Nandamuri Balakrishna's Gautamiputra Satakarni is a masterpiece made with limited budget and time, but director Krish could have made it even bigger hit than Baahubali, if he had put in little more effort and time.
Gautamiputra Satakarni (Balakrishna) is a powerful king, who believes that the war is a solution for peace. He goes out on an expedition to conquer all Indian provinces in a bid to bring them under one control. How he defeats all the kings including Greek emperor Demetrius forms the crux of the story.
Gautamiputra Satakarni is epic historical movie that throws light on unsung hero – a ruler of Satavahana Empire, the first person to imagine the concept of Bharat Khandra. The film throws light on how Hindu calendar (Salivahana Saka) was started by him. Krish has done lot of research on the history of Satakarni and he has given lot of attention to details related to his kingdom, costume and his rule in his empire.
Balakrishna's movies usually have lot of heroism and the scripts are altered to suit his image. Considering this fact, Krish has taken very less cinematic liberties in scripting Gautamiputra Satakarni. He has stuck to the original story rather than adding many commercial ingredients to make the film entertaining.
Gautamiputra Satakarni starts on a slow note and it picks the speed as it nears the interval. The first half of the film is engrossing and some war and romance entertain the audience in the first half. The second half has also got slow paced narration, but the serious subject keeps the viewers engaged. The climax is good.
Nandamuri Balakrishna has put in lot of hard work without taking a dupe in action scenes and his efforts are clearly visible in his wonderful performance. He impresses the viewers his stunning action and dialogue delivery, which are the highlights of the movie. This film is truly landmark in his career and he should be applauded for this brave attempt at this age. Shriya Saran, Hema Malini, Kabir Bedi, Tanikella Bharani and others have also done good jobs and they are also big assets of the movie.
Gautamiputra Satakarni has been produced with a limited budget of Rs 45 crore in limited time of six months. But the makers have managed to get brilliant production values, which are on par with the Hollywood standards. Punch dialogues, songs, background score, choreography of action, amazing sets, costumes and weapons are the attractions on the technical front. But repetition of some shots in war scenes is one big drawback that may disappoint the audience.
Verdict: Gautamiputra Satakarni is another brilliant effort in India cinema after Baahubali and Bajirao Mastani. Krish has surely made a brilliant and smart effort and taken the Indian cinema to the next level. His venture is a perfect to be a landmark film in the career of Balakrishna. This film is not just grand Sankranti treat for his fans, but also for all film goers.
