What’s it about?
For a long time, Saindhav Koneru alias Sai Ko operated for a narcotics cartel. He leaves that work after the birth of his daughter Gayatri, as promised to his wife on her deathbed, and transforms into a good guy. But he still lives in Chandraprastha and works as a laborer at the port.
His world is turned upside down when his daughter is diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). The doctor (Ruhani Sharma) reveals that not only her daughter is suffering from this ailment, but 300 other children in this town are as well, and the medicine alone costs Rs 17 crore.
Conversely, Vikas (Nawazuddin Siddique) is illicitly bringing weapons and children into Chandraprastha using a unique container that was confiscated by Saiko at the port. Thus, a duel between Vikas and Saiko has begun. Through all of this, can Saiko save his daughter?
Analysis
“Saindhav” marks the 75th film of Venkatesh Daggubati’s career. An important milestone in his career, yet, regrettably, the plot and storytelling of Sailesh Kolanu’s film lack any elements that would make it memorable for Venkatesh.
Venkatesh must have been encouraged to do this action drama after seeing veteran stars like Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth achieve major success with action films. While “Saindhav,” directed by Sailesh Kolanu, contains excessive violence similar to Kamal and Rajinikath’s previous films (“Vikram” and “Jailer), and he also gets to portray a role that does not require him to do any romance scenes, it lacks a compelling narrative.
To put it simply, “Saindhav” is a total bore. No where in the film we get invested in the proceedings. Sailesh Kolanu has completely failed as a writer and director. This story is not only ludicrous but it also fails to evoke any sentiment, despite its narrative being around a father’s attempt to save his ailing child.
The story unfolds in fictitious city known as Chandraprastha. The numerous incidences and occurrences in the city alone demonstrate that the director has utterly disregarded logic. The filmmaker shown more inclination towards constructing action episodes, but did not engage in extensive script brainstorming. While Nawazuddin’s unique love story with Andrea is funny, the relationship sequences involving Venkatesh and Sraddha Srinath are ineffective. The sentiment thread between Venkatesh and Saraa appear to be shallow. We can enumerate a greater number of uninteresting sequences compared to the one that engages us.
The storytelling is slow-paced, and the action sequences and violence exacerbate the feeling of monotony.
Venkatesh, renowned for his numerous exceptional performances throughout his career, strives to captivate our attention. Although the character is poorly developed, the performer does his job proficiently. The dialogues delivered by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, together with his unique acting style, evoke occasional instances of laughter.
The film features many actors, but none of them manage to engage us with their performances. Both Shraddha Srinath and Ruhani Sharma deliver their roles in a cursory manner.
The film has grand production values and cinematography. These are the only better features of the movie.
Bottom line: Neither an action drama nor a sentimental tale about a father striving to save his child, “Saindhav” interests us. Not only is the plot absurd, but director Sailesh’s narration is utterly boring.
Rating: 2.25/5
By Jalapathy Gudelli
Film: Saindhav
Cast: Venkatesh, Shraddha Srinath, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Andrea Jeremiah, Ruhani Sharma, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Arya, JP, Getup Srinu and others
Music: Santosh Narayan
DOP: S.Manikandan
Editing: Garry Bh
Production designer: Avinash Kolla
VFX Supervisor: Praveen Ghanta
Producers: Venkat Boyanapalli
Written and Directed by: Sailesh Kolanu
Release Date: Jan 13, 2024
