RajadhiRaja
RajadhiRaja (transl. King of Kings) is a 2014 Malayalam-language action thriller film, directed by Ajai Vasudev and written by the duo of Udayakrishna-Siby K. Thomas.[1] The film stars Mammootty and Siddique, alongside an ensemble supporting cast including Joju George, Raai Laxmi,[2] Mukesh Khanna, Raza Murad, Sijoy Varghese, Rahul Dev, Nawab Shah and Joy Mathew.
| Rajadhi Raja | |
|---|---|
Promotional poster | |
| Directed by | Ajai Vasudev |
| Written by | Udayakrishna Siby K. Thomas |
| Produced by | M. K. Nasser Stanly Silvester Consera |
| Starring | Mammootty Raza Murad Mukesh Khanna Joy Mathew Siddique Joju George Raai Laxmi Sijoy Varghese |
| Cinematography | Shaji Kumar |
| Edited by | Mahesh Narayanan |
| Music by | Karthik Raja Berny-Ignatius Gopi Sunder (Background score) |
Production company | Good Line Productions |
Release date |
|
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
| Budget | ₹15 crore |
| Box office | ₹40 crore |
The film released on 5 September 2014 to mixed reviews.[3]
Plot
The story begins in Chittur district of Palakkad in Kerala. The story is about Ayyappan who is a petty thief who visits his relative Shekarankutty, who is a gas station owner leading a happy family life with his wife Radha and his daughter Sreedurga. One day, Shekarankutty is arrested by the police on suspicion of him being a crime boss called Raja in Mumbai. But as the police could not confirm that he was the suspect, he is set free. That following night, Shekarankutty and his family are attacked by a group of gangsters whom Ayyappan had a fight once. The next day they shift their house. As Shekarankutty and Ayyappan go to meet the police commissioner, they are followed by the same gang that attacked them. As they are rounded up, Ayyappan tries to flee but stops when seeing Shekarankutty beating up them. It was revealed the police's suspicions were right and he was Raja.
After the fight, Shekarankutty reveals to Ayyappan about his past as a mercenary. He reveals that he came to Mumbai to become a businessperson but instead got a job as a taxi driver where he met his boss Krishna Vamsi who offered a life in the Indian underworld to gain money and fame. He killed Radha's brother Chandru, who was one of Vamshi's men in attempt of saving Chief Secretary Mahindra Varma's daughter who gets kidnapped. Varma was his old friend who changed him and gave a new life. In the police records it was given that Raja was killed by the police and Chandru escaped from the custody. Varma tells Shekarankutty to not come to Mumbai again and he makes a report to prove that he didn't go anywhere leaving his hometown. Radha and her family were unaware that Shekarankutty killed Chandru.
In present day Shekarankutty is threatened by Vamshi, that his family will be killed. However, he manages to save his family in the nick of time. Later, he is sent by his former boss to kill Varma who is the Chief secretary in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu on the occasion of Varma's daughter's wedding. But as Shekarankutty is indebted to Varma for the help he had done to Shekharankutty in the past, Shekarankutty can never kill Varma. But as Shekarankutty's boss and his associates are adamant on killing Varma, they take Shekarankutty's family hostage and threaten to kill them unless Mahindra Varma is brought to them. Mahindra Varma says he too loves his family, as Shekarankutty does.
Finally, Shekarankutty brings Mahindra Varma to Ahmed Shah, but Shekarankutty reveals that he killed Vamshi before coming to the place with the help of his friend Sikandar whose family gets killed by Vamshi and his men in a bomb blast. Shah and his men try to kill the Varma but in a fight that ensues, Shah and his men gets killed by Shekarankutty thus Varma gets saved. Later it is seen that Shekarankutty living a happy life with his family hiding his past only known to Ayyappan.
