Devara: Part 1 review – Big stars, bigger disappointment

Jr NTR, Janhvi Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan starrer Devara: Part 1 Full Movie Review & Ratings: Devara: Part 1, featuring Jr NTR, Saif Ali Khan, and Janhvi Kapoor in her Telugu debut, offers nothing beyond flashy visuals and formulaic storytelling. Directed by Koratala Siva, the film fails to live up to its high expectations.

Devara Part 1 Full Movie Review & Ratings: Big stars, bigger disappointment

Mumbai: Devara: Part 1 graced theatres on 27 September 2024, starring the powerhouse that is NT Rama Rao Jr, the ever-versatile (or at least, once upon a time) Saif Ali Khan, the ever-present Prakash Raj (because what’s a big-budget film without him?), and, of course, Janhvi Kapoor making her Telugu debut. Directed by Koratala Siva, this film was released in Telugu and dubbed in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada — because, why should just one language audience bear the brunt of this disaster, right?

Jr NTR, in a heroic feat, plays two roles: Devara and Varadha, or in simpler terms, Deva and Vara—because creativity knows no bounds here. Meanwhile, Saif Ali Khan attempts to channel his inner Bhaira, and Janhvi Kapoor twirls through the second half as Thangam. And, of course, it wouldn’t be a proper South Indian film without Prakash Raj showing up to do… well, Prakash Raj things.

Now, a lot of hopes were riding on this film, but it seems those hopes took a nosedive straight into disaster.

Visually, the set design deserves a standing ovation—or at least a slow clap. With the ocean as a backdrop, it almost distracts you from the fact that the plot is sinking faster than the Titanic.

Where to begin? Devara sets the stage for what can only be described as a cinematic train wreck from the word “go.” The editing is, to put it kindly, sloppy. The background music? It’s… okay-ish. Not bad enough to notice, but not good enough to save anything either.

Ah, the dialogues. The Hindi dubbing is an exercise in creative failure. Any emotional or dramatic impact the dialogue might have carried in the original language was lost in translation—badly. And no, that’s not an exaggeration. It’s almost impressive how much worse they made it.

And then there’s Janhvi Kapoor, Sridevi’s daughter debuting in Telugu cinema! You can practically feel her excitement, but sadly, that’s where it ends. She pops up mid-film, dances a bit, waves goodbye, and vanishes like a cameo no one asked for. If her role was to “look pretty and twirl,” she’s nailed it. But if there was any acting involved… let’s just say I’m genuinely concerned for her future prospects.

As for Jr NTR, he dances well. Full marks there. After RRR’s ‘Naatu Naatu’, the bar was set high, and he doesn’t disappoint in that department. Some action scenes, especially with shastras, were decent—credit where credit’s due. But beyond that? Nothing out of the ordinary. His performance? Let’s just say it was “there.” Nothing remotely memorable or groundbreaking.

Prakash Raj? Well, he was… Prakash Raj. He’s in so many of these films that at this point, he could probably sleepwalk through his role and we wouldn’t notice. There was nothing remarkable about his performance.

And now, for Saif Ali Khan. If he thought this was his chance to channel those Omkara vibes again, it’s safe to say that plan backfired. His performance is so underwhelming that halfway through, you wonder if he just gave up. To save some face, they almost completely cut him out of the dance sequence where Jr NTR was showing off his skills. The makeup? Don’t even get me started. To make him look “old,” they threw in a few grey strands and gave him some dark circles—because nothing says ageing like poorly applied makeup, right? It was like they went for a bargain-bin-Gandalf look and somehow ended up with a “tired dad who didn’t sleep.”

Oh, and in one scene, Prakash Raj’s beard looks so fake that it might as well have been bought at a clearance sale. It’s truly a sight to behold.

The songs in the Hindi version? Completely forgettable. You’ll forget them before you’ve even finished listening.

The plot? A rinse-and-repeat of South Indian cinema’s greatest hits. By the time you reach the climax, you’ve forgotten why you were even watching in the first place. And when they thought the ending would leave you pondering “Why did Devara have to die at the hands of (no spoilers, I promise),” all you’re really doing is glancing at your watch, hoping the credits will roll soon. It won’t leave you with any Baahubali-esque lingering questions like “Katappa ne Baahubali ko kyun maara?”. In fact, you’ll be thankful the movie finally ended—probably the biggest relief of the entire experience.

And yes, the man behind the curtain—Koratala Siva. The director has given us some good films in the past, but with Devara: Part 1, it seems he decided to hit the “routine” button and never look back. Let’s talk about the story, or rather, the lack of one. If you’re a fan of South Indian cinema, you’ll get a sense of déjà vu watching Devara, because the plot is recycled from a formula that’s been beaten to death. It’s like he took every trope we’ve seen a hundred times before, threw it into a blender, and hoped the audience wouldn’t notice.

As for character development, let’s just say the only thing that evolved over the course of the movie was the audience’s boredom. There’s no nuance, no depth—just surface-level spectacle wrapped in a plot that could’ve been written in 2005 and nobody would know the difference.

No shock, no thrill, no tension—just bland, tasteless scenes that drag on until you’re practically begging for it to end. Honestly, the most gripping part of the experience was a tub of caramel and cheese-flavoured popcorn. Now that had layers of complexity.

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