“Bheemla Nayak” is a Telegu film based on the Malayali hit “Ayyapanum Koshiyadum” (AK). While the title of the Malayali film is a mash-up of the names of the main characters in the story, Ayyapan Nair and Koshi Kurian, showcasing the equal weight these characters carry in the story. The Telegu remake only features one character’s name, Bheemla Nayak (as played by Pawan Kalyan). This in-itself tells you that the Telegu film is going to be very different from the Malayalam version even though roughly the same things might happen.
While I loved AK for the nuanced approach it took in presenting its grey characters, “Bheemla Nayak” was never going to have that. It’s a star vehicle for Pawan Kalyan and a mass entertainer through and through, stemming from that crucial title change.
Though AK had its moments of masala entertainment and larger than life scenes, all of it felt grounded in the humanity of the characters we saw. This is what made AK such a fresh and unique film despite the plot being a basic one-on-one revenge film. “Bheemla Nayak” turns down the unique psychology that defined AK and turns up the mass masala to 11, Pawan Kalyan’s character is even referred to as a god at one point. However, it wouldn’t be fair to fault the film for this because it was never meant to tip-toe with the original and had a completely different approach to the material from the get go.
That being said, even as a mass masala hero entertainer this film falls way below the standard. I think a lot of that has to do with how disinterested Pawan Kalyan seems throughout most of this film. It almost seems like he was forcing himself to be on set. He mumbles his way through half the dialogues and doesn’t even seem bothered to dance during the songs.
It’s shocking that this movie is written by Trivikram, whose stories usually carry an electric energy, but this entire film feels bland, generic, and forgettable. Even the director seems to just be going through the motions. The movie is nice to look at, but there is rarely anything interesting going on. There was also an odd decision to change the aspect ratio during a flash-back sequence, which struck me as quite unnecessary. Even the editing of the film is uneven with songs placed at odd intervals.
The best part of this film is by and large the music. I quite enjoyed Thaman’s songs throughout the film, and they added some much needed enthusiasm and energy. What didn’t help was how mind-boggling loud the sound was in the theater. “Akhanda”, which was also scored by Thaman S., was similarly booming. Another plus point is Rana, who plays the opposing character to Pawan Kalyan. He seems much more with it and willing. It also helps that he is a great actor.
“Bheemla Nayak” was never going to be a coherent or even film, and it was never meant to be either. It was made for the sole purpose of uplifting the politician and celebrity that is Pawan Kalyan. I, and I think most people, could care less about that. However, if you are a Pawan Kalyan fan, I think you’ll quite like the film.