Cast
- Mammootty as Rajashekharan Kutty (Rajashekharan alias Raja)
- Raza Murad as Krishna Vamshi
- Mukesh Khanna as Sikhander
- Joy Mathew as Ahmed Shah, the main antagonist
- Siddique as Mahendra Varma IAS, Chief Secretary
- Joju George as Ayyappan
- Raai Laxmi as Radha
- Nawab Shah as Gangster Sathya
- Rahul Dev as John Tiger
- Sijoy Varghese as Gangster Chandru
- Babu Namboothiri as Gangadhara Menon, Radha's Father
- Lena as Vidyalakshmi
- Bheeman Raghu as DYSP Paulose Pothen
- Abu Salim as Security Officer Sandeep
- Kazan Khan as Gangster Khalid
- Ravi Prakash as Police Officer Devilal Patel
- Assim Jamal as Gangster
- Taniya Stanley as Ammu, Mahendra Varma's daughter
- Nelson as Kuttappan
- Shaju as Man fighting at Petrol pump
- Sethulakshmi as Paruttiyamma
- Baiju VK as CI George
- Baby Eva as Sreedurga
- Baby Karen Mejo as Mahendra Varma's little daughter
- Unni Mukundan as Mahendra varma's son in law (cameo appearance in the song "Kanninu Kannin")[4]
- Shamna Kasim as dancer (cameo appearance in the song "Dhan Than" )[5]
Soundtrack
Two songs were composed by Karthik Raja and one song ("Midumidukkan") was composed by the duo Berny–Ignatius.[6]
All lyrics are written by Hari Narayanan.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Pattum Chutti" | Karthik, Najim Arshad, Sudeep Kumar, Sachin Warrier, Divya S. Menon, Sangeetha | 4:10 |
| 2. | "Kham Kham" | Tippu, S. Surmugh, Sudeep Kumar, Yasin | 5:26 |
| 3. | "Midumidukkan" | Madhu Balakrishnan, Rimi Tomy, Kumari Nandha J. Devan | 3:57 |
Critical reception
Sify said, "Rajadhi Raja is a mimicry of some tasteless masala flicks, which are seriously outdated. This one has perhaps been aimed at the hardcore fans of the superstar."[7] IndiaGlitz gave six out of ten and said, "Rajadhiraja is an Average Thriller" and stated, "In the final analysis, 'Rajadhiraja' doesn't offer any freshness in narratives. But it can be fine for a one-time watch, if you are not in theatres with any big expectations."[8] Paresh C Palicha of Rediff gave two stars out of five with a caption, "Rajadhi Raja fails to impress", and wrote, "Rajadhi Raja proves to be a lacklustre Onam release"[9] Unni R Nair of Kerala9 gave two out of five and stated, "Just about good entertainment watchable if you know what to expect..."[10] Deepa Soman of The Times of India gave 3.5 out of 5 and said, "Rajadhiraja is a winsome film with enough moments to entertain you this Onam season."[11]
Box office
The film grossed close to ₹14 crore (US$1.8 million) in eight days from the Kerala box office.[12][13][14]
References
- ^ "Mammootty to enthral fans as 'Rajadhi Raja'". MetroMatinee. 8 June 2014.
- ^ "Raai as Radha". The New Indian Express. 5 August 2014.
- ^ . Sify. 5 September 2014. Archived from the original on 10 September 2014.
- ^ "Unni turns item boy". Indiaglitz.
- ^ "Shamna Kasim Turns Item Dancer!". FilmiBeat.
- ^ https://www.raaga.com/malayalam/movie/rajadhi-raja-songs-M0003157
- ^ Sify.com. . Sify. Archived from the original on 6 September 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ^ Indiaglitz (6 September 2014). "Rajadhi Raja Review - 'Rajadhiraja' is an Average Thriller". IndiaGlitz. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ^ Paresh C Palicha (5 September 2014). "Review: Rajadhi Raja fails to impress". Rediff.com. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ^ Unni R Nair. "Rajadhi Raja Review". Kerala9. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ^ Deepa Soman (7 September 2014). "Rajadhiraja". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
- ^ . Sify. 8 October 2014. Archived from the original on 9 October 2014.
- ^ . Sify. 8 October 2014. Archived from the original on 21 April 2016.
- ^ "'Shylock': FIVE reasons why you must not miss this Mammootty starrer". The Times of India. 22 January 2020.
External links
- RajadhiRaja at IMDb