Banaras - A love story mixed with science fiction and spirituality

Kannada cinema after the tremendous successes of 'KGF' and its sequel and 'Kantara' is coming up with more pan Indian films.  Writer-Director Jayatheertha who found fame with the Rishab Shetty-Haripriya starrer 'Bell Bottom' has attempted mixing spirituality and science fiction with his love story in 'Banaras'.   Whether this will satisfy his fans remains to be seen.

Siddharth (Zaid Khan) is a rich college boy who dupes a college girl Dhani (Sonal Monteiro) into believing that he is her husband from the future.  When she innocently allows him into her bedroom he takes a selfie and shares it to his friends to win a challenge.  However the pic goes viral on the internet and destroys the girl's life who discontinues her budding singing career and disappears.  Siddharth later realises his folly and traces Dhani to Banaras to seek her forgiveness.  However right when the youngsters understand each other the hero gets caught in a time loop at the end of which Dhani is murdered.  What made Siddharth get trapped in the time loop and can he save Dhani from death is what the rest of the story of 'Banaras' is all about. 

Debutante Zaid Khan has acted naturally as the insensitive playboy in the beginning and later as the guilt ridden youngster who seeks redemption.  He is also good in the stunt sequences and emotional scenes with his father and his lover.   Sonal Monteira looks pretty and has given a good account of herself as Dhani especially in the scenes where she confronts the hero and later falls for him.   Without skin show the actress attracts the audiences with her girl next door charm.  Sujay Shastry as Shambu, the man who helps the hero and who has a tragic past and a quirky profession in the present, is excellent.  Devaraj and Achuyuth Kumar as the fathers of the hero and the heroine respectively prove their experience.  Sapna Raj provides a few funny moments. 

Romantic films work when the lead pair are well matched and fortunately that is the case in 'Banaras'.  Their chemistry is good in both the song sequences and the romantic talkie portions.  The first ten minutes of the film is very interesting as one is made to think that the hero is really from the future.  The time loop sequences showing different images each time from the movie theater to the heroine's house have been shot and edited interestingly. The scenes showing the colorfulness of Kashi and the paradox of the ganges cleansing the soul is conveyed effectively in the screenplay.

On the downside after the initial setup and the hero arriving at Banaras for redemption a good one hour or so is wasted by piling up one cliched scene after another.  The manner in which an experiment is conducted on the hero is not very convincing.   The heroine's characterization is so matter of fact and submissive that Dhani is reduced to a mere cardboard image.  The length is another problem.  On the whole there are lost opportunities galore.

'Banaras' is technically top notch with the cinematography and music aiding the filmmaker's vision.  Panorama Studios and KVN Productions have provided high values to match a pan Indian feel.  Writer-director Jayatheertha has sure cooked up more than a couple of interesting ideas in his screenplay.  Some work and some don't.

Verdict : Go for this if you fancy a romantic flick that has elements of science fiction and spirituality.