Khiladi (2022 film)

From Bharatpedia, an open encyclopedia
(Redirected from Khiladi (2021 film))
Information red.svg
Scan the QR code to donate via UPI
Dear reader, We need your support to keep the flame of knowledge burning bright! Our hosting server bill is due on June 1st, and without your help, Bharatpedia faces the risk of shutdown. We've come a long way together in exploring and celebrating our rich heritage. Now, let's unite to ensure Bharatpedia continues to be a beacon of knowledge for generations to come. Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. Together, let's preserve and share the essence of Bharat.

Thank you for being part of the Bharatpedia family!
Please scan the QR code on the right click here to donate.

0%

   

transparency: ₹0 raised out of ₹100,000 (0 supporter)



Khiladi
File:Khiladi 2022 poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRamesh Varma
Produced by
  • Satyanarayana Koneru
  • Ramesh Varma
Written byRamesh Varma
Starring
Music byDevi Sri Prasad
CinematographySujith Vaassudev
G.K.Vishnu
Edited byAmar Reddy Kudumula
Production
company
Distributed byPen Studios
Release date
  • 11 February 2022 (2022-02-11)
Running time
154 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Budget₹60 crore[1][2]
Box officeest. ₹20.80 crore (1 week) [3]

Khiladi (transl. Player) is a 2022 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film[4] written and directed by Ramesh Varma who co-produced it with Satyanarayana Koneru under A Studios. The film stars Ravi Teja alongside Arjun Sarja, Unni Mukundan, Meenakshi Chaudhary, and Dimple Hayathi. Initially scheduled to be released on 28 May 2021, it was indefinitely postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Soundtrack and score of the film is composed by Devi Sri Prasad. Released theatrically along with a Hindi dubbed version on 11 February 2022, the film received mixed reviews from critics and underperformed at the box office.[2]

Plot[edit]

Bala Singham is a mafia kingpin who sends a container of 10,000 crores to India to bribe the MLAs to make his minister father, Guru Singham, the next CM. Pooja is a criminologist who learns of Mohan Gandhi as a part of her research who was convicted of killing his whole family, except for his daughter. She meets him in the jail, but he refuses to talk to her. While seeing him and his daughter's bond, she promises to help him get bail if he narrates his story, to which Gandhi agrees.

Gandhi is an orphan raised by a successful businessman, Rajashekhar and became the General Manager of the company. One day Chitra is their new employee who comes to their neighbourhood, and Gandhi falls for her. Unbeknownst to him, Chitra also had fallen in love with him. After some funny encounters, they get married and have a daughter.

Meanwhile, CBI officer Arjun arrests Rajashekhar in a money laundering case linked with the same 10,000 crores orchestrated by Bala Singam. Guru Singham places two choices for Gandhi: finding the money or letting his family get killed. Gandhi confronts Rajashekhar and learns that Rajashekhar did this to return the favour to Guru Singam, who helped him during his days.

David also wants a share of the money. Gandhi secretly meets Rajasekhar and decodes the location of the money. After confirming the same, Gandhi first informs the Home Minister and then David. The Home Minister orders to kill Rajashekhar inside the custody and transports the money. David robs the money, replaces it with fake currency midway, and burns down the container. Arjun finds a note and is proven fake after forensic analysis. David, who was constantly instructed over the phone via an unknown person, kill Gandhi's family, but the latter takes the blame to save his daughter.

After listening to his story, Pooja arranges a bail using her father's name, DGP Jayaram, to perform final rites to his father-in-law. After finding this, Arjun and Jayaram try to stop him, but Gandhi escapes. Pooja, to her shock, finds that Gandhi's supposedly dead family members are alive and are a part of his crew.

It is then revealed that Gandhi is a Dubai-based con artist whose sole aim is to fool everyone and rob the money. Arjun was sent to arrest him red-handed in Dubai. One day, Gandhi learned of the 10,000 crores and planned to steal it. He took club dancer Aditi(Chitra) onboard, whom Bala Singham intended to date and with the help of his gang and Aditi, Bala Singham's mobile was hacked where the location of the money was stored. Gandhi reached there and fought against the men and was about to get the money when Arjun arrested him, but he was shot.

