collection of fights that make little sense to the story and also a resolution in the climax that just doesn't add up. What does save the film from plummeting completely is the cameo by Challenging Star Darshan who momentarily lifts up our spirits and helps us not worry about all the shortcomings, until they come crawling back again.
Also Read: Garadi actor Yashas Surya on Challenging Star Darshan: 'He's the only reason I landed this role'
Speaking of performances, Yashas Surya is impressive and feels genuine in the role of Soori but there's nothing extraordinary about his character. Sujay Belur, as the antagonist, is menacing but is also made almost monotonously vile in the film. The rest of the cast, including senior actors P. Ravishankar, BC Patil, Dharmanna Kadur and others, doesn't really have a lot to bite into in terms of writing and nor does any actor challenge the limitations to deliver something worthwhile.
V. Harikrishna's music doesn't contribute the same way that it normally would to a Yogaraj Bhat film and quite surprisingly, the cinematography, another of the filmmaker's strongest suites, too, is quite underwhelming.
Verdict:
Garadi, as already pointed out, may not deliver on the expectations that you carry for a Yogaraj Bhat film but even otherwise, the film feels riddled with problems. You may want to give it a try to get a taste of how traditional wrestling functions in the heartland of Karnataka but the expectations are to be set quite low.