43. Saindhav; movie review

 

SAINDHAV

Cert 15

138 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong bloody violence, injury detail, language, drug misuse, suicide

Is anyone more incompetent in their job than a villain's henchman in an Indian movie?

Even with a machine gun, they can't hit an unarmed target from ten feet, while their hand-to-hand combat lasts less than half a second.

Venkatesh's Saindhav ploughs through dozens of them in Sailesh Kolanu's Telegu-language action thriller.

Who knows how he has a sixth sense that enables him to dodge bullets and duck machetes but he is the movie's hero, so it goes with the territory.

Saindhav is a film for Venkatesh's fans - he is introduced with trumpets and the Victory forename they gave him.

I watched it on Amazon Prime but I could easily imagine the cheers, hoots and whistles in the cinema when he appears on screen for the first time.

His character has two very definitive sides - he is a gentle father, bringing up a little girl (Baby Sara) who goes down with a life-threatening condition.

Meanwhile, he is a former gangster still feared among the crime gangs who run the fictional port city of Chandraprastha.

His former boss (Mukesh Rishi) and manic first lieutenant (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) are running terrorist training camps and a massive drug, cash and arms shipment is essential to its support.

However, our hero has a soft spot for kids and vows to stop them.

At the same time, he is told he needs to raise the enormous sum demanded by a greedy pharmaceutical company for his daughter's life-saving drugs.

The odds may be against Venkatesh's character but he has many remarkable skills and boundless confidence.

Saindhav had me torn - its first 90 minutes are predictable and packed with movie cliches.

However, its final hour is fizzing with tension, quality action and an enthralling finale (except for the oversentimental last couple of minutes).

And Venkatesh delivers what his adoring fans would want - covering every base from superhero to empathetic dad.

Siddiqui is a grand foil - playing an unhinged, power-crazed gangster with great gusto - does he really say "BenStokes" as a curse word (that was the Amazon translation)?

My problem is that the movie becomes so submerged by its body count that I doubt I will remember it past next week.

Nevertheless, Saindhav will be back.

Reasons to watch: Venkatesh fans will lap it up

Reasons to avoid: So many bloody killings

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 6/10

Did you know? Venkatesh made his movie debut as a child actor in the 1971 cult film Prem Nagar.

The final word.  Venkatesh: "Sailesh Kolanu has designed a highly emotional climax. The daughter sentiment will surely be a stand-out feature. The action sequences go with the flow. They are both raw and realistic. The pacing is fast." Ragalahari

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