Arjun passed the information to the government and was posted to the CBI. One day Gandhi came and surrendered himself and took the blame for the crimes he had not committed and was given 14 years of rigorous imprisonment. In the jail, he befriended Ramakrishna, and it was his story that Gandhi narrated to Pooja and used her to get himself released from jail. He also planned to forge the documents so that Pooja would believe what he was telling was true.

Arjun deduced a plan where they could catch David and Gandhi. Outside the court, there is a shootout, and Gandhi captured David while Singham's men captured Ramakrishna. While confronted, a badly heated David said he did all of this based on the instructions of an unknown person who was revealed to be Jayaram. Pooja does not believe this, but she finds that all the cash is cryptocurrency.

Meanwhile, Singham was about to kill Ramakrishna after denying having any knowledge of the money. However, in the nick of time, Pooja calls Singham and strikes a deal to tell him the location and lets Ramakrishna leave. During a shootout, Aditi betrays Gandhi and shoots him for money. While hospitalized, Pooja learned from Gandhi's henchmen that Gandhi was after the money to make a charitable trust for needy people.

Pooja here said that she lied to them and her father had all the money in the hard cash. Singham and his men arrived at the location and killed Jayaram's men, but Gandhi arrived and killed all of Singham's henchmen and Singham. He is about to take the money but suddenly has a change of heart. He frees Ramakrishna, who finally meets his daughter. After a showdown with Arjun, Arjun seeing Gandhi as a changed person, let him Scott free.

In the final twist, Guru Singham was stripped of his ministerial post as the money he used to bribe the MLAs were bogus. It is revealed that Gandhi stole the real money and fooled Singham and everyone all along. At the same time, he was conversing with Arjun on the phone. Gandhi reveals that he is neither against him nor Singham and Jayaram, but was fighting against the corrupted system's responsibility towards people and wishes good luck to Arjun, who vows to arrest him again.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

Ravi Teja was reported to play dual roles in the film.[5] Meenakshi Chaudhary and Dimple Hayathi are cast as the leads.[6] Principal photography of the film began in November 2020.[7] Few action scenes were shot in Italy in April–May 2021.[8] Final schedule of the film began in June 2021, after a break due to the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic in India.[9]

Arjun Sarja joined the production in December 2020.[10] Unni Mukundan was cast in a pivotal role in January 2021.[11] The music of the film is being composed by Devi Sri Prasad.[12]

Music[edit]

Khiladi
Soundtrack album by
Released2022
Recorded2021
GenreSoundtrack
Length16:50
LanguageTelugu
LabelAditya Music
ProducerDevi Sri Prasad
Devi Sri Prasad chronology
Good Luck Sakhi
(2022)
Khiladi
(2022)
Aadavaallu Meeku Joharlu
(2022)
Singles from Khiladi
  1. "Istam"
    Released: 10 September 2021
  2. "Khiladi"
    Released: 4 November 2021
  3. "Atta Sudake"
    Released: 1 January 2022
  4. "Full Kick"
    Released: 26 January 2022
  5. "Catch Me"
    Released: 5 February 2022

The soundtrack and score of the film is composed by Devi Sri Prasad.[13] The audio rights were acquired by Aditya Music.

All lyrics are written by Sri Mani.

No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Istam"Hari Priya2:46
2."Khiladi"Ram Miriyala3:28
3."Atta Sudake"Devi Sri Prasad, Sameera Bharadwaj3:06
4."Full Kick"Mamta Sharma, Sagar3:53
5."Catch Me"Neha Bhasin, Jaspreet Jasz3:37
Total length:16:50

Release[edit]

The film's release was originally scheduled for 28 May 2021.[14] Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic in India. The film's release has been postponed indefinitely.[15] The makers, however, have announced that the film would be released in theatres only.[16] The film was released on 11 February 2022 along with its Hindi dubbed version.[17][18]

Reception[edit]

The film received mixed reviews from critics, praised Ravi Teja's Performance and story but criticised the direction and screenplay.[19] Neeshitha Nyayapati of The Times of India gave the film a rating of 2/5 and criticized the screenplay, CGI, and songs, writing, "Khiladi is an absurd, sometimes stylish and oddly wacky, disengaging crime thriller."[20] Pinkvilla gave the film a rating of 2/5 and wrote "'Khiladi' is a template-driven film if you care to scratch the surface. It's just that the writing department seeks to fortify the formulaic story by structuring the film in a less-than-routine manner in the first half".[21]

