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Wednesday, December 6, 2023
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KANNADA ATTAHASA
EDITOR'S PICK
`Attahasa`
- good for one-time watch!
Rating: **1/2
A.M.R.Ramesh is known for making films based on real life incidents, which have
also been widely covered in the media. His earlier film "Cyanide" was
based on the incidents that led to the death of Sri Lankan militants who had
come to Bangalore after the assasination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
"Attahasa" is a film based on the life and times of forest brigand
Veerappan and his death.
The film faced many legal hurdles with Veerappan`s wife Muthulakshmi going to
court alleging that the film is based not on facts, but some imaginary sequences
created by the director.
The movie has released after crossing all hurdles.
"Attahasa" is technically brilliant, though you may also feel that the
editor could have chopped off some unnecessary sequences. Despite its length of
nearly 170 minutes, the film is engaging. The efforts of the entire team is seen
on the screen as the unit seems to have gone to the terrains which were
frequented by Veerappan`s gang.
"Attahasa" created a lot of curiosity before its release as fans would
have thought that the film will be a true reflection of the incidents. But
director A.M.R. Ramesh has failed to give the film an authentic touch, mainly
because the first half of the film which portrays the atrocities of the brigand,
is totally narrated from Veerappan`s perspective. Sometimes, the police have
been projected badly on screen and the director even creates some sequences
which indicate that Veerappan`s excesses were due to the police atrocities in
the forest belt.
In the second half, the director has made another mistake. He has projected the
efforts of Tamil Nadu Police to nab and kill Veerappan, completely forgetting
that Karnataka was part of the Special Task Force of the two states. It was
Karnataka which suffered major casualities as well as financial losses on
account of the brigand`s menace. The contribution of many police officers from
Karnataka, who were even recognised with awards, has been ignored.
Due to instructions by the Central Board of Film Certification, most portions
featuring Muththulakshmi have been blurred, and many dialogues are muted.
The major attraction in "Attahasa" is clearly the performance of two
protoganists - Kishore, who plays Veerappan`s role, and Arjun Sarja, who plays
the role of a Vijaya Kumar, who headed the Special Task Force of two states.
Ravi Kale plays the role of Senthamarai Kannan, assistant to Vijaya Kumar,
perfectly.
Many other artists are new, but they have all performed with ease. The entire
kidnapping episode of Kannada actor Rajkumar, does not excite you, though actor
Suresh Oberoi has tried to portray the legendary actor`s role with finesse.
The film`s background score by Sandeep Chowta needs special appreciation.
Milton`s camera work is outstanding, and even the art department has worked very
well. Though "Attahasa" has many lapses, it is good for one-time
viewing because of its extraordinary technical values and performance of Kishore
and Arjun Sarja.
