<p>In a sleepy Malnad village, the death of an elderly landlord reveals dark secrets about a nameless protagonist played by Rangayana Raghu. The film follows what led to the landlord’s death (suspected murder) from the varying perspectives of the main characters. </p><p>In his third directorial, Janardhan Chikkanna allows style to get the better of substance. While the plot is interesting, it lacks the material required for a compelling watch, and ends up being predictable. </p><p>The pre-opening credits scene shows two men running towards a well in an attempt to save somebody. No connection is established to this scene until the very end, and it turns out quite underwhelming. Many revelations follow the events leading up to the murder, but they are neither complex nor compelling. </p><p>The two-hour film lacks suspense, including at the interval cut, making the audience let out a yawn or two. Scenes repeat at brief intervals. <em>Agnyathavasi</em> tries to follow the famous Rashomon structure but bitterly fails. </p><p>An interesting exploration is the advent of computers and the Internet in remote India during the late ’90s, and how a smart young man, Rohith (Siddu Moolimani), tries to make a career out of the emerging technology. At its core, his character is interesting — his infatuation with Pankaja (Paavana Gowda), the relationship he builds with an old and lonely village elder, and his innocent curiosity about new technology. But again, it falls flat because of poor execution and writing — many scenes feel forced.</p><p>Hemanth M Rao’s first production under his newly launched banner Dakshayini Talkies is redeemed to an extent by its cinematography (Advaita Gurumurthy), locations and music (Charan Raj). </p>
<p>In a sleepy Malnad village, the death of an elderly landlord reveals dark secrets about a nameless protagonist played by Rangayana Raghu. The film follows what led to the landlord’s death (suspected murder) from the varying perspectives of the main characters. </p><p>In his third directorial, Janardhan Chikkanna allows style to get the better of substance. While the plot is interesting, it lacks the material required for a compelling watch, and ends up being predictable. </p><p>The pre-opening credits scene shows two men running towards a well in an attempt to save somebody. No connection is established to this scene until the very end, and it turns out quite underwhelming. Many revelations follow the events leading up to the murder, but they are neither complex nor compelling. </p><p>The two-hour film lacks suspense, including at the interval cut, making the audience let out a yawn or two. Scenes repeat at brief intervals. <em>Agnyathavasi</em> tries to follow the famous Rashomon structure but bitterly fails. </p><p>An interesting exploration is the advent of computers and the Internet in remote India during the late ’90s, and how a smart young man, Rohith (Siddu Moolimani), tries to make a career out of the emerging technology. At its core, his character is interesting — his infatuation with Pankaja (Paavana Gowda), the relationship he builds with an old and lonely village elder, and his innocent curiosity about new technology. But again, it falls flat because of poor execution and writing — many scenes feel forced.</p><p>Hemanth M Rao’s first production under his newly launched banner Dakshayini Talkies is redeemed to an extent by its cinematography (Advaita Gurumurthy), locations and music (Charan Raj). </p>