Vikrant Rona could have done with simpler narration

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A convoluted multi-genre film of sorts, Vikrant Rona (with terrific 3D and cinematography by William Davis) is the kind of movie where you see children playing key roles and then realizing that it cannot possibly be a children’s film, even a dark one like Chhota Chetan 3D or Makdee, Vishal Bhardwaj’s aberrational quasi-masterpiece. It is too violent, apart from being extremely—make that excessively!—convoluted.

Worse, the film, quite a shade long, has many flaws in execution. What, for example, justifies the last victim of the evil spirit? The girl, shown in the film’s electric beginning, has no common points with the other children that have gone missing. Who, also, are the masked fighters in the jungle who almost kill Vikrant? Why does Vikrant behave in a strange fashion at pre-interval point? So many other questions…

The film narrates the story of a man, Nittoni (Yogish Shetty), who is framed of theft and his family almost destroyed. He curses the village before committing suicide that they will never see their lineages go forward—and so many children begin to go missing! Meanwhile, there is also the complex story of runaway child Sanju (Nirup Bhandari), who has been a thief and has returned after years, and also about an impending marriage of Panna (Neetha Ashok), which necessitates the opening of a temple that has been closed since the theft.

A cop investigating the crime and has been murdered too, and now Inspector Vikrant Rona (Kichcha Sudeepa) has been sent in his place. He is accompanied by his cute daughter, Guddi (Samhitha), who even comes with him in the darkest jungles while he is investigating. And that has a very good reason!

How all these aspects finally come to a resolution (with a protracted and violent climax) forms the rest of the story.

Technically brilliant (though as in most such films, the 3D makes the proceedings go dark, for which technicians must try and find a solution!), the film reeks of spectacle and expenses to match on sets, props and VFX. The direction is alright, the script very convoluted, and the background score quite loud. The songs are not memorable, but the lullaby is tuneful.

Kichcha Sudeep, known more to Hindi cinema as a villain, is in his element and plays to the gallery. I suspect that Riteish Deshmukh has dubbed his voice but I may be way off the mark. Neetha Ashok is fetching, and Samhitha as Guddi is cute. The rest of the cast is alright. Jacqueline Fernandez  in a cameo makes a strange character—she is a bar-owner who also doubles up as the dancer. She also looks jaded.

The film could have done with great trimming, less violence and a cleverly done script that covered some loopholes. As it stands, it just about gets pass marks.

Rating: **1/2

Salman Khan Films, Zee Studios & Kichcha Creations present Vikrant Rona  Produced by: Shalini Manjunath, Jack Manjunath & Kichcha Sudeepa  Directed by: Anup Bhandari  Written by: Anup Bhandari & Sanjay Upadhyaya Music: B. Ajaneesh Loknath Starring: Kichcha Sudeepa, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nirup Bhandari, Neetha Ashok, Samhitha, Madhusudhan Rao, Ravishankar Gowda, Siddu Moolimani, Karthik Rao, Vajradheer Jain, Priya V., Ranjan Shetty, Ramesh Kukkuvalli, Dushyant Rai, Yogish Shetty & others