Spectacular.

Visually delightful.

I went to the cinemas to watch but had a houseful board so couldn’t watch it. That same night i got a message from a fellow movie buff about this again. I saw it as a sign and went on the day of Diwali. And what a surreal experience.

The movie talks about a wide array of topics like the land to its ancestry, the concept of paap, friendship, conflict of two thought points and the whole idea of rituals in a contemporary society in a very fresh and micro regional perspective.

The writer / director and lead actor Rishab Shetty shines in this marvellous movie. The female lead Sapthami Gowda looks picture perfect as the woman torn between life and duty. Kishore Kumar G. As the Forest Officer Murali is top notch.

The shining work by cinematographer Arvind Kashyap is visible in each frame by means of carefully blending the story with his framing of visual poetry.

The background score is gritty, the music encapsulates local sounds and folklore perfectly and this movie makes you wonder how much we have to learn from our own music before going to look for melody in the west.

The fight sequences, the dance of “daiva” and the makeup as well as costumes department have done magic.

Locations are all real and the art department has done a beautiful job in capturing the essence of the story with utmost honesty. I can see Kantara as one prime example of how to tell a story effectively.