Review: 'Shikaari' (Kannada)

Film: Shikaari (Kannada)
Director: Abhay Simha
Cast: Mammootty, Poonam Bajwa, Innocent
Rating: **1/2

The Kannada version of Shikari, which was originally a Malayalam film that released a few weeks ago, marks the debut of Mamootty in Sandalwood. The director, Abhay Simha, who made his name after making the National Award winning film Gubbachigalu, appears to have quite a decent job as a feature film director.

Simha, who also wrote the script, screenplay and dialogues, even got Mammootty to dub his own voice to ensure authenticity. Sadly though, even as his efforts as a filmmaker deserve a pat on the back, the film doesn’t quite live up to one’s expectations.

Mammootty’s dialogues are difficult for the common audience to understand because he seems quite uncomfortable with Kannada. Poonam Bajwa, who looks beautiful, has zero scope of showcasing her acting skills in the film. She is paired opposite Mammootty but looks like his sister instead. On the other hand, Sharath Lohitsva plays the role of a mentally ill person who seems quite capable of handling a gun! It is not clear what the director really intends to convey in the film.

The film is about Abhijit (Mammootty), a software engineer, who happens to read an incomplete novel — Shikari. He goes to a village, which seems to be the source of the book, in search of the remaining portion. Interestingly, the novel interests Nanditha (Poonam Bajwa), who happens to be the daughter of the author. She allows Abhijit to stay in her house; much later, both begin to identify themselves with the characters — Aruna (Mammotty) and Renuka (Poonam Bajwa) — in the novel. At this juncture, the director introduces an illusionary flashback that narrates how Aruna, a revolutionary during the British era, falls in love with Renuka and how both of them fail to join hands to lead a happy married life.

The only consolation of this film is the music by Harikrishna. But yes, if you really have nothing else to do this weekend, Shikari could be an option.