VIOLENCE IS THE LAST REFUGE OF THE COMPETENT

'ಶುದ್ಧಿ' ('Shuddhi', which means: 'Cleansing') is an award-winning and critically-acclaimed 2017 independent Kannada film. The crime thriller addresses contemporary issues of safety and security of women in society. The narrative of the film is based on vendetta and vigilante justice― it makes for good, nail-biting drama on screen; but bad audio-visual message to propagate in society.

The plot has Karlyn (Lauren Spartano), an American photo-journalist, who comes to Bengaluru on a mission to track some criminal offenders. A sub-plot features two journalists, Jyothi (Niveditha) and Divya (Amrutha Karagada), who are both activists passionately campaigning to raise funds against the country's lenient, liberal juvenile justice system. On top, a couple of cops are hot in pursuit of a criminal on the loose. The three sub-plots are interlinked and coalesce into the climax.

First-time director, Adarsh Eshwarappa has generally kept the suspense on high octane. The rawness of his art is evident in a few scenes, wherein he has gone overboard with Kill-Bill-like action scenes. Given his slick, sophisticated approach to the film, subtlety and simplicity of the narrative suffer because of his indiscreet over-dramatization.

Adarsh's screenplay is good, despite the pace being sometimes slow; real-world events are synthesized seamlessly into the story-line. However, the multi-threading of the narrative is disorienting at times. It feels like he is trying too hard to make an impact.

On the technical front, the synchronized sound recording and handheld cinematography technique contribute to the quality of production. The acting of the cast is on par with the demand of the script.

Bottom-line: The film endorses violence by women as the antidote for violence against women. Ironical...and interesting, indeed, this approach of women emancipation and empowerment!

But then, did Kenneth Eade, the American activist, not say emphatically: “When the law fails to serve us, we must serve as the law.”?

My rating of the film: 7.0 on 10!