Karthik Varma Dandu (with a screenplay penned by Sukumar) pulls off an effective horror film with Virupaksha. Right from the get-go he makes it clear that this will be a hard tale to sit through if you’re squeamish, thanks to ample gore. While there are portions of the film that you wish would’ve been tighter, there’s no denying that the director delivers. It’s the 1990s. But some people are still reliant on ancient text to know right from wrong, leading to superstition with fatal consequences. Surya (Sai Dharam Tej) has returned to his mother’s village Rudravanam which is gearing up for a Modamamba Thalli jatara. The village sarpanch Harischandra Prasad (Rajeev Kanakala) and the rest of the village are busy with the preparations for it. When Surya meets the sarpanch’s daughter Nandini (Samyuktha), he falls for her hard. Even as these two and another couple in the village seem embroiled in romance, the past seems to come knocking. A chain of events leads to multiple deaths and Surya strives to find the root cause of it all. Virupaksha starts off well. We’re shown how in the 1970s certain heinous decisions are made from a place of fear and superstition. But everything seems safe and sound in the 1990s. Surya and his mother spend quality time with his cousin (Syamala) and other villagers. The film’s first half is quite racy except for when it takes a breather from death to focus on the romance. The dialogues make it sound more emotional than it is. It makes you impatient but it has a pay off. The second half of the film takes a turn. And while the film shines when it focuses on the story at hand, some of the portions might seem draggy. But if you’re paying close attention, you’ll notice that the film was peppering clues all along for you to join the dots. Could the climax have been better? Sure. But without shoving explanations down your throat, everything just suddenly seems to make sense. Virupaksha is a well-crafted film – the kind that makes you look at the characters beyond the actors because the film has a suffocating atmosphere that’ll draw you in. The kind that makes you flinch but not want to look away at the same time. And it’s the crew that’s to be thanked for that. The sound design is stellar, so is the background score by Ajaneesh Loknath, it truly sets the mood for most of the scenes. The cinematography by Shamdat is also quite good, so is Kartik’s direction. The best part is that, while the film has jump scares, it doesn't rely on just that to keep you engaged. Sai Dharam Tej gets a role that requires him to be laidback for the most part and he pulls it off well, even when he's thrown bang in the middle of something big. Samyuktha gets a character that gives her the scope to perform and she does it well. Actors like Sai Chand, Brahmaji, Ajay, Rajeev Kanakala and Syamala pull off their roles quite effectively and while Sunil does the same, his character seem inconsistent and unnecessary in the grand scheme of things. There’s a thin line between promoting superstition and narrating a story of people drowning in superstition. There might be moments in Virupaksha that’ll make you question if the makers are toeing that line. But for most of the film you’re engrossed enough to give in to the vision – and that’s a win.Read more

The beginnings of this horror film are in a small village called Rudravanam in 1978 where we see a couple perform black magic and sacrifice a young girl to appease the gods for whatever reasons. The villagers stop the couple from killing their girl children and burn them to death for their heinous crimes. As the woman dies, she gives a curse that all the people in the village will die in 12 years. The villagers though let the couple’s son go and live in an orphanage outside the village and banish him from there. Cut to 1991, we see Surya (Sai Dharam Tej), his friend and his mother arrive at Rudravanam as the mother wants to donate her land for a good cause for the village. They stay back for the festival of the village deity Modamamba and this is when Surya meets Nandini (Samyuktha), sarpanch Harishchandra Prasad’s (Rajiv Kanakala) daughter. He falls in love with her but soon it is time for him to return to the city and this is when things awry. Just as the festival begins, one of the villagers falls at the feet of the Goddess in the sanctum sanctorum and dies. This is seen as a bad omen and the villagers are prohibited from leaving Rudravanam for eight days to cleanse the village. But a series of other deaths soon follow and it is finally Nandini who is affected. Surya decides to investigate what is going on. Who is performing black magic in the village? Will Surya be able to save Nandini? Sai Dharam Tej has made a good comeback after his accident and he performs this role with a lot of ease. But it is Samyuktha who really has a meaty role here and she has more than delivered. The sound design and music by Ajaneesh Loknath has to be commended, as well as the cinematography, since this movie depends a lot on those aspects. This movie is not just about some evil presence - it has been narrated well with a convincing story so that the audience becomes invested in the story. The director has made a good debut and, of course, Sukumar also deserves credit for this. The movie is rated A due to the violence and some of the scenes depicted. While the climax of the film may appeal to some and not to others, the film focuses on superstitions which some people in the country still believe in. It should be food for thought. On the whole, the film is a good entertainer.Read more