Movie: Prathinidhi 2
Rating: 1.5/5
Banner: Vanara Entertainments and Rana Arts
Cast: Nara Rohit, Udayabhanu, Sachin Khedekar, Jisshu Sengupta, Ajay Ghosh, Siri Lella, Prudhvi, and others
Music: Mahati Swara Sagar
DOP: Nani Chamidisetty
Editor: Raviteja Girijala
Art: Kiran Kumar Manne
Action: RShiva Raju and Prudvi
Producers: Kumar Raza Bathula, Anjaneyulu Sri Thota and Surendranath Bollineni
Written and Directed by: Murthy Devagupthapu
Release Date: May 10, 2024
The first part of "Prathinidhi," released in 2014, garnered appreciation. Ten years later, the sequel to the film was released. The movie was released in cinemas today, right before the upcoming general elections. Hence, the rationale behind the creation of this film and its intended beneficiaries can be easily comprehended.
Let us ascertain its merits and demerits.
Story:
Chetan (Nara Rohit) works as an independent journalist. An NRI (Udaya Bhanu) arrives in India with the purpose of setting up a news channel and appoints Che aka Chetan as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He agrees to take the job on the condition that he is given complete autonomy.
When the bypolls for one of the constituencies in Andhra Pradesh were announced, the Chief Minister of the state, Prajapati (Sachin Khedekar), nominated a candidate. Eventually candidate from the opposing party emerges victorious and Chetan becomes more popular as a journalist.
After a few days, the residence of the chief minister is subjected to a detonation by an explosive device, resulting in his demise. Just as Viswa Prajapathi, CM’s son, is about to be sworn in as the new Chief Minister, a surprising twist occurs: the current Chief Minister, Prajapati, is revealed to be alive and has returned.
An officer from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), initiates an investigation to determine the identity of the person responsible for planting the bomb in the Chief Minister's office. How is Chetan connected to all this?
Artistes’ Performances:
Following a prolonged gap, Nara Rohit returned. Despite having plenty of time away from acting, he didn’t get back in the right shape. His prominent belly is clearly visible. Regarding the performance, his character is lacking in depth and strength. His delivery of dialogue is the only noteworthy aspect.
Sachin Khedekar as Chief Minister is okay. The character portrayed by Udaya Bhanu lacks coherence and precision. Other actors perform their roles neatly.
Technical Excellence:
The cinematography is adequate. The action stunts in the film are largely comical. Dialogues are typically written in the form of quotations. Some dialogues are identical to what we encounter in newspapers and television channels.
Highlights:
Twist related to Prajapathi
Drawback:
Silly and boring first half
Quotation-like dialogues
Direction
Analysis
"Prathinidhi 2," the second in the "Prathinidhi" series, is clearly lacking in logic and coherence. Murthy Devagupthapu, a journalist for TV5 News, makes his directorial debut with this film. Of course, this film was created solely for the purpose of giving political gains to one party and casting aspersions on the current chief minister.
Such a thing is to be expected given that this is a political film. However, despite being a journalist, the writer appears to have no knowledge of how government agencies operate. First and foremost, the idea of bombing the Chief Minister's residence is as ridiculous as Boyapati's film "Skanda".
It is silly to see that the state Chief Minister's residence is bombed, and the CM deceives the entire state and central government forces about the blast and his death in order to expose the true perpetrator. Only journalists who live in a bubble can think in this way. The central premise of the plot is absurd and nonsensical.
The initial portion of the film primarily revolves around establishing Nara Rohit as a formidable journalist whose live shows and exposés have a profound impact on the state. The entire first half is just a build-up for the protagonist.
In a single extended sequence, the character portrayed by Nara Rohit directly addresses the camera and delivers a substantial discourse on the significance of voting. Upon witnessing his speech, people immediately cease their duties and proceed to exercise their voting rights. This journalist is responsible for the unprecedented surge in voter turnout. There are many such laughable sequences in this movie.
There was a lot of hype surrounding Udaya Bhanu's character, as it was mentioned that she had previously fled to the USA and has now returned to India to uphold the truth. But she only makes brief appearances in two or three subsequent scenes and holds no significance.
The film undergoes a shift in tone after the intermission by unveiling the unexpected revelation regarding the demise of the Chief Minister. Subsequently, the CBI investigation and Nara Rohit's interrogation sequences are portrayed with a greater emphasis. These sequences are presented in a manner that we see in thrillers.
Although the episode leading to the unexpected demise of CM is engaging, the film subsequently begins to decline. The CBI officer acts more like a local S.I. The interrogation scene featuring Jissu Sengupta as a CBI officer and Nara Rohit demonstrates the director's lack of expertise in cinematic storytelling and limited comprehension of the authentic procedures followed by CBI investigations and government agencies.
At the conclusion of the movie, the intended message of this film is this: the son of a politician conspired to kill his own father.
"Prathinidhi 2" lacks substance as a political thriller. The film lacks a clear motive, as it fails to establish itself as either a thriller, a political satire, or a social message movie. Due to its frivolous central concept and lackluster direction, "Prathinidhi 2" ultimately proves to be yet another uninteresting political film.
Bottom line: Bombed