The Raja Saab Review: Most disappointing movie of Prabhas career
The Raja Saab Movie Rating: 1.5 Stars
Watched The Raja Saab movie in Hindi in Cinema. Let’s focus on the complete details, story, positive/negatives and at last my view on this movie.
Cast: Prabhas, Sanjay Dutt, Nidhhi Agerwal, Malavika Mohanan, Riddhi Kumar and Zarina Wahab
Director: Maruthi
Release Date: 9th January 2026 in cinemas
Story: Movie revolves around Raju (Prabhas) who lives with his grandmother Gangamma (Zarina Wahab). Although she ends up forgetting most of the things due to Alzheimer’s, the one person she never forgets to think of is her long-lost husband, Kanakaraju (Sanjay Dutt).
One day Raju gets to know that his grandfather is living in Hyderabad. He decides to visit Hyderabad meet him and reunite his grandfather with his grandmother. Here, he bumps into Bessy (Nidhhi Agerwal) and falls for her. Meanwhile, he also comes across Bhairavi (Malavika Mohanan) who joins his quest and offers him assistance in the search for his grandfather.
Their search eventually leads the group to a notorious haunted mansion. They discover that Kanakaraju is not a victim, but the architect of their misfortune. He reveals that he purposefully disappeared and orchestrated a long-term trap to lure Raju to the mansion for his own dark purposes. His spirit traps him and his buddies.
What happened next? What is the backstory of Bhairavi and her grandfather (Samuthirakani)? Why did Kanakaraju, leave Gangamma? How did Ganga Devi, a princess end up becoming Gangamma, a poor woman? Watch this movie to know the answers.
Positives
1. Performances
2. Cinematography
3. Background Music
Negatives
1. Length
2. Climax
3. Direction
4. Story
5. Screenplay
Durgesh Tiwary’s View: When I watched the trailer of this film planned to watch this movie in free time as its first ever horror comedy film from south India. In the film, a man searching for his missing grandfather finds himself in a mansion inhabited by a sinister presence.
The Raja Saab is a full-scale theatrical entertainer, leaning heavily into color, elaborate production design and star-centric moments. The intent to create a visually rich big-screen experience is clear, and several sequences benefit from this emphasis on scale and spectacle. The pitch and tone of the content on offer are truly something else and could have connected with the audience if not for the excessive scale and flawed execution. Apart from a few light-hearted moments, nothing else manages to earn enough attention or praise. Prabhas appearing in a full-fledged comic role after a long gap is one of the film’s few refreshing elements. Zarina Wahab is given a character with emotional depth and delivers a composed, dignified performance. The emotional thread associated with her character connects effectively in select portions. Thaman S.’s background music is quite effective. Karthik Palani’s cinematography is very good. Visual effects and computer graphics are of a fine standard. Action and stunt scenes afford thrill. The second half contains a few isolated moments that stand out. Sequences such as Prabhas’ encounter with the shadows, Sanjay Dutt’s psychological play involving Boman Irani, and the hospital scene showcasing Prabhas’ emotional side are among the better executed portions.
Movie is a complete recipe for disaster, failing after trying to overachieve beyond its limits. The movie begins with a shoddy foundation, making every progression in the screenplay feel like wasted potential for the viewers. While the ideas are good, the mix of mysticism and fantasy in a VFX-heavy world fails to impress. The pace at which the screenplay moves, the obvious plot holes, and the failure to complete subplots before shifting to new ones leave viewers disinterested. While the writing in the first half was bland and outdated, it gets directionless in the second half. Especially, the pre-climax and climax, with around forty to forty-five minutes, dragged forever with mindless writing and aimless direction and tests the patience. After a barely watchable first half, the film completely lost track in the second half. On top of poor writing and direction, the excessive usage of green mat to shoot even the simplest of sequences, gets into the nerves of the audience after a point. It is a shocker to see a few shots in the songs also captured on a green mat and then enhanced using the visual effects.
Director Maruthi’s ambition to present the story on a grand scale was evident from the promotional material and raised expectations. However, the execution does not live up to the promise. What appears compelling on paper falters on screen due to weak writing and inconsistent direction. Prabhas puts in sincere effort in the comedic space, but several scenes fail to register because the humor lacks sharpness and the staging feel ineffective. This tonal imbalance may feel jarring, particularly for his fan base. Malavika Mohanan’s Tollywood debut is restricted by a role that offers minimal scope for performance. Nidhhi Agerwal and Riddhi Kumar remain largely ornamental, contributing little to the story. The songs featuring them feel forced and disrupt the suspense-driven tone. The placement of “Nache Nache” is especially ill-judged and unnecessary. The comedy remains largely routine. The first half lacks cohesion and feels disjointed, while the sluggish momentum continues well into the second half. A runtime close to three hours only magnifies these. Maruthi misses a valuable opportunity to deliver a strong entertainer despite having Prabhas at the centre. His faith in the material is not backed by solid writing or disciplined execution, resulting in a film that struggles to find a clear tonal identity.
Overall movie ends up being a film that, despite having all the elements, clearly lacks substance and disappoints more than it impresses. What could have been an engaging horror comedy becomes a tacky, unfunny three-hour ordeal that disrespects both audience intelligence and cinema. My view on this film Not Recommended even if you are Prabhas fan because it’s his most disappointing film.
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