'Yuva' movie review: Action-packed debut of Yuva Rajkumar let down by too many elements

Over-romanticisation of struggle is one of the biggest problems in cinema. It fails to invoke empathy towards the characters and often feels like a mockery of real-life issues.

Santhosh Anandram’s Yuva also has a similar problem. The film begins with a closed-door meeting in an engineering college. The meeting sees authorities discussing gang wars between two groups of students — out-of-towners who live in the college hostel and locals. Yuvaraj (Yuva Rajkumar) is a quick-tempered final-year student. He is also a professional wrestler which aids him in winning gang wars. Circumstances see him taking up a delivery boy job after graduation.

Why an engineering graduate, who is also a professional wrestler, ends up as a delivery boy forms the crux of the story.

The movie tries to tackle multiple problems — conflict between hostel students and locals, issues faced by delivery agents, stock market fraud, middle class problems and corruption in the sports industry. All these issues are woven into a story of a father-son relationship. However, the movie fails to address the problems and create a larger impact. A solution to all of them is to beat up the opponent, according to the makers. The idea of showcasing the issues faced by an average middle-class family is lost in the chaos.

Anandram’s films are known for their dialogues with mass appeal. Yuva too is full of such dialogues which can come across as tasteless.

Yuva Rajkumar is striking in his action-packed debut. However, his facial expressions are unchanging throughout the film. It is not necessary that a hot-headed person does not feel any other emotion.

The wrestling practice and match sequences featuring Kishore are remarkable and well choreographed. It would remind one of Karm Chawla’s boxing drama, 10, featuring Vinay Rajkumar. Kishore elevates the film with his magnetic presence. Gopalkrishna Deshpande continues to impress with each film. Saptami Gowda somehow doesn't fit into her character well. The romantic sequences seem half-baked with no chemistry between the two actors.

To conclude, Yuva is an action-packed entertainer but is let down by too many elements.