Arishadvarga Movie Review: A murder mystery with many twists and turns

PLOT: A film producer and quarry owner is murdered. A gigolo and an aspiring actress become main suspect and witness respectively. There is a young second wife of the victim to reckon with. The whodunit is revealed only at the end of the film.

Arishadvarga Movie Review: Noir thriller is a term that is now so widely used to describe many films in other languages like Malayalam, but a few in Sandalwood fall in this category and ‘Arishadvarga’ is one among them. This revolves around a murder and a witness to the crime. As the title suggests, ‘Arishadvarga’ revolves around six enemies of the mind, namely the Kama, Krodha, Lobha, Mada, Moha and Matsarys. It seems director Arvind Kamath has been influenced by hard-boiled detective novels and crime surge in contemporary world to weave a story around these negative human characteristics.

‘Arishadvarga’ opens with the mysterious murder of famous producer and businessman Manjunath Bhat (Anivash). Anish (Mahesh Bung) who plays a gigolo ends up as the main suspect as he is unwittingly found with the body that stumbles out of the cupboard. He in fact is asked to open the cupboard to find a ‘gift’ by his new female client. Just as Anish tries to flee the murder scene, Saakshi (Samyukta Hornad), an aspiring actress, also enters the house. These quick twists and turns land Anish in a difficult situation as he is suspected as the murderer and Saakshi becomes a witness who is almost convinced that he is the culprit.

Arvind Kamath tries his best to deliver an edge-of-the-seat thriller. The flashback narrates a desperate bid of Kruthi Bhat to conceive a child but Manjunath Bhat has some problem. Kruthi is his second wife after his divorce with his first wife.

Later part focuses on police investigation to unravel the mystery behind the murder. Director's effort to connect all characters in one way or the other is commendable . The story on the whole holds mirror to declining moral values in the present-day society.

The screenplay and editing fail to keep up the suspense that unfolds in the beginning. Cinematographer Balaji Manohar and music director Udit Haritas form backbone of the script as song sequences are also well choreographed.

For Nandagopal as investigating officer and Anju Alva Naik as Kruthi Bhat, ‘Arishadvarga’ is definitely one of their career-defining films.

Avinash, Samyukta Hornad and Mahesh Bung do complete justice to their characters.

Arishadvarga is the second Sandalwood theatrical release amid coronavirus scare.

Written by Nischith N