Name: Hanuman (2023)
Director: Prasanth Varma
Cast: Varalaxmi Sarathkumar,Teja Sajja,Amritha Aiyer,Vinay Rai
Rating: 3.5 / 5
Hanuman is among the most loved characters in the books of Indian Mythology and has been the source of inspiration for several superhero films across the globe. While MCU & DCU created a universe based on the superpowers of Hanuman, there was a big void for the same in India. 2024 finally saw an attempt from director Prasanth Varma to create a superhero who gets his powers from Lord Hanuman. Does the Hanu-Man live onto the expectations? Let’s find out.
Plot of Hanuman:
Hanumanthu (Teja Sajja) comes across a mysterious stone that leads him to the superpowers of lord Hanuman. Ever since his childhood, Michael (Vinay Rai) has been obsessed with superheroes and his character goes on a hunt to get control over a mysterious stone from Hanumanthu. The film sees the rise of a superhero, as well as the metamorphoses of someone who aspires to be a superhero into a supervillain. What makes this stone so powerful? Does Michael get control over the stone? All of this and a lot more unfolds in Hanu-Man.
Watch Pinkvilla's Exclusive Interview Featuring Prasanth Varma And Teja Sajja
What works for HanuMan?
There was always a superhero story against the backdrop of Lord Hanuman waiting to be told and director Prasanth Varma taps upon the opportunity to bring forth a new superhero in town. What works for HanuMan is the originality in the content as also the fact that the filmmaker has his own distinct voice in narrating the tale. Varma packages the story in the format of a commercial Indian Film as the screenplay has loads of drama, elevation points as also comedy, which works seamlessly.
The visualization of the concept deserves applause as Varma and his team have thought of visuals and pulled them off with conviction despite the limitations in budget. Some of the visuals are breathtaking and stands tall against feature films made on a budget of Rs 300 crore. The narration blends the superhero moments with mythology.
The director kicks off the film with the backstory of the villain, which is among the major highlights of the film. The introduction block of Hanuman, the entire prolonged sequence of his encounter with the mysterious stone, the first action block on acquiring superpowers, and the pre-interval sequence stand out in the first half. While there is a dip in pace in the second half, the story rides on a goosebump-inducing finale – which is sure to be greeted with seeti’s and taali’s. The last 20 minutes of HanuMan stand tall in terms of cinematic experience. The sister’s emotion too works, though one hopes for a better closure to the brother-sister bond. Watch out for one sequence in the second half that has the visuals of lord Ram in the backdrop – it’s phenomenal to say the least.
The film sets itself up wonderfully for the second part, as Prasanth concludes the tale he wanted to in HanuMan, and promises a new experience in the next one. The VFX deserves all the applause, as the team has done an excellent job of doing justice to this epic and ambitious vision. The biggest win of the director is his conviction to make us root for a young guy, fighting against the toughest and strongest nemesis.
The Hindi Dubbing is also done well.
What doesn’t work for HanuMan?
HanuMan could have been crisper by about 20 minutes. The build-up takes longer than expected, as the initial portion has a major distraction in the form of the romantic track of the two leads. Things are set in motion once the protagonist gets his superpower in the first half. The film also has issues in the second half, when the story takes an unexpected route in the initial portions, but thankfully, there are enough moments in the final 20 minutes to make up for the off-tracks in the narration.
There are some issues with the VFX in some sequences, but the audience needs to keep their expectation in check with regards to the same as the film is made on a moderate budget of about Rs 55 crore, whereas the vision was to make Rs 500 crore film. While the humor works for most of the parts, it does get over the top in certain sequences.
Watch the Hanuman Trailer
Performances in HanuMan:
HanuMan is a well casted film as all the actors – Teja Sajja, Amirtha Aiyer, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Vinay Rai, Raj Deepak Shetty, Vennela Kishore, Satya, and Getup Srinu – do well in their respective parts. Given that we watched the film in Hindi, it’s unfair to get into the depth of their performances, but we can say with confidence that the dubbing quality of Hanu-Man is at par with some of the biggest blockbusters made in Hindi.
Verdict of HanuMan:
Overall, HanuMan is the first surprise package of 2024 as director Prasanth Varma brings out his ambition to the big screen with utmost conviction. The film entertains with the right amount of drama, action, comedy, and devotional value. What holds attention apart from the vision of creating something magical is also the non-serious approach to the superhero tale.
Much like Lord Hanuman being in search of a pure-hearted soul to get his superpowers, the audience is always in search of honest filmmakers and will reward Prasanth Varma for this ambitious take on Lord Hanuman in modern times.