Reviewing the for The Indian Express, Gabetta Ranjith Kumar appreciated Ravi Teja's performance but felt that the unnecessary songs and inane subplots had put film at a disadvantage.[22]The Hindu critic Y. Sunita Chowdhary called it an "average film," and added "The story lacks logic, tests patience but cannot be written off completely."[23] In an other negative review, The News Minute's Balakrishna Ganeshan gave the film a rating of 1.5/5 and termed it "an unappealing mish-mash, with Ravi Teja playing a predictable role." Ganesh wrote that "The director attempts to deceive the audience with a story similar to Shock. But then he completely changes the trajectory by making it a story of a con artist, who is just invincible, or let’s say any average Telugu hero who seems to possess superpowers."[24]

Remake[edit]

In early June 2021, actor Salman Khan acquired the remake rights for the film's Hindi version.[25][26]

References[edit]

  1. "Weekend Preview: Khiladi and DJ Tillu to warm up the box office before the summer heats up". Pinkvilla. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Ravi Teja's Khiladi Fails At Box Office With First Week Collection Of Rs 18 Crore". News18. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  3. "Khiladi 1 week box office collection: Khiladi 1 week box office collection". Pinkvilla. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  4. "Ravi Teja's unique characterisation in Khiladi to thrill fans". 123Telugu.com. Retrieved 22 August 2021. Khiladi is a unique action thriller. We all give utmost importance to money in our lives.
  5. "'Khiladi': Ravi Teja to enact dual roles in forthcoming Telugu film". DNA India. 18 October 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  6. "Khiladi: Ravi Teja shares a selfie from the sets of upcoming action entertainer". The Times of India. 19 January 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  7. "Khiladi: Ravi Teja reveals first look". The Indian Express. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  8. "Ravi Teja shoots for an intense action sequence in Italy for 'Khiladi'; Watch BTS video". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  9. Arikatla, Venkat (21 June 2021). "Ravi Teja to Resume Two Films Simultaneously". greatandhra.com. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  10. "Actor Arjun Sarja joins the cast of Ravi Teja's upcoming movie 'Khiladi'". Deccan Herald. 21 December 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  11. "Unni Mukundan roped in for Ravi Teja, Ramesh Varma's Khiladi". The Times of India. 23 January 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
  12. "Devi Sri Prasad begins work on Ravi Teja's 'Khiladi'". NTV Telugu. 11 December 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  13. "Khiladi by Devi Sri Prasad". Jio Saavn. 2021.
  14. "Ravi Teja's Khiladi to hit screens on May 28 – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  15. "COVID-19: Ravi Teja's 'Khiladi' theatrical release postponed". The News Minute. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  16. Hungama, Bollywood (16 May 2021). "Ravi Teja starrer Khiladi gets a new poster, makers inform that the film will release in theatres only". Retrieved 16 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. "Khiladi: Ravi Teja starrer gets an official release date; Details Inside". Pinkvilla. 11 February 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. Hungama, Bollywood (5 February 2022). "Ravi Teja starrer Khiladi to release in Hindi on February 11, 2022 : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama". Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  19. "'Khiladi' 2 days box office collection : Ravi Teja-starrer fails to set the cash registers ringing". Deccan Herald. 13 February 2022.
  20. "Not even Ravi Teja's charm can save this One!". Times Of India. 11 February 2022.
  21. "Khiladi Movie Review: This bloated film could have been less knotty". Pinkvilla. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  22. "Khiladi movie review: Ravi Teja's heist drama has no adrenaline pumping thrills". Indian Express. 11 February 2022.
  23. Chowdhary, Y. Sunita (11 February 2022). "'Khiladi' movie review: Ravi Teja plays to the gallery". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X.
  24. "Khiladi review: An unappealing mish-mash, with Ravi Teja playing a predictable role". The News Minute. 11 February 2022.
  25. "Salman Khan Acquires Remake Rights Of Telugu Film Arjun dev Khiladi". news18.com. 10 June 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  26. moviespie (10 February 2022). "Ravi Teja Starrer Telugu Khiladi Movie Releases In Hindi, Salman Khan Acquires Remake Rights". Moviespie. Retrieved 11 February 2022.

External links[edit]

Template:Ramesh Varma