IPL Review: This crime thriller has relatable premise but clicks only in parts

2.5/5

Story

The film kicks off with a terrorism backdrop and the scene shifts to Hyderabad. An aspiring cricketer named Sriram gets suspended from the under 19 Ranji trophy match due to his aggressive attitude. On the other hand, Varun( Vishwa Karthikeya) is in love with his boss Janhvi ( Archana Gautham) and is close friends with Sriram. During this time, a cricket league named Andhra Tigers is launched and both Varun and Janhvi get involved in it somehow. Things get worse when the whole terrorism angle is brought into the whole cricket setup. What is this terrorist angle, how did Varun and Janhvi get involved in it? How did they get out of this issue? That forms the rest of the story.

Review

The film has a backdrop of cricket and that too IPL which is the biggest cricketing spectacle in the world. Director Suresh Lankapalli has made sure that he interlinks the terrorist angle in the cricketing world in an interesting manner. The manner in which he creates the characters of ISI agents is quite good in the film. But he should have elevated the characters of the key characters even more.

Their graph is not proper and has some issues. The game of betting, big people getting involved looks quite realistic in the film. Director Suresh has managed to create the setup in a decent manner. But if he had more emotions in the proceedings, the output would have been even better for the audience. But director Suresh has promise and will surely impress in the days to come.

The romantic track between the lead pair should have been more engaging. Though they do well, there is nothing new that has been showcased here. Coming to the performances, Vishwa Karthikeya , the popular child artiste has grown into a decent actor and delivered a matured performance. Avanthika gets a meaty role and delivers a decent performance as a  bossy CEO.

The other star cast, Thanikela Bharani as the middle class father provided the emotional content required. Suman as DCP handled the investigation episodes well. Prudhvi as the team coach showed the enthusiasm needed. Coming to the technical aspects, music by Vengi is pretty decent as all the tracks are captured colourfully by DOP AK Anand. The editing is crisp by JP. Dialogues by Naga Bhairava are good when it comes to the terrorism angle. Production values by Ankitha Media house are okay.

As said earlier, debutant Suresh has designed the concept of betting and corruption in cricket in a good way. If the emotions and the tension would have been elevated more, the output would have been great. The first half is an issue as too much time is wasted in showcasing the romance. If the makers would have come right to the point, the output would have been even better.

Verdict

On the whole, IPL has a very relatable concept that everyone can connect to. Director Suresh Lankapalli manages to hold our attention with the amalgamation of terrorism and cricket. The sad reality between the game cricket and how it has become a money making source has been highlighted well. But the emotions are not that great and the needed drama is missing in key areas. All those who have love for cricket will end up liking it but for others it is a dull watch.