King of Kotha Review
Dulquer Salmaan has owned an impeccable star status on the Indian panorama for carrying the entire film on his shoulders, irrespective of any genre. The actor’s ability to keep the audiences engrossed throughout the entire show has made an impeccable Pan-Indian star. Winning hearts with ‘Sita Ramam’, the actor is back with ‘King of Kotha’, written and directed by Abhilash Joshiy.
The film is set in the 80s in the land of Kotha (Kerala), where friends Kannan and Ravi (Dulquer Salmaan and Shabeer) turn into foes. The protagonist leaves the town for an emotional reason, and years later, is urged by his love for younger sister to make his way back home. And that’s when the actual conflict of revenge breaks open.
Getting on with the positives, it’s Dulquer Salmaan show all the way, who keeps us wowed about his screen presence and extraordinary performance. The way, he retains his composure in every situation, but emoting through eyes and smile is beyond brilliance. The visuals are neatly captured. The background score by Jakes Bejoy stands out to be an intriguing attraction of this film. Even some ordinary scenes with his Midas-touch get elevated.
On the flip side, the screenwriting gets fallible in parts, and fails to hold our attention thoroughly throughout the film. KOK owns a premise that has potential to keep us engaged with fine-tuned writing and gripping moments. Unfortunately, it fails to engross with a predictable narration, especially in the second half, where scenes look repetitive.
Shabeer’s screen presence is commendable. Aishwarya Lekshmi has nothing special to perform. Even the romantic portions between Dulquer and Aishwarya looks like alien to the entire story. Nyla Usha’s role with mysterious shade is appreciable. Prasanna gets a meaty scope during the initial moments, but eventually gets disappeared into nowhere by the penultimate sequences to climax.
Overall, King of Kotha is a film that would have worked out at its best with the finest writing. However, it remains as a commendable treat for DQ fans, who have a good takeaway from the theatre.
Verdict: KOK has elements that will appeal to DQ fans
Rating – 3
