Story

Karthik (Nikhil) is a medical student and also a fearless atheist. There is a famous Karthikeya temple in Subramanyapuram. This temple is shut down an year back. All the curious people/journalists who try to enter temple are killed by a snake. Karthik who is sent for a medical camp to Subramanyapuram stumbles upon a few mysterious events. The rest of the story is all about how Karthik chased the mystery.

Artists Performance

Actors: Nikhil is pretty good as a fearless atheist. Swathy plays Nikhil’s friend and does justice. Satya and Praveen got lengthy roles as hero’s buddies and they entertain. Rao Ramesh plays a vital role as archaeological department chief. Kishore is wasted in a cop character. Raja Ravindra did a cameo. Jogi Naidu gets a big role. Tanikella Bharani and Tulasi have done other major roles.

Technical departments

Story - screenplay - direction: The basic plot of the film is good. Debutant director Chandoo Mondeti has implemented his plot without inserting forced commercial elements. He has succeeded in getting suspense and mystery right in the movie. However, the family and romance threads are not effectively dealt with. The comedy has worked well in the movie. Screenplay of the movie is interesting.

Other departments: Background music by Sekhar Chandra is good. But, songs are wasted as there is no scope for songs in this thriller. Cinematography by Karthik Gattamneni is effective. Editing is okay. Art direction is good. I liked the way history of Karthikeya temple was narrated using painting-like graphics. The DI (color grading) should have been better.



Analysis: Actor Nikhil and producer should be appreciated for agreeing to do a film that is different from regular Telugu movies. Supported by a neat screenplay and a bit of comedy, debutant director Chandoo Mondeti delivers a decent movie. Additional plus point of the movie is runtime (2 hours and 5 minutes). The minus points of the movie are slow-paced narration. The family drama and romance didn’t work well. On a whole, Karthikeya is a different yet interesting movie.