Raghava Lawrence’s Ganga (2015) Movie Review

Raghava Lawrence’s Ganga (2015) Movie Review

Movie Review: Ganga – Muni 3
Genre: Horror| Thriller
Star Cast: Raghava Lawrence, Taapsee Pannu, Kovai Sarala, Nithya Menen
Music Director: Leon James, C Sathya, Thaman SS & Ashwamithra
Cinematography: Rajavel Olhiveeram and R B Gurudev
Director: Raghava Lawrence
Censor Certificate: U/A
Runtime: 165 Minutes

Director Raghava Lawrence returns after four years with the sequel to Kanchana, titled Ganga. Which has been a money spinner for distributors and producers for few years now. After lot of hurdles this much awaited horror-comedy releasing this weekend. Let’s check out whether it reached the heights of the series.

Nandini (Taapsee Pannu) works for a second raking regional channel, Green TV. Owner (Suhasini Maniratnam) finds the reason that competitor channel highlighted a news programme on spirituality. So, Nandini proposes a new show to fabricate wraith stories in order to increase TRP ratings. After discovering a location at Bheemili for the first episode, she sets out with cameraman Raghava and crew to shoot the haunting programme. On the first day of the shoot, Nandini stumbles across a thaali and sacks it with intention of giving it as an offering at some holy place. But strange things start happening as crew runs into occult encounters and by the time they realize the existence of the ghost, ghost enters into the Nandini & Raghava. Then they change the shooting spot & Nandini starts to stay along with Raghava’s family. Why did ghost entered the hosts? Whats the flashback of ghosts? Will ghosts proceed and take revenge? That forms the rest of the storyline.

The plot is very much similar to many horror entertainers it has a mixture of Blair Witch Project, Boochamma Boochodu, Prema Katha Chitram, Kanchana, Muni and many. Since Ganga is sequel to Muni & Kanchana it’s okay, but the problem is both horror-comedy has nothing fresh and it seems too repetitious. An ardent horror fan can predict the entire twists from the first 15 minutes itself. It was like an old wine in new bottle.

Ganga: Muni 3 starts well, the director wastes no time and quickly establishes storyline and the characterizations. The first half has some fine moments and Raghava Lawrence who specializes in directing horror films, had complete control over proceedings. The second half (Even Flashback) though fails to match up. Muni & Kanchana had good flashback episodes which have elevated the film to different level, here it was very average and dragged. The creaks get too loud, Taapsee goes insane and there are way too many loop holes in the script.

Director Raghava Lawrence employs all the clinches of a horror film – Dead Bodies, Haunted house, stalking ghosts, Raghava multiple ghost disorder, Body Transformations and many more. Unfortunately, not much of it is scary and apart from couple chills.

The dialogues are delivered in unnecessarily flashy voices and the sequences pile up one on the other without making any consistent scheme of storytelling. Music by Leon James, C Sathya & Ashwamithra are not memorable. Thaman SS is responsible for beltingout the relentlessly loud background score (which seems running through every freaking horror movies these days) is the only one who deserves his pay grade, because he tries his best to carry out the task director, screenwriter, Cinematographer and doers are meant to do – telling a plot. Without his effort and off course the formula of sound designers, however loud and unbearable eventually, even the scary shadow that haunts Taapsee – Kovai in a relatively freaky scene wouldn’t elicit a nervous chuckle. Visual Effects are not upto the mark and Editor could have easily trimmed down repetitive scenes in the first & the second half. Luckily Telugu version is 12-15 minutes shorter than the original version. Production Values of Sri Sai Ganesh Productions are good.

Taapsee gets everything right this time – make up, mannerisms and dialogue delivery is spot on. She is the star of Ganga. Nithya Menen is best part of the dragged climax. She creates a huge impact even though her character is very short lived in the second half. Raghava Lawrence sleep walks through his character, he’s done this several times before. Kovai Sarala comedy timing is just perfect, but the scope in the comedy was old. Pooja Ravichandran, Madhumita, Sriman, Manobala, Motta Rajendran, Renuka did their part well.

Ganga has 100% occupancy in its first show once again strengthens my notion that Telugu cinegoers are always ready for a good mass spooky entertainers without any doubt. However in 9 out of 10 times audience feel like fools walking out of the theatres after watching poorly made films in the name of Horror. The horror genre suffers in Tollywood because of its inability to reinvent itself over the years. After Muni and Kanchana comes the next big sequel from the same team. The real magician amidst of all this, is none other than Raghava Lawrence himself, who along with Srinu Vaitla is proving to be most prolific directors in Telugu Film Industry. It takes a huge amount of talent to do this, while maintaining exact same level of mediocrity throughout every part of Muni. On the whole, Ganga: Muni 3 has its formulaic scares but it annoys you in the second half.

Survi Review: 2/5