Udgharsha Review: An engrossing whodunnit

With films like Tarka, Uthkarsha, Sangarsha and Nishkarsha to his credit, director Sunil Kumar Desai is known be a master of the mystery genre. With Udgharsha, the filmmaker is back with his favourite genre, and it seems he has not lost his touch. The suspense thriller, for which the director has written the story, screenplay, and dialogues, manages to keep the audience hooked throughout. 

Director: Sunil Kumar Desai
Cast: Sai Dhanshika, Thakur Anoop Singh, Tanya Hope, Kabir Duhan Singh

Udgharsha revolves around Reshmi (Sai Dhanshika), who pays the price for capturing an incident on her mobile phone at a resort, where she had gone along with her boyfriend, Adi aka Aditya (Thakur Anoop Singh). A gang, headed by Dharmendra (Kabir Duhan Singh), pursues her to kill her and destroy the evidence which incriminates them. In a bid to escape, Reshmi hides herself in a car, which then happens to travel to Madikeri. Aditya, in order to follow her, has no option but to take the help of a passerby, Karishma (Tanya Hope). All three of them -- Reshmi, Aditya and Karishma -- end up in the woods and a cat-and-mouse game begins.

In parallel, there is another plot which involves Vijay Menon (Kishore) and his secretary Krithika (Shraddha Das). Dharmendra assigns Krithika to kill Vijay, and she commits the murder. But to Dharmendra's shock, Vijay Menon is alive, which is known towards the end. What becomes of Reshmi and Aditya, and who is the person murdered by Krithika, forms the crux of Udgharsha.

The director has experimented with fresh faces for this film, and his gamble has largely paid off. With a measured level of suspense, he establishes the plot and develops the characters. However, the action sequences seem to have gone out of control and become a bit tiring at times. Sanjoy Chowdhury's music works in the film's favour, and cameramen KM Vishnuvardhan and P Rajan too have adeptly undertaken their job.

With competent performances from almost all the actors, Udgharsha is an engrossing whodunnit that surely qualifies for a one-time watch.