Suspense flick

Movie: Rider

Cast: Nikhil Kumaraswamy, Kashmira Pardeshi, Achyuth Kumar

Director: Vijay Kumar Konda

Ratings: 3.5 stars

Y Maheswara Reddy

It may not be an exaggeration to say the movie “Rider” is a surprise flick for Nikhil Kumaraswamy’s fans. The USP of this movie is that director Vijay Kumar Konda succeeded in making Nikhil Kumaraswamy act and follow the script faithfully without craving for more screen space. Director Vijay Kumar Konda, who has proved his mettle in handling megaphone for successful Telugu movies such as “Oka Laila Kosam” and “Gunde Jaari Gallanthayinde” may become an asset for Sandalwood if he decides to direct more Kannada movies in future. However, the title of the movie “Rider” has nothing to do with the script.

The movie begins with Chinnu alias Soumya, a missing girl, being brought to an orphanage. She becomes friendly with Kitty, an orphan. Meanwhile, Soumya’s parents approach police requesting to search for their missing daughter. The police restores Soumya with her parents and after a few months, Gangadhar (Achyuth Rao) adopts Kitty and names him ‘Surya’ who becomes a basketball player. Soumya returns to Bengaluru after pursuing higher studies in the USA. What happens to Soumya and Surya is the climax.

As far as the performance of the artistes is concerned, Nikhil Kumarswamy has improved a lot. Though he has to go a long way to get appreciation from mass as well as class audiences, he is at his best when compared to his performance in his earlier movies “Jaguar, Seetharama Kalyana” and “Kurukshetra”. His dialogue delivery and body language deserve appreciation. While he is very good in stunt sequences, his acting has room for improvement in emotional scenes. For example, he looks stoic in a scene where an ashram gets inundated with water.

Kashmira Prdeshi looks glamorous. Chikkanna and Shivaraj KR Pete have provided comic relief to the movie. Shobaraj as a corrupt police officer is convincing. Achyuth Rao and Rajesh Nataranga have provided good support. Veteran artiste Dattatreya has a brief role. It is quite surprising to see Ramachandra Raju in such a role. He is known for playing don character roles but his character in this movie is a don without firing a bullet or wielding a knife or a dagger.Music director Arjun Janya has scored lilting music. Cinematographer Shreesha Kuduvalli has done an excellent job behind the camera. The movie is worth watching and is family-friendly.