The Kannada movie Tagaru starring Shivarajkumar is sure to leave an indelible impression on your mind, but, mostly for the wrong reasons. The action-packed film directed by Duniya Soori has a strong storyline with Shivarajkumar playing the role of a gritty cop by the name of Shiva. However, the sloppy screenplay and non-linear narrative makes it a tiring watch.
Tagaru is an out and out gangster drama with a dark and violent undertone. There is not one light-hearted moment throughout the film. The plot revolves around three atrocious criminals named Dolly, Cockroach and Chittaranja, all of whom Shiva takes head on.
Tagaru starts off with a gripping shot of water turning into blood. This is followed by snippets of gruesome murders and rapes that the gangsters indulge in. Tagaru Shiva is then seen kidnapping a woman and driving away to a far-off unknown place. While an element of suspense is built in the minds of the audience, it fizzles out very soon. Repetitive scenes as well as a string of flashbacks create mayhem and put an end to your imagination.
The first 45 minutes of the film feature three songs – none enjoyable unless you are a hardcore Shivarajkumar fan.
The timeline of Tagaru seems skewed, since there are numerous intertwined scenes, one after another, putting together a loosely woven screenplay. Some of the action sequences are definitely overwhelming, but it's the bad cinematography that overshadows the stunts.
Shivarajkumar brings out the dexterity and lion-heartedness associated with his character. The antagonist Dhananjay, who goes by the name of Dolly in the film, looks outrageously wicked and delivers a great performance. The heroines Manvitha Harish and Bhavana Rao play their parts in Tagaru with ease.
Tagaru has a series of blood-spilling fights, violent assaults and scandalising visuals, which seem powerful in the beginning but lacks lustre in the later half.
In a nutshell, if you aren’t a fan of Shivarajkumar’s style of acting and dialogue delivery, there’s nothing in Tagaru for you.
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