The Genius strikes back

Ram Gopal Varma has finally made a comeback, and how! For a long, despairing while, it seemed like the maverick director, responsible for hits such as Satya, Company, and not to forget, his very first film, Shiva, had lost his touch.
He produced a string of flops and his career graph seemed to sink rapidly and was in the danger of dipping below the horizon. But that was only his career graph, and thankfully, not his belief in himself. For, RGV, going by all the video graphic evidence, was his usual dry, arrogant and sarcastic self.

Like all clouds have a silver lining, and all tunnels have light at the end, so did the depressing run of RGV's dark days. Sometime back (I forget exactly when), RGV announced he would be making a film on the life of (in)famous Paritala Ravindra, who died a violent death in 2005. The title of the film was announced as "Rakht Charitra". RGV was so occupied with thuis project, that he devoted little time or attention to other projects, and the result was the little more than mediocre Rann. While the fact that RGV was going great guns the "RC" might have been the truth, all the common, movie going public could perceive was yet another flop from the "RGV factory", and soon, there were very few believers left.

But I remained a believer, and duly, when anybody would argue against RGV, I would argue for him. "Just wait for Rakht Charitra," I would say, "and you will see Varma make a grand comeback." But only I knew that my arguments were laced with more than a hint of desperate hope. The core of my belief in everything RGV was beginning to waver, and my voice had begun to quiver. But I still believed. The D-Day arrived, and Rakhta Charitra released in the theatres. And my belief in RGV stood vindicated.

With the bloody Rakht Charitra saga, telling the tale of rise, and fall of Paritala Ravi, RGV had successfully made a thumping comeback, and proved to one and all that on his day, and as a director, he is second to none.
I will not go into the story. I’m sure everybody who has or hasn’t watched the movie knows the story. Let’s instead focus a bit on the man himself, Ram Gopal Varma. RGV has always shown us that he is the past master of attention to detail. He also does not shy away from taking potshots at everyone. He does both with great gusto in this film. About two years ago, when I met RGV, I had, albeit briefly, spoken to him about the influence of “The Godfather” on his very first film, Shiva. RGV, very casually says “I think all my movies have traces of The Godfather in them.” That stands true for Rakhta Charitra, too.

Let’s look at the parallels – The Godfather is about a young man (Michael Corleone), who is reluctantly thrust into the violent world of the New York underworld after his father (Don Vito Corleone) is attacked, and his elder brother (Sonny) is brutally murdered. Rakhta Charitra, is about a young man (Pratap Ravi), who is violently initiated into the world of Rayalaseema politics, fractured by faction violence, after his father and his elder brother are murdered. In both films, the protagonist, after initial reluctance, through sheer force of personality, and inherent cunning, manages to rise to the occasion magnificently.

Then, coming to the the two movies. I love the way NTR was portrayed in the first film as Shivaji Rao (Shatrughan Sinha). Facing a task of considerable difficulty – that of playing a
venerated figure like NTR, Sinha just focused on the larger than life persona of the late actor, and thus, manages to hit the nail squarely on the head. His every facial expression, every inflection in the voice, every gesture is designed to shock and awe and enthrall. In short, Shatrughan Sinha plays the role like it is meant to be – A veteran of the silver screen, becoming a leader of men.



Viveik Oberoi does a magnificent job playing Pratap Ravi. Simply put, he turns in what is the best performance of his start stop career. He began his career in resplendent fashion, under Varma’s tutelage in Company.
After that his career never took off. With Rakhta Charitra, it can be said that Viveik Oberoi has risen from the ashes like the proverbial phoenix.

While I was intensely curious about how these two roles would be played, the thing that interested me the most, was how RGV would portray a lot of politically sensitive elements. Everybody knows NTR set up the Telugu Desam Party, which, back then, had the Bicycle for its symbol, and it would take a lot for RGV to portray that party without raising too many hackles. He does that. The party does have yellow as a major colour, and a bicycle, in various forms, keeps popping up in the frame. This Freudian use of implied inference, is a masterstroke by the director. It doesn’t stop here. RGV does a deft job of portraying the late Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy, the former AP CM. YSR was a key player in the Paritala Ravi saga, and RGV just had to find a way to portray the Congress party, and the man himself.

YSR, is portrayed as a man whose face is never shown, but his cut-outs of political rallies, and a framed photo in his house prominently feature his right hand. As we all know, YSR was a man given to expansive gestures with his right hand, which has become a signature of sorts. The fact that this illusive man is accompanied by a Safari suit wearing confidante, ala YSR’s close friend KVP Ramachandra Rao, only goes on to strengthen this. The Congress Party, here, is portrayed with a close fist, as opposed to an open palm. With this RGV completes a hat-trick of sorts. The infamous Moddu Seenu – the man who confessed to killing Ravi, and who was later murdered inside Jail, is shown here has Muddu Krishna. After Ravi’s assassination, ‘Muddu’, as he is called in the film, declares he is responsible for Ravi’s death. He also goes on to say he killed Ravi to avenge the deaths of Surya’s family, just like it happened in real life.

In short, while Rakhta Charitra has its flaws and plot shortcomings, it is a movie that would be rated right up there with Ram Gopal Varma’s best.

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