Srikanth Review: Despite the Flaws, an Effortless Rajkummar Rao Makes This Biopic Worth Watching

Rajkummar Rao’s Srikanth will be released on May 10, 2024.

Srikanth Movie Review: Bollywood has been on biopic-spree, from Swatantra Veer Savarkar this year to Sam Bahadur in 2023 and Shabaash Mithu in 2022. So how does ‘Srikanth’ stand out in this list of biopics? Well, it is because it has been a while since we’ve got an aam aadmi, feel-good film. Starring Rajkummar Rao, ‘Srikanth’ makes you smile, tear up and think as well.

Directed by Tushar Hiranandani, ‘Srikanth’ tells the tale of a visually challenged boy named Srikanth Bolla from Machilipatnam, situated in the then undivided Andhra Pradesh. Although his vision was compromised at birth, Srikanth had big dreams. One of which was to become the first visually impaired President of India. Hailing from a small village, Srikanth was sent to a school for blind where he met his teacher (played by Jyotika).

In the movie, he describes her as his Yashoda maa (comparing her with Lord Krishna’s foster mother) who helps him learn the ways of life. As years pass by, he grows up to be a class topper but his arrogance comes his way and he gets kicked out of the school. His teacher takes him in and helps him ace his board exam but a new hurdle comes his way — the Indian education system. At the time, the system did not allow visually challenged students to take up science as a stream.

He fights against the system and eventually wins. He then goes on to bag a full scholarship course at MIT in the US and moves to the States. Living a better life, he decides to not move back until he meets the love of his life (played by Alaya F) who convinces him to return and make a difference. Once back in Hyderabad, he decides to build an empire of packaging paper but his condition — he will employee only visually challenged people. With the help of Ravi (played by Sharad Kelkar), he not only sets up his business but takes it to new heights. However, as the business grows, his arrogance grows along it.

Will this affect his business? Will Srikanth’s arrogance come in the way of his dream? You will have to watch the movie to find out.

I would recommend you watch the film though. Srikanth has come in the right time, in lieu with the wave of non-political themed films such as Madgaon Express and Laapataa Ladies. The film helps you detach from the outside world once you are seated in the theatre seat. Rajkummar and Jyotika hold your hand from the word go, taking you along the roller coaster ride of Srikanth and it is something I enjoyed, especially in the first half.

Writers Jagdeep Siddhu and Sumit Purohit present a tight first half, packed with milestone events in Srikanth’s life. One thing that I truly enjoyed it that they kept the drama away for the second half. There are a few emotional moments in the first half that leave you teary eyed, especially because of Ishaan Chhabra’s background score, but the film does not waste too much time in making you cry and focuses on telling you an inspiring story. The interval scene is a cliffhanger of sorts, leaving you wondering what the film has in store in the second half.

The film continues the pace of the first half in the initial few minutes of the second half. However, the linear storytelling becomes evident in the second half. The film begins to drag, leaving you confused as to where the film is headed to. Even the brilliant Sharad Kelkar and Jyotika couldn’t hold the film together as the climax approached. However, the film gathers itself to deliver an impactful monologue in the last.

Despite the flaws, one thing I appreciated about the narration was that it doesn’t make you look at Srikanth with pity or sympathy. Rather, it tells the story of just another man who had his share of struggles but with an extra drawback. I appreciated this lens.

‘Srikanth’ completely rests on Rajkummar Rao’s shoulder. The actor has put himself outside his comfort zone to ace the nuances of the character. However, due to the lack of depth in screenplay, the actor did look like he was hamming in a few scenes in the second half. I wished the second half was tackled a lot more better because the film had the potential to be bigger than it already is.

Should you watch ‘Srikanth’? I would recommend it as a one-time watch.