Odeya Movie Review: This commercial potboiler of Darshan is a perfect mix of class and mass

It’s been a very productive year for Darshan, who is all set to end 2019 with a bang with the release of the commercial entertainer, Odeya. The Challenging Star is known for putting his fans first and going by what they want, and Odeya is no different.

Director: MD Shridhar
Cast: Darshan, Devaraj, Chikkanna, Sannah Thimmayya, Yashas Surya

Darshan's entry as Gajendra is tailor-made to get hoots and whistles from his fan base, and this is followed by an opening fight and the theme song Baa Odeya, Hai Odeya, that basically gives a description of his character. Gajendra, a vegetable dealer, is aggressive by nature and finds happiness by living with his four brothers — Nagendra, Surendra, Rajendra, and Vijendra. He turns saviour for farmers who are being looted by mediators, and this pits him against Bettappa (Sharath Lohitashwasa).

Gajendra hates everything about marriage as he believes that it may create a rift between the brothers. His intent to remain a bachelor proves to be a problem for his brothers, who are all secretly in love, but unable to get married while their elder brother is still unmarried. Krishnamurthy (Ravi Shankar Gowda), Gajendra’s childhood friend, reveals about Gajendra’s soul connection with a girl named Shakambari Devi aka Saku, their schoolmate. Though the brothers are not able to bring back his classmate, they manage to find a girl with a similar name (Sannah Thimmayya).

Shakambari helps in changing Gajendra's mind about marriage. But their happiness is short-lived as she soon gets to know the aggressive side of Gajendra. Whether he manages to say goodbye to his bachelor life and say yes to the family life is shown in the second half, which gives the audience the other shade of Darshan's character.

Here, Gajendra is represented in all white, which brings out the subtle side of the actor. How he wins over Shakambari, her father Krishna Wodeyar (Devaraj), and the entire family forms the second half. The climax predictably contains a mass fight that is followed by a family bonding.

This is MD Shridhar's third outing with Darshan, after Porki and Bulbul. The director has kept Darshan's stardom in mind and even though the film takes inspiration from one in another language, he has made sure the role played by Darshan is tailor-made for the actor.

The original film received complaints about the runtime and unnecessary episodes, but MD Shridhar has decided to stay faithful to it. He has not modified the story of the original Tamil film, Ajith-starrer Veeram, but has brought in freshness with the casting and the backdrop, which brings the native connection.

Though the film gives space to plenty of characters, Odeya remains Darshan's show all the way, who plays Gajendra’s role with ease. While the action sequences bring out the hero's mass side, which is well-matched with his body language, his attraction to the family audience comes from his class appeal, which is mostly seen in the second half of the film. 

A flashback which reveals the secret behind Gajendra’s fondness towards drinking black tea, and how it relates to his love for his brothers, strikes an emotional chord.

Aside from Darshan, the other actor who manages to get all the attention is Chikkanna, who plays lawyer Ramachari in the film. His one-liners leave the audience in splits. He is later joined by Sadhu Kokila, who tries to up the humour quotient.

The actors who play the brothers — Yashas Surya, Pankaj, Niranjan, and Samarth, as well as  Devaraj, all play their parts well.

Odeya is Sanah Thimmayaya's first outing and the newbie has tried to give her best. However, she has a lot of room for improvement if she is serious about her acting career.

Arjun Janya, who is composing for Darshan for the third time, has come up with a good mix of tracks — a massy number, love tracks, and a peppy song. Cinematographer Krishna Kumar conjures up the grandeur and Darshan's close up shots are particularly well-picturised. Stunt masters Vinod and Vijayan have come with varied stunts for the numerous action sequences.

An out-and-out mass entertainer, Odeya is a must-watch for Darshan fans. It also has something for everyone in the family. Fondly called as Challenging Star, D Boss, Dacchu and Dasa, Odeya will be the latest tag to be joined to the actor's tag.