Director: Goutham
Cast: Venkatesh, Asin, Saleem Baig, Rajesh, Ravi, Vamsi, Yana Gupta

If you are one of those who enjoys flicks of the ‘cop-kills-don’ genre, watching Gharshana could be an electrifying experience.

Hitting the silverscreen at a time when the Telugu film industry is busy weaving mushy romantic tales, Gharshana is about an encounter specialist who is driven to the edge of sanity by a gangster and his henchmen.

Though Gharshana lacks the intensity of its Tamil original ‘Kakka..Kakka’, it, nevertheless, has moments that would keep you at the edge of your seat.
The story revolves around Deputy Commissioner of Police Ramachandra (Venkatesh), an extrovert who speaks only with his revolver.

He succeeds in bumping off all the notorious gangsters except Das, an extortionist.
And, before he takes on Das, Ramachandra is transferred to a nondescript post.
He keeps his gun aside for a while as he falls head over heels in love with Maya (Asin), a school teacher.

By the time the two finish singing a duet, Ramachandra is back in the crime branch and has been entrusted with the task of stopping Das.

Accordingly, Das is shot dead. Ramachandra and his men smile with a feeling that the underworld has been silenced, but they soon realise they have left out Panda (Saleem Baig), a gangster more ruthless than his slain brother Das.
The second half of the film is all about how Panda makes life miserable for Ramachandra and his men.

Venkatesh, who had failed to woo audiences in his earlier films Surya IPS and Super Police, in which he donned the khaki, is quite impressive in Gharshana.
His physique matches the role, but he has not completely succeeded in removing the smile on his face, which at times seems to be unnecessary.

Asin looks good, but fails to live up to Jyothika’s histrionics in Kakka..Kakka.
Saleem Baig as Panda is menacing, but his voice-dubbing is pathetic. Yana Gupta does an item number.

Narration, despite being different in style, is slow at times.
The second half of the movie keeps you engrossed, but the climax scene is a let-down.

Cinematographer Rajshekar could have done a better job behind the camera.
The musical score by Haris Jayraj is good.

Gharshana may not run to packed houses in rural centres, but will probably be liked by those who are used to Hollywood action flicks.