Acharya

It is safe to say that Acharya is Koratala Siva's weakest work till date. Though he is only four films old, he had created a niche for himself with his ability to churn out interesting screenplays. However, that was the major drawback of Acharya. The story of Acharya is as old as the hills and the screenplay deserves fresh elements. The film lacked high points, which could have made the proceedings interesting. Chiranjeevi gets a lackluster introduction and everything goes for a toss as the story progresses. There are only a handful of moments which made the audience sit up and cheer for our heroes. Be it the Banjara song in the second half or Ram Charan's introduction scene, we can count the scenes which made people go wow.

Acharya is a classic good versus evil tale. And the story unfolds along excruciatingly predictable lines. The narration works like clockwork. A movie fan would be able to predict how the story will progress from the beginning to the end without much mental effort. There is not even a single surprise element in the movie as you can see all twists from a mile off. Koratala Siva heavily banks on the visual element that gives this film a mythological heft to keep the audience hooked. The writing is so poor that even the massive stardom of Chiranjeevi and Ram Charan feels inadequate to lift this movie. It’s a snooze fest. The town is soaked in red where one can’t tell vermilion from blood, evil men dress like sages, and unapologetic use of trishuls and spears, the god’s favourite tools of war, in butchering bad men add little value to our experience.

Acharya imparts one lesson after another through stunt sequences that appear dated by a decade or two. In fact, the masala segments in Koratala Siva’s earlier films were more entertaining. Sonu Sood could have played the caricaturish Basava in his sleep. Jisshu Sengupta plays another villain without bringing in any nuance. Shouldering this film rests squarely on the shoulders of Chiranjeevi and Ram Charan, but there is nothing much they can do. Their contrasting ideologies also remain at a surface level. Siddha is better written than Acharya. You get an insight into the gurukul teaching that shaped Siddha, but it is very little about what Acharya and his Comrades are fighting for. A little depth would not have hurt.