What's Behind
Kalyan Ram who is known for his penchant for experimental films despite the reverses is coming up with a time travel film Bimbisara. directed by Mallidi Vasisht. Expectations are soaring on the film in which Kalyan Ram played the role of a cruel king Bimbisara of the Trigartala Empire. Let us see what impact the film which was released on August 5, 2022, made on movie lovers.
Story Review
Trigartala Empire is ruled by Bimbisara (Kalyan Ram) who believes in ruling the entire world conquering various kingdoms and suppressing people under his role crushing under his feet. Even as fear for Bimbisara increases every second, Princess of Asmaka Kingdom, Ira (Catherine Tresa) dares to oppose, and at the same time, few in Dhanvantari village question his cruelty. This leads to shocking twists of events in the life of Bimbisara. To find out those shocking twists and how it is connected to Devdatta (Kalyan Ram) and what is its connection to the current events pertaining to Dhanvantari trust chairman Viswanadhan (Prakash Raj), Police Officer Vyjayanthi (Samyuktha Menon), enjoy Bimbisara on the screen.
Artists, Technicians Review
Vassisstha dared to be different to show Kalyan Ram in a never seen role. Kalyan Ram must be complimented for doing the role without any reservations and taking a risk and proving once again that he has a penchant for doing unique roles irrespective of the result of his films. In doing so this time, he came up with one of the best performances in his career. Vassisstha starts the narration in an interesting manner and quickly introduces to the wicked rule of Bimbisara. He shifts back to the current narration just when one gets a feeling that he is dragging the Bimbisara story on an unending note. The forced item song and a couple of scenes slowed the tempo giving such a feeling.
The narration in the current episodes generates interest with a few hilarious scenes and the first half ends on a decent note with an interesting twist setting the tone for the second half. The second half narration also follows the same tempo with director Vasisishta taking viewers to the past and the present in a to and fro manner. Though at times, it turned routine, Vassishta with his screenplay and interesting narration managed to maintain the interest of movie lovers. Finally, the film ends in a good manner, though at times logic went for a toss. Vassishta emerged successful in showing Kalyan Ram in a different role but in the process failed to elevate the characters of others and more importantly that of an antagonist. Had he done so, the result would have been even better.
Kalyan Ram invested everything in Bimbisara. He put his heart and soul into the film. As such Kalyan Ram is seen throughout the film. He came up with a spirited performance. He looked menacing as the cruel king Bimbisara. His dialogue delivery is powerful and made an impact and his body language suited it perfectly. His expressions are good but one gets a feeling that he should have blinked his eyelids. He did all the roles, be it Bimbisara, Devdatta, or the modern-day youngster without blinking his eyelids. Had he done so, expressions would have made an even more powerful impact.
Catherine Tresa and Samyuktha Menon did not get much screen presence. Catherine Tresa sizzled in a song and a couple of scenes while Samyuktha Menon appeared in a few scenes. Srinivas Reddy evoked a few laughs in his role as Zubeda. Tanikella Bharani, Prakash Raj, Brahmaji, and others got inconsequential roles. Even the villain character turned out to be a caricature.
The music of M. M. Keeravani, Chirrantan Bhatt, and Varikuppala Yadagiri is according to the storyline. The songs are shot lavishly and tuned in a melodious manner. One song is shot to elevate the character of Bimbisara. All the songs are folklore. Keeravani is known for his expertise in giving such tunes and so as Chirantan Bhatt. The music of Keeravani elevated the scenes. Chota K Naidu's cinematography beautified the scenes on the screen giving an aesthetic feel. VFX could have been far better. Song placement could have been better and the item song deviated from the film's narration. Tammiraju's editing is ok but could have been better in the second half. Dialogues are ok and production values are good.
Advantages
Kalyan Ram
Interesting Story
Screenplay
Disadvantages
Slow pace
Lack of impactful elements
Weak villain
Rating Analysis
Kalyan Ram is known for his quest and thirst to do different roles on screen and prove himself as a complete actor. With Bimbisara, he proved that given a challenging role, he can come out with flying colors. He took his acting to new heights with his performance and mannerisms as Bimbisara. A little bit of fine-tuning would have done him a world of good. Vassishta did good research on the story and history of the Bimbisara king and he smartly included the character of Devdatta, Bimbisara's brother. It is true that he had a brother named Devdatta and he was backstabbed in real life. The way Vassishta connected the dots of the past and the present with the time travel through a mirror and the small girl is commendable. He added the right doses of action, humor, and romance to thrill viewers. The story and screenplay and narration are good. More elevation of the hero and villain characters and tightening of the script could have powered Bimbisara to another level. Considering all these elements, CJ goes with a 2.75 rating for Bimbisara.