Das Ka Dhamki Movie Review

Juggling direction and acting together is not everyone’s cup of tea. Main-stream actors rarely make such risky attempts. Devil-may-care Vishwak Sen is not new to such daring moves. He already proved it successfully once with Falaknuma Das. After a long hiatus, Vishwak is back in direction with Dhamki. Does he deliver again? Is he second-time lucky? Let’s check it out.

What is it about?

Krishna Das (Vishwak Sen), a waiter at a star hotel, falls for Keerthi (Nivetha Pethuraj). To impress her, Krishna dupes as a rich guy Dr Sanjay Rudra. Keerthi reciprocates Krishna’s love but she breaks up with him after learning about his waiter job. But quite unexpectedly Das becomes the face of Rs 10,000 Crore investment. What are the problems that come Dass’s way? Who is Sanjay Rudra originally and how is he connected to Krishna Das? The story is all about how Das deals with these unexpected happenings in his life.

Performances

Vishwak Sen effortlessly slips into Das’ role. He plays to his strengths and sticks to his trademark humour that engages occasionally along with his friends Aadi and Mahesh. Nivetha Pethuraj oozes her glamour on screen and is good for songs. Her role is not complete. While she dominates in the first half, her role loses significance in the crucial second-half. She remains a muse to the protagonist. Rao Ramesh’s character is stereotyped and has nothing much to offer. The greedy and emotionless family of Sanjay is irritating, especially Prithvi and Rajitha. They are just fillers. Rohini as a paralysed mom is alright and delivers what is expected from her.

Technicalities

The story of Dhamki is not new and fresh. But director-actor Vishwak imbibes his trademark style. The second-half is where he loses the track. Music is alright. ‘Almost Padipoyave Pilla’ song is good and shot well. The party song in crucial times is strict no. The film struggles with pace. Visuals are eye-candy.

Highlights

Comedy in parts
Interval Twist
Humour & Krishna Das Innocence

Drawbacks

Sanjay’s Character
10,000 Crore Thread
Prolonged Second Half

Analysis

Vishwak Sen borrowed a routine story from Dhamaka writer Prasanna Kumar and tried to adapt it in his style. The initial first half goes smoothly and partially engaging with occasional humour. The romance track between Das and Keerthi is entertaining. Das & gang manage in the hotel add to the fun. Hyper Aadi and Mahesh evoke a few laughs here and there.

Vishwak’s dose of comedy might not be everyone’s cup of tea. But these portions bring slight relief. The first half is decent and promises to be a clean entertainer. However, it is the contrasting second-half that puts off viewers by transporting to a dark, unknown and uncomfortable world. The entry of Sanjay’s character adds to the woes. And then there are endless twists that are told but not shown visually. These make audiences heavy and disturbed.

Simply put, the second-half nosedives and is a total spoiler. Too many twists doesn’t work. The whole element of Cancer cure and drug invention and Rs 10,000 crore is totally forced, unconvincing. The drug and professor has been done to death in several films in the past. The unwanted party song in the latter-half tests the patience.

Overall, Dhamki is half-cooked and half-baked. Vishwak added routine masala and some spices to make it tastier. But what we get at the end is not fulfilling and not fully satisfying.

Verdict: Half-Baked Dhamki

Rating: 2.5/5