Watch TrailerAbhilash Joshiy’s multi-lingual King of Kotha is a gangster drama set in the fictional town of Kotha, although the actual shoot was at Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu. Produced by Dulquer Salmaan, who plays the title role, the film is way too long at 176 minutes and its camera is trained on him – at least most of the time. Like movies in the genre, King of Kotha weaves its way through webs and deceits with a smattering of romance and sibling love. This is precisely the movie’s undoing, for the digressions from gangsterism and drug deals get diluted and ultimately lose their power and punch.
The story begins with a police circle inspector, Shahul Hassan (Prasanna), taking up his new assignment in Kotha. On his arrival, the townsfolk ask him sarcastically whether this is a punishment posting. He brushes it off, but little does he realise that the place is indeed ruled by goons, who revel in the lawlessness they spread.
And when best buddies turn bitter enemies, Kotha is divided into two halves. Kannan (Shabeer Kallarakkal) and Raju or Salmaan had been thick of friends since their boyhood days, but when their principles clash, animosity and rancour split them. While Raju is dead against drugs, Kannan wants to make a quick buck by turning the town into zombie-land.
Eventually, it calls for the acumen of Hassan to get things under control, and he chooses an unorthodox method to defeat Kannan and his gang. You need an iron to cut an iron, you need a thorn to tackle a thorn, the cop quips and enlists Raju’s help to get even with Kannan.
King of Kotha has a nice plot, but an over-ambitious scripting pushes it in a multitude of paths with the cream of it all turning sour. The narrative is uneven, and direction not quite up to the mark.
But I must admit Salmaan’s style is gripping; as a don with a kind heart, he emotes with alacrity – conveying pride, prejudices, sorrow, disappointment and fleeting joy with a touch of excellence. But we all knew where the story would lead us to. No points for guessing. And, yes, producer Salmaan needs to be a little more magnanimous with screen time for others. They appear more like uni-dimensional caricatures.
