Yajamana

Krishna is the dutiful son of Hulidurga, a town in Karnataka where there is no penetration of corporate bodies. When an oil magnate eyes the town to ensure his brand has supremacy across every region, Krishna stands up for his ideals. Will he be able to restore normalcy back in Hulidurga?

Darshan is back after a hiatus of over a year and the expectations are quite high from his fans. This film promised a package filled with a big cast and lots of action and emotions in its trailer. Does it keep up the promise? It does. Yajamana is entertaining and lives up to expectations. The film has Darshan shouldering a script that is cleverly woven together. It might seem a song and a couple of scenes too long, but those can be overlooked.

The film begins with the head of the oil conglomerate saying that he will kill anyone who tries to come between him and his business. Simultaneously, in Hulidurga, viewers are introduced to Krishna, who is a man of principles and is the backbone of a town where oil mills have managed to keep big corporate entities at bay. But Krishna has an uphill task at hand when the oil magnate decides to take down the people.

What is nice about Yajamana is that it manages to ensure that it is a big star vehicle, yet ensures that all ancillary characters are not reduced to mere props. The villain is equally powerful and this ensures that there is a good fight in store. Also, the two heroines, despite their limited roles, play their part in steering the course of the narrative. The romantic and comedy tracks in the story do not seem force fitted, which has to be lauded.

Darshan has given a performance that gives ample scope for fans to whistle throughout the film. Thakur Anoop Singh as the suave businessman villain is impressive. Rashmika Mandanna is cute and her pairing with Darshan works well. Tanya Hope, in her debut performance, shows that she has glamour, along with the promise of being a good performer. Devaraj and Dattanna shine as well. The film is technically sound, with good visuals, background score and art direction.

Yajamana is definitely a must-watch for fans of commercial cinema. It has all the necessary masala and also manages to slip in a message towards the end of the film.