Director Koratala Siva’s Devara: Part 1 isn’t a bad film but don’t expect anything more. It’s a showcase for Jr NTR — as a larger-than-life mythical character and its complete opposite, a mild-mannered modern man — and the high-voltage action doesn’t come to the rescue of this formulaic story.
Devara: Part 1 takes you to the rugged terrain of Yerra Samudram (Red Sea) near the Andhra-Tamil Nadu border, where four clans live together. Their ancestors were warriors who fought against colonisers but now the men use their fighting skills for illegal activities. Devara (Jr NTR) is the leader of one such clan who undergoes a change of heart after one of his villagers is killed by the arms Devara and his companions helped smuggle into India.
The leaders of the other clans, including Devara’s best friend Bhaira (Saif Ali Khan), turn against Devara. They plot to get rid of him so that they can take control of the sea route for their illegal business. Their plan backfires and Devara ends up massacring an entire entourage of mercenaries. Issuing a threat to kill anyone who tries to smuggle arms through the sea route, Devara disappears.
Twelve years later, Devara’s son Vara (also played by Jr NTR) is a grown man who detests violence. Bhaira is on a mission to hunt down Devara and kill him. Meanwhile, there’s Thangam (Janhvi Kapoor) who oscillates between falling in love with Vara and resenting him for not being as brave as his father.
For a movie anchored in the theme of violence, loyalty and legacy, the stakes never feel as high as they should. The first half builds the myth around Devara, showing how he became the guardian of the seas. Anyone who crosses him is marked in blood and left nearly dead. The fearless men begin to experience fear for the first time.
Soon enough, the story becomes routine fare where you can spot the plot twists from a mile. Even the cliffhanger in the climax, meant to generate anticipation for the next instalment, feels lacklustre. Remember how ‘Kattappa ne Baahubali ko kyun maara’ became an internet rage when S.S. Rajamouli’s blockbuster released in 2015? Devara Part 1 tries to replicate the same sentiment but without much success.
Jr NTR is the beating heart of the film in the role of the morally conflicted Devara. He is really good in the action sequences, whether it’s the intense Ayudha Pooja fight or the adrenaline-pumping interval massacre, though his turn as Vara in the second half is not as impactful.
Cast as a backstabbing villain, Saif Ali Khan’s Bhaira is reduced to a one-note antagonist that feels like a caricature of Langda Tyagi from Omkara, one of Saif’s career-defining roles.
Janhvi Kapoor, in her Telugu debut, fares no better. Her role is largely decorative, confined to a few scenes and the much-hyped Chuttamalle song. Janhvi’s performance doesn’t detract from the film, but it doesn’t enhance it either.
And this can be said about the rest of the female characters in general. Be it Devara’s mother (Zarina Wahab) or his wife (Shruti Marathe), the sole purpose of these women characters is to elevate the hero’s position in the story.
The roles of some others — including Shine Tom Chacko, Srikanth and Prakash Raj — are too limited or generic to make a mark.
What keeps you seated through the almost-three-hour movie is the visual grandeur. Rathnavelu’s cinematography captures the raw, gritty feel of the villages and the frenetic energy of the fight scenes. Anirudh Ravichander’s score is pleasant and Chuttamalle is already an earworm.
