"Mandya" is the latest addition to the list of patchwork Kannada
films, just putting together sequences and story elements from many other
movies.
In "Mandya", the entire second half is just a remake of the
Telugu film "Sambha". And the first half is a remix of sequences
from other Telugu movies like Chiranjeevi starrer "Indra",
"Channakeshava Reddy" starring Balakrishna and "Gentleman"
featuring Arjun.
One scene has been lifted from Kannada film "Gokarna", which
in turn is a remake of the Tamil hit "Annamalai".
The film's sole attraction is Darshan. He is in his element in the
action sequences and also in dialogue delivery. The two heroines, Rakshitha
and Radhika, concentrate only on flaunting their sex appeal.
It is the story of a
do-gooder Darshan, who has a standoff with his cruel and lecherous cousins.
It leads to fights, which creates problems for the police. The law-keepers
want Darshan and his cousins away from Mandya for at least six months
to maintain peace in the city.
Darshan moves to Bangalore where he takes up a self-employment project
and succeeds. Meanwhile, a city girl, daughter of the police officer
who has advised Darshan and his opponents to be away from Mandya, hooks
him.
After a few months, Darshan returns to Mandya and wants to live in
peace, but his cousins do not let him do so. In the end, the hero wipes
off the villains.
Anaji Nagaraj's camerawork is impressive and Palani Raj competently
directs fight sequences.
But music director Guru Kiran fails to match the expectations of his
fans. Only one song "Kokkare koli" is catchy.