Senapathi Review

'Senapathi', which is produced by Sushmita Konidela and Vishnu Prasad of Gold Box Entertainments, is currently streaming on Aha. In this section, we are going to review the latest OTT film.

Story:

Krishna (Naresh Agastya), an orphan, is a cop who grew up in a juvenile reformatory after his evil boss framed him in a murder case. He dreams of becoming an IPS officer, but his dream gets potentially shattered when he loses his service revolver during an operation. His corrupt boss Purushotham (Satya Prakash), an insensitive cop, makes his life tougher. But the bigger enemy is Murthy (Rajendra Prasad), with whom the missing revolver lies.

Analysis:

The web film, streaming on Aha, is a half-remake, half-adaptation of the Tamil-language crime thriller '8 Thottakkal' (2017). The Tamil original received a big round of critical applause when it was released. 'Senapathi', supported by a dark performance from Rajendra Prasad and a sincere one from Naresh Agasthya, is a decent watch.

At about 150 minutes, the Pavan Sadineni directorial gets it going right from the word go. Krishna's character is established effectively in no time. The scenes between him and his creepy boss at the workplace make a point. Murthy, the feared mystery man, takes time to enter the scene. And when he comes in, he makes his brooding presence felt. Together with his partners in crime (played by Rakendu Mouli and Josh Ravi), Murthy commits a crime.

Several scenes are well-crafted. An extra-marital affair is staged in an unapologetic and non-showy fashion. The dialogues (by Rakendu Mouli) sometimes sound crude but they are not there to hit below the belt. Jeevan Kumar as a leader of a crime syndicate gets a few engaging moments. Pavani Reddy has a role, while Keshav Deepak's character doesn't last long.

Rajendra Prasad's character becomes the soul of the drama. When he is around, the crime thriller assumes the form of an emotional roller-coaster here and there. The entry of Harshavardhan's character adds a touch of humour. As someone who has to lead the operation to recover the lost revolver, he delivers an easy performance.

Shravan Bharadwaj's background music is able. Unlike the Tamil original, 'Senapathi' doesn't disturb us with needless songs. The romantic track between Krishna and Sathya (Gnaneswari Kandregula) is below-average.

There are too many coincidences in the story. Firstly, without some rare happenings coming together, the revolver wouldn't fall into the hands of some characters. Then there is one killing after another, some of which are executed in an unlikely way.

Verdict:

'Senapathi' is a crime thriller with a difference. It is said that the story derives its premise from Akira Kurosawa's 'Stray Dog' (1949). The script would have looked organic had the contrivances been thought of in a better way.