“Today, I watched the movie Daaku Maharaaj starring Nandamuri Balakrishna and Bobby Deol. This is an action-drama film released only in the Telugu language, and I watched it in Telugu itself. I saw this film at Allu Arjun’s Theater Tripp A. You will get reviews of all the theaters in the coming days. I have recorded everything, and the updates will start coming gradually within a week.
Talking about the film, if you are going to watch a Balakrishna movie—or anyone else is—you should already have a clear idea of what to expect because all his movies have the same elements. He will be there in his style, with action in his signature manner, delivering dialogues in his iconic way. Earlier, the dialogues were purely in Telugu with some English added. Nowadays, English and even some Hindi are also included in the dialogues. Every 10–15 minutes, you’ll see a scene with background music (BGM) playing dramatically.
Balakrishna will appear once with a beard and once without a beard, all revolving around a routine storyline. So, keep this in mind when you watch his films. He knows what he is making, and we should also know what we are watching.
Now, speaking of the good and bad aspects of this film Daaku Maharaaj:
Recently, out of all of Balakrishna’s films, I can say Daaku Maharaaj is visually the best in terms of cinematography, color grading, and overall production value. I must particularly mention the cinematography—some frames have been excellently planned.
For example, in the interval portion, there is a frame where Balakrishna is riding a horse, with fire burning around him and a man kneeling with a severed head. SS Thaman’s BGM elevates this scene to the next level. The BGM provided by Thaman is a significant highlight of this film. It is impactful, well-designed, and perfectly mixed.
The theater I watched it in had a fantastic sound system—it was so powerful that it made your heart skip a beat and the seats vibrate. Thaman delivered a loud yet effective BGM that enhanced the elevation moments.
However, the problem lies in the staging of these elevation moments. While there are several high points in the film, none of them are properly staged or given the required buildup. A little more pause or tension before the hero’s triumph would have improved the overall experience.
Balakrishna seems to be adapting his characters to his age, which is good to see. However, the hero should face more challenges, or at least appear weaker in front of the villain at one point, to make the climax moments more satisfying.
Another issue is that the story reveals many elements too quickly. For example, the character of Makrand Deshpande is introduced right at the start, and we are told everything about him. If his character had been introduced directly in action, it would have been more enjoyable.
The film does not have any unnecessary comedy. Whatever little comedy is present makes you smile. There are no forced romantic scenes, but the song “Dabri Dibri,” which became controversial and was widely mocked, feels very forcibly added.
There is no love angle between Urvashi and Balakrishna in the film. In one scene, Urvashi looks at Balakrishna while he is warning a villain, and right after that, the song starts. Other than that, the song has no relevance to the story.
Urvashi plays a police officer in the film, but after a point, her role becomes negligible. Even if she appears on screen, you wouldn’t feel her presence.
Read Also: – 1. Is Mufasa: The Lion King Worth Watching? 2. Fateh Movie Review: Sonu Sood’s Brutal Action and Gripping Storyline
Apart from her, Shraddha Srinath and Pragya Jaiswal are in the film. Both of them have done a decent job.
The dialogues are well-written and will definitely make the audience cheer and clap. The interval portion is excellent for a mass movie, but the climax doesn’t live up to it.
Bobby Deol’s character lacks impact. Compared to Arjun Rampal’s role in Balakrishna’s previous film Bhagavanth Kesari, Bobby Deol’s villain character feels generic and lacks depth. Moreover, Bobby Deol’s voice has been dubbed by someone else, which further reduces the impact of his performance.
The first half of the film is quite engaging, with light emotions scattered here and there. However, by the time the climax approaches, the interest starts fading. The climax itself feels underwhelming. For instance, a character you think is dead makes a sudden entry, and instead of feeling excited, you find it laughable because of the way it’s executed.
Overall, if we consider this as a typical Balakrishna film, Daaku Maharaaj is visually appealing, with good production value, three or four exciting high moments, and impactful BGM by Thaman.
This was my overall opinion of the film. If you’ve watched it, share your thoughts in the comments section.
