Vyra Entertainments and SRT Entertainments’ Matka (dubbed from the Telugu film of the same name; UA) is the story of a gambler-cum-gangster.
Vasu (Varun Tej) is a refugee who moves to Visakhapatnam with his mother. He is jailed for his illegal actions but emerges from prison as a fierce fighter, and he later becomes a gangster. His desire to amass a lot of wealth makes him resort to matka (a form of gambling), ultimately winning him the title of matka king.
Karuna Kumar has written a routine story about a man and his rags-to-riches journey. The screenplay, also penned by Karuna Kumar, is clichéd and treads the beaten path. There is absolutely no novelty in the drama. There are some fairly engaging scenes but they are too few and far between. The pace of the screenplay is also so sluggish that it fails to involve the viewers. Nothing in the drama really stands out. Dialogues are commonplace at most times.
Varun Tej does well as Vasu but he lacks the maturity to play the character. Meenakshi Chaudhary is alright as Vasu’s love interest, Sujatha. Nora Fatehi is fairly nice as Sofia. Her dance number is sexy. Saloni Aswani is alright as Padma. Satyam Rajesh is so-so as Sivudu. P. Ravi Shankar (as Narayana Murthy), Achyuth Kumar (as Bellary Babu), Kishore (as Nani), Ravi Mariya (as Rayudu), Naveen Chandra (as Sahu), Ajay Ghosh (as Chilla Appala Reddy) and L.B. Sriram (as Addala) do as needed.
Karuna Kumar’s direction is hardly worth praising, much like his script. G.V. Prakash Kumar’s music comprises songs which aren’t popular. Lyrics are okay. Most of the song picturisations (by Jani Master, Sathish Krishnan, Vijay Polaki and Vijay Binni) lack the excitement factor. Background music is fair. A. Kishor Kumar’s camerawork is average. Action and stunt scenes (by Vijay Master, Ram Sunkara and Nikhil) afford some thrill but aren’t very exciting. Kiran Kumar Manne’s production designing, and Ashish Teja Pulala’s art direction are quite alright. Karthika Srinivas’ editing is loose. Dubbing is okay.
On the whole, Matka is a dull fare.
Released 14-11-’24 at Gem (daily 1 show) and other cinemas of Bombay thru Filmastra Studios. Publicity: dull. Opening: weak. …….Also released all over. Opening was below the mark everywhere.
