'Matka', produced by Vijender Reddy Teegala and Rajani Talluri, was released in theatres today (November 14). In this section, we are going to review the latest BO release.
Plot:
The story takes place between 1958 and 1982 in Visakhapatnam. It follows 24 years in the life of Vasu, a prominent Matka gambler who rose from the stage a refugee from Burma to a gangster. In his laborious journey filled with assassination attempts and a zillion verbal threats, Vasu understands that there is no escaping the path he has chosen.
Performances:
The performances often feel out of place if the script is sketchy. That's what happens in 'Matka'. Varun Tej's portrayal of Vasu is marked by a certain modern flair. His delivery, while sincere, lacks the required zing. Meenakshi Chaudhary's Sujatha struggles to manifest the tension expected of a woman in that time and setting. A similar flaw was visible in 'Lucky Baskhar' as well.
Nora Fatehi's Sofia, though ultra-glamorous, is a caricature of a femme fatale, lacking the allure of well-etched characters in the genre. Saloni Aswani's Padma, while trying to bring out the required calm, often comes across as stiff.
The supporting cast, including Satyam Rajesh, Ravi Shankar, and Ajay Ghosh, all seem to be playing characters from a different film. Kannada Kishore is wasted. Naveen Chandra is another talented artist who could have been better but is not.
Technical aspects:
Lack of atmospheric lighting to create suspense and mystery affects Kishor Kumar's cinematography negatively. Inconsistent visual style in this film doesn't fit the period setting. Poorly composed shots that don't convey the desired mood only add to the woes. GV Prakash Kumar's 'Le Le Raja' and 'Thassadiyya' are a letdown. 'Rama Talkies' is very good but the dull picturization fails it. Ineffective use of music and sound effects to enhance the storytelling. Karthika Srinivas' editing is choppy.
Post-Mortem:
In a pre-release interview, director Karuna Kumar spoke of how one man's gangster is another man's employer. If you had any doubts about how superficial 'Matka' was going to be, that was it. You can justify any damn crime in the world if your argument is that you are providing livelihood opportunities to two dozen individuals. In 'Matka', which is admittedly based on the real-life story of a Matka gambler named Ratan Khetri, Vasu is a hero because he runs a school, humanizes prostitutes, sheds copious tears when a dear member is killed, and more. These are dated situations/ideas that have been used to justify immoral protagonists in a thousand films before.
This brings us to do a comparative study of 'Matka' and 'Lucky Baskhar'. In the latter, Dulquer Salmaan's Baskhar was immoral but his ways didn't seem dated despite his self-serving arguments. And that's because he didn't have to spill the blood of humans, although spilling the blood of the banking system is crime enough. This reviewer liked the film more because the immortal protagonist's brain appeared sharp enough to do what he did. He pulled off scams not because he was muscular but because he was brainy. He inherited his scammy mind from his dad. 'Matka' is the opposite of everything that was awesome about 'Lucky Baskhar'.
There are fights aplenty. And none of the action sequences carries even a semblance of novelty or force. What would have been Vasu's fate had he not been good at, well, breaking the bones of baddies in the Telugu cinema hero style? This is the sort of question you never ask when you are watching a script-based, intelligent movie. And this is exactly the kind of question you ask when you watch a 'Gangs Of Godavari' or a 'Matka'. Two cents to filmmakers: Don't attempt gangster movies if you can't keep your viewer from asking fundamental questions that cry for logic.
None of the challenges confronting Vasu endure long enough. In 'KGF', the Indira Gandhi threat looked absolutely real. In 'Matka', Indira Gandhi is there to speak Hindi like how Sonia Gandhi speaks.
Closing Remarks:
'Matka' is as sketchy and unconvincing as 'Gangs Of Godavari'. It's a bundle of convenient situations that you can predict coming from miles ago.
