'Dirty Hari' is currently streaming on Friday Movies ATT. Here is our review of the erotic thriller, whose release got delayed by several months.

Story:

Hari (Shravan Reddy) enters into an illicit affair with an aspiring actress named Jasmine (Simrat Kaur) just as Vasudha (Ruhani Sharma) falls in love with him. Post his marriage with Vasudha, Hari continues his secretive relationship with Jasmine. But, as it turns out, their equations become tempestuous, spawning shocking outcomes.

Analysis:

The film starts off on a poignant note, with Hari saying that he is not in a position to enjoy his fortune. His riches are attributable to Vasudha, his wife, whom he met purely because of luck. Luck, Hari repeats in the movie, is the thing. On the other hand, Vasudha believes seems to believe in an ethical way of life, with her interests ranging from colourful paintings to classical music. Hari claims to love books but he is more interested in leering at Jasmine's bare legs in the prensece of his fiance and Jasmine's beau. More than dirty, he is Creepy Hari!

Hari is introduced as an unconventional chess player, but he is neither ruthless nor capable of mind games. He is a hedonist who lusts after Jasmine because, as a character in the initial scene says, even her eyes are full of lust. For someone who hails from a relatively poor background, Hari wants to make the quick buck. Conveniently, Vasudha falls for his charm and even her parents are cool about their affair despite him being an unproven talent in managing a business. Writer-director MS Raju revels in convenient writing and, at times, even lazy execution.

The extra-marital affair leads to some old-school dialogues like this one: "I am unalbe to give my best to the relationship". Jasmine's character becomes predictable after a point. At the same time, she feels guilty about being adamant in the relationship. Hari's conflicted self is intersting only to a certain point.

The climax gives a high, with something surprising coming from an unlikely character. 'Dirty Hari' is not all dirty, it has emotional heft, after all.

When Jasmine asks Hari to take her for a drink despite her relationship status with another man, it's believable. It's because MS Raju shows care in building up the characters. When Hari flirts with Jasmine, it's again in a belieavable zone because her reaction is not a leap of faith.

The film fails to stage the wife-husband scenes in an endearing manner. Ruhani's character is reduced to obsessing herself over pregnancy. From a motormouth friend (played by Mahesh Achanta) whose wife is sex-hungry to a movie project that gets halted due to financial troubles, there are a lot of elements that don't necessarily go into perking up the drama. As more and more sex plays out in the second half, the impact slackens. Even the montages stop seducing the audience. Just as Hari feels no emotions when he is with his wife on bed, the bedroom scenes stop kindling any feelings in the viewer. The usage of words like fcuk should have been minimal.

Simrat Kaur owns the film with her nuanced performance. On the other hand, Shravan Reddy is a bit out of place. Ruhani Sharma understands her role thoroughly.

Mark K Robin's music and the cinematography are decent.

Verdict:

The film is replete with bedroom scenes. The youthful movie has a confused characterization as far as Simrat Kaur is concerned. The second half is largely monotonous, with love-making scenes getting repetitive.