Rathnan Prapancha movie review: Dhananjaya's emotional family drama warms the cockles of the heart

4/5

Story: Insurance agent Rathnakara is disillusioned with his middle-class existence and his mother’s overbearing affection. Owing to certain circumstances, he heads off on a journey of self-discovery, but will finding out who he truly is bring him the satisfaction he was looking for?

Review: Rathnan Prapancha, by all accounts, should be leading man Dhananjaya’s vehicle. His Rathnakara is at the centre of the narrative, driving the story and the journey within ahead. After watching it, though, I couldn’t help but think that perhaps Pramod did just steal Dhananjaya’s thunder. But more on that later.

Rathnan Prapancha is the story of middle-class insurance agent Rathnakara (Dhananjaya), an angry, not so young man who is disillusioned with the way his life unfolds, and the suffocatingly affectionate antics of his mother, Saroja (veteran actress Umashree in a delightful but short role). If that wasn’t bad enough, his life is turned upside down when he becomes the focal point of an ‘investigative’ story by journalist Mayuri (Reba Monica John), which leads the two of them on a journey to Kashmir, Hubballi and Gokarna. The people that Rathnakara meets along the way on this journey help him piece together some parts of the puzzle that his life has become.

Words fail to describe how beautiful some shots of snow-capped landscapes in Kashmir were; one can only imagine how much more intense a sight that would have been on a big screen. This is an arc that introduces us to the characters played by Ravishankar Gowda and Anu Prabhakar Mukherjee. There’s also noted LGBTQIA+ activist Akkai Padmashali in a cameo that drives home a very pertinent message. This is perhaps one of the most sensitive portrayals of someone from the community in a while, and director Rohit Padaki deserves a pat on the back for that.

From Kashmir, the action heads to arid North Karnataka for a sub-plot involving Achyuth Kumar, Shruthi and Pramod, which, I thought was the best part of the film. Prior to the film’s release, Rohit had praised Pramod profusely as a talent to look out far. I couldn’t agree more. His Udaal Babu Rao is a ghutka-spewing thug with a heart of gold, whose over-the-top mannerisms are kept firmly in check by Pramod’s measured acting. The actor has an assured air about him and quite literally lights up his scenes. He was joined by powerhouse performer Shruthi and between the two of them, handled some of the best sequences of the film.

By the time the action shifts to Gokarna, we are almost at the fag end of the film, at which point Rohit drives home the message about how we often realise the value of something only when its gone. That is not the only message that Rathnan Prapancha carries; the more pertinent one is about relationships and that blood is not thicker than water. Explaining this any further will probably be a spoiler, so let’s rest it there.

Verdict: Rathnan Prapancha is a feel-good film; the laughs, provided mostly by Umashree, are over way too soon, leading the film along an emotional rollercoaster, including a few tear-jerker moments. This is not a film about Rathnakara, it is about the people in his world, so enjoy it as a complete package. You will not be disappointed.