‘Chatrapathi’ movie review: V.V. Vinayak, Bellamkonda Sreenivas deliver a stale remake of S.S. Rajamouli’s raging hit

A still from ‘Chatrapathi’

Sometimes, while cleaning up the cupboards, we come across old photographs or documents which remind us of our flaws and leaves us with an uneasy feeling. Watching  Chatrapthi leaves one with the same emotion about the  masala fare that we once consumed without burning the palate.

A remake of the Telugu hit starring Prabhas,  Chatrapathi helps us put into perspective what cinematic contraption the team of S.S. Rajamouli and V.Vijayendra Prasad dished out long before  Baahubali happened.

In the film industry, once a filmmaker starts ruling the box office, producers take out even his old works and try resell it to the gullible audience. So, even when  Chatrapathi’s Hindi dub is easily available on the Internet, the makers have roped in director V.V. Vinayak to remake the 2005 film in 2023. The time lag shows on screen and the product feels dated. Curiously, with no re-imagination at play, the remake feels like a dubbed version.

A Nirupa Roy-kind of mother, a selfless brother doting over his cunning step-sibling, the pain of migrants…. there is a lot in the original that can generate a melodramatic swell, but the facile treatment of the subject leaves us dry. There is a lot of sound and fury and the violence gets hideous, but the action choreography lacks the emotional hook to keep us invested.

When not focussing on biceps and snarling faces, the camera keeps searching for the cleavage. It is a kind of film where every emotion is an ‘item’ and one can easily predict the loop of action, dialogue and song sequence.

Telugu actor Bellamkonda Sai Sreenivas lacks the charismatic screen presence of Prabhas to make us forget the gaps in screen writing and root for Shiva’s rise against odds. He growls well but that’s about it. The spunky Nushrratt Bharuccha has been roped in for three songs and perhaps two-and-a-half scenes. Similarly, Sharad Kelkar as the villain deserved more space and scenery to chew. Bhagyashri hardly looks the part as the hapless mother and makes us cringe with her inability to see the obvious.

Watch it only if you want to go back in time to find the trash we left behind.

Chhatrapthi is currently running in theatres