'Radhe Shyam' movie review: Prabhas-Pooja Hegde starrer is visually overloaded, lacks soul

Director: Radha Krishna Kumar

Cast: Prabhas, Pooja Hegde, Sachin Khedekar

Where to watch: Theatres

Rating: 3 stars

'Radhe Shyam' movie review

The OG pan-India star Prabhas (Vikram Aditya) and actress Pooja Hegde (Prerna) starrer 'Radhe Shyam' which was promoted as an 'epic' love story, a film that would showcase the 'biggest war between love and destiny', is anything but 'epic'. With a combination of a megastar like Prabhas and a bankable actress, Pooja Hegde, who has emerged as a pan-India star herself, headlining the film, one would expect the film to be anything but soulless. 

'Radhe Shyam' lacks emotional depth, and the story is unremarkable. The attempt may have been to explore a novel idea of doing away with the cliched concept of a 'hero' fighting a 'villain' to win over his ladylove in a romantic drama and to showcase a 'war' between love and destiny with Prabhas essaying the role of a palmist for the first time ever, but the film falls short on many counts including the story which isn't compelling enough to make you want to sit through till the end. 

Implacable obscurantism, euphuism and grandiosity overpower the film's goal of establishing the fact that the fate of humans doesn't lie in the lines of their palms but in their own beliefs, willingness, determination and the strength of their hands.

Yes, the film does boast of the powerful individual screen presence of Prabhas and Pooja Hegde and they sure do look together as a couple, but the screenplay gives them little scope to bring in their own element, resulting in a lack of that spark you wished to see. 

Set in the 1970s, in this period drama that boasts of top-notch special effects, picturesque visuals from Italy, Georgia and Hyderabad, Vikram Aditya (Prabhas) who is positioned as 'the Einstein of palmistry', is a man who has surrendered to destiny. A palmist who can foresee events and has never gone wrong with his predictions indulges in flirtationships because his palms neither have the love nor the marriage lines. And of course, he knows what's in store for him to the extent of how and when he will die! 

On the other hand is Prerna, a doctor who is suffering from a rare, incurable form of tumour. 

While both are very different from each other, the one thing common between the two characters is that they are both running away from relationships. 

The song 'Jaan Hai Meri', composed by Amaal Mallik and crooned by Armaan Malik, furthers the plot as it showcases how two people who aren't meant to be together, keep crossing paths. And as destiny may have it, the two meet, agree to keep it casual (remember flirtationship?), BUT as expected, fall in love. 

You'll see a little bit of a spark, the magic of love being weaved between the two characters as appealing visuals and beautiful frames adorned with aesthetically created set designs and picturesque locations dominate the sequences. 

As for the supporting cast, including talented actors such as Sachin Khedekar, Jayaram, Jagapathi Babu and Priyadarshi, they have very little to do. Kunaal Roy Kapur and Bhagyashree's characters too don't bring much to the table. 

What is meant to be a fast-paced tale of two lovers racing against time and fighting their destinies for the sake of their epic romance and the true love they found in each other, turns out to be a bland saga that lacks emotional connection.  

As for the performances, Pooja Hegde pulled off the vintage looks flawlessly and lit up the screen with her charm, combined with impeccable dialogue delivery and unshowy expressions. Prabhas on the other hand, gave an effective performance casting his magic onscreen and owning the frames like he usually does, but the story and his character did not challenge him enough for him to bring his A-game and his tremendous screen presence is all but wasted. 

With a film that is on a ventilator right from the word go, the actors -- Prabhas and Pooja, deserve an extra star just for bringing a little magic in portions and helping the viewer sit through the film! 

While both the actor's individual performances are surely worth a mention, given that they had little room for manoeuvre, it wasn't enough for a film that is hollow at its core. 

The first half of the film will fill you up with captivating visuals, European style homes with tall windows, picturesque locations, long corridors of hospitals, attractive wallpapers artistically decorated rooms, all made to look picture-perfect, in fact, dreamy in a way, but one can take all show and no substance for only so long. 

The film loses its charm by the time it's the interval. 

In its second half, when the conflict between destiny and love takes centre stage, the film sinks just like the ship in its climax sequence. Even Prabhas, who is left alone in the climax sequence to fight the wrathful elements as a tsunami wreaks havoc in the sea, wouldn't have been able to save the sinking ship even he was in his 'Baahubali' avatar.