Pushpa 2 - The Rule

 Neither a wildfire nor a fire. Just a flower. A worthy flower for a 20-minute sequence and a smell-less one for 3 hours!

Story without soul. Characterization without essence. Emotions without relatability. Simply put, a wasted opportunity and a disappointing sequel. Now I understand why Sukumar said he did not have a story when he first narrated the sequences to Arjun.

Part 3 is announced and I wonder if the makers are planning to go from "international" to "interstellar", to depict the rampage!

The protagonist lives through the story to gain respect, but it seems the direction-department mistook respect for money; money earned through semi-vulgar scenes, mindless elevations, and a flaw-filled storyline.

Cake-taking scenes being, 2000 tons of wood getting shifted as a mere 100 bullock carts, as well as wishing for a daughter post conceiving. The director is said to be from a mathematics and physics background, but in this movie neither maths nor science is respected. Let alone respecting the audience, with a 3 hour 20 minute ride without knowing where it's headed.

On a lighter note, if it takes only 500 crores to change the CM, instead of making this movie with 500 crores of budget they could have changed the CM itself, which would have heavily benefited the fans and many more in the state!

Music is the next level mishap except one song, and the picturization of that song made me wish I never watched it.

Arjun got a national award for the film's first installment, which showed a commoner's successful rise to the top. But this time round, the demigod has failed to rule. Clearly.

All in all, not an impressive watch. And definitely not worthy of the hiked ticket prices or its IMAX or 3D releases! Looks like the makers had to gain as much money as they could, before the word of mouth starts spreading. Box office records are on one side, the makers know that they haven't produced a deserving sequel, to the humongous phenomenon that Pushpa created three years ago!

This is an honest perspective, straight from the heart of a cinema-lover, with all respect to the efforts put in by the entire cast and crew of the film. Feeling sorry about the way the end credits were designed, I bet anyone could read a single name out of the long list that escaped in a fast forward mode!