Kaliyugam movie review: An ambitious dystopian survival thriller left underexplored

Kaliyugam plot

Set in the dystopian world in 2064 AD, the world is starkly differentiated between the rich and poor. A wall is built and the privileged are called Residents, while the starving and poor remain outside, with the hope to get to the other side of the wall. Liberators are the revolutionary gangs who fight to enter the Residence, but what happens Sketch (Kishore) gets the access into a Safe House of a man who seems to be equipped with food and comfort just like the Residents?

Kaliyugam review

Pretty much of the world-building we see in Kaliyugam is what the usual futuristic, dystopian thrillers are usually set it. Seven years after World War III, the poverty has peaked, and the privileged reeks of luxury while the poor continue to starve. The polarity is widened and the world seems to be going towards a breakpoint. Kaliyugam is no different. Within a few minutes of the film, you are briefed about the world, but does the world-building effectively happen? For it rather settles by borrowing the narrative of Little Red Riding Hood story that we once read during childhood.

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Kaliyugam opens with a premise about the rich and poor. The concept is no different from today’s scenario. But as futuristic setting, the extremes are extremised. Anything outside Residence looks bleak and unhabitable. But the film does little with its material. While adapting to the common narrative of any dystopian era film, its pace only picks up much later, with the entry of Pari (Shraddha Srinath) in the second half. For instance, at the start of Kaliyugam, we see a conflict between a group of Liberators and Residents. It’s all the throwaway lines we understand what the societal setting is. But visually, all we get are warm-toned landscape that look like desert and few gunshots. After Sketch gets into the Safe House of a man who neither seems to be a Resident, nor a Liberator, but has enough food and comfort stocked, the drama ensues. There seems to be a visible powerplay between the man and Sketch, with the latter to be taking an upper hold. The film is quick to make some drastic measures, and the second half brings the arrival of Pari who seems to be an empath among the barbarians. In a world where a man doesn’t budge to kill another man for his needs, Pari is posed to be the guardian angel to Kalki, a Resident who has breached the wall and come out. But what’s the catch when they also end up in the same Safe House?

Even with its limited characters and setting, Kaliyugam has a lot going on and tends to get indulgent in spaces without keeping up with the pace of the narrative. Right when it tries to get into the interesting crevice of ruthless humans, it adapts to the Little Red Riding Hood tale and we understand what is coming. Just like the fairy tale, there is a house full of comfort and warmth here, a danger lurking, and guests are also fed with food tins that say ‘lamb’. The masks are unveiled and the bigger villains are exposed, but what the film is trying to tell by merging a story for children to a dystopian film, remains unanswered.

Kaliyugam verdict

Kaliyugam is ambitious and had high potential. But when it leaves many of its threads incomplete, the film gets a tad bit stretchy and unexplored. It feels like the world is built in a hurry and it takes longer than usual to get invested, for you seem to have only questions and no answers to it. Despite having some conviction, it wastes by underexploring. Even with Kishore and Shraddha giving their best, Kaliyugam could have been far better if could have given more thought on paper.