A still from ‘Avisham’

My most tense moment Avesham Not placed during one of several battles, but bang in the middle of a game of dumb charades. The game takes place in the lair of Rangan (Fahd Faisal), a colorful gangster, whose stories range from chillingly realistic to far-fetched. One of the stories we hear about him earlier involves a game of dumb charades, which apparently leads to violent outbursts of anger.

It’s a cleverly crafted scene that makes us question our understanding of the character up to that point, and finally convinces us that we’ve guessed right, only to have it come back moments later. To be incredibly annoying. This ambiguity about Rangan is one of the things that filmmaker Jeethu Madhavan successfully captures in the gangster comedy. Aveshamhis further effort after the hit horror comedy Romance.

Avesham Bling is an entirely different animal as a decorated gangster with Fahadh running amok, and with a habit of sharing his dance reels. We see Rangan through the eyes of three Malayali students in Bengaluru—Aju (Hipster), BB (JS Emthan) and Shanthan (Roshan Shanavas)—who seek to get some “local support” to avenge themselves. Going into Sadie bars again and again on purpose. Elders who killed them.

The scenes leading up to Rangan’s introduction and the gradual revelation of his true stature are a scream. And, to flesh out the character, is Rangan’s sidekick Amban (Sajan Gopu) who has a wealth of hilarious and terrifying stories that he narrates as if he has witnessed them, but about them. There is always an element of doubt. dirty nature. Rangan is a character that has been essayed by mainstream stars in the past, but Fahadh spins it at will and runs with it unhindered, like a child left to fend for himself at home.

The character’s omnipresence and Sashin Shyam’s throbbing score somewhat paper over the film’s many weaknesses, particularly plotting and character development. There’s a long lull after the break, during which the film takes its eyes off the intrepid hero-worship and turns it into a cautionary tale. Avesham Could have done with some much-needed trimming, though it’s still a wonder they managed to keep up the runtime with such a thin plot.

The youngsters, some of whom are social media stars, as well as Sajeen, stand on their own amid Fahadh’s one-man show. But none of the female characters, not even a campus girl (who gets a lot of attention in the film) gets a substantial presence. The only memorable one is Bibi’s mother asking “Are you happy?” Whoever talks to him on the phone. It also gives us a rare insight into Ranjan’s personality, which is mostly hidden from us due to the sketchiness that focuses so much on shiny exteriors. Well, it’s the kind of film, which revels in its thrusts and quirks and leaves little room for quiet introspection and meaningful connections.

Avesham is currently playing in cinemas.