Movie: Saakini Daakini
Rating: 1.75/5
Banner: Guru Films
Cast: Regina Cassandra, Nivetha Thomas, Bhanu Chander, Prudhvi, Sudharshan, Bhadram and others
Music: Mikey McCleary
Cinematography: Richard Prasad
Editor: Viplav Nyshadam
Art: Gandhi Nadikudikar
Fights: Venkat
Producers: D. Suresh Babu, Sunitha Tati, Hyunwoo Thomas Kim
Director: Sudheer Varma
Release Date: Sep 16, 2022
After the successful “Oh Baby”, the same producers bought the remake rights of another Korean film and cast two heroines in the story. Thus came out “Saakini Daakini”.
Let’s find out its merits and demerits.
Story:
Shalini (Nivetha Thomas) is a Telangana girl from rural background. Daamini (Regina Cassandra) is the daughter of two police officers. Shalini and Daamini get selected for the police job. They join the academy for the training.
Initially, Shalini and Daamini don’t get along well with each other. They earn nicknames Saakini and Daakini respectively. One incident brings them together, and they turn into friends. When they see a girl getting kidnapped one night, they go to any lengths to save the girl and unearth a big medical scam.
Artistes’ Performances:
Nivetha Thomas has tried to provide comedy with her Telangana slang delivery and food habits. Her physical appearance hardly warrants a police’s role but she made up for it with her performance. Regina plays her part well.
Bhanu Chander as the in charge of the academy is okay. Bhadram, Prudhvi, Raghu Babu, and Sudharshan get inconsequential parts.
Technical Excellence:
Camera work and background score are worth talking about. Dialogues are functional.
Highlights:
Nivetha Thomas’s comedy
Drawback:
Illogical plot
Boring narrative
Analysis:
Even before the completion of the shooting, director Sudheer Varma walked out of “Saakini Daakini” due to differences with the producer.
Buzz is that another director completed the remaining portion and the post-production. No wonder Sudheer Varma made a wise decision.
This supposed comedy-action drama is originally meant for OTT consumption. The film would have been bearable on the OTT platform but in the theaters, it turned out to be a boring affair.
The film is based on a Korean action drama “Midnight Runners”. The Telugu version swapped the genders of the protagonists. But the biggest problem with this remake is the story itself. The plot is illogical and doesn’t suit our Telugu backdrop.
In the middle of the film, two trainee police officers approach a police station to complain about a girl’s kidnap. But the police officer doesn’t take the case or respond to the kidnap issue. Does such a thing happen in Hyderabad? Why would an IG-level officer scold the trainee officers when they inform about the kidnap over the phone? Would he not alert the police officers? And where in India, Happy Ending (you know the real meaning of it) massage parlors work so publicly and that too at night?
When writers lack basic knowledge such stories get remade.
The film provides some entertainment when Saakini and Daakini quarrel with each other in the training academy. But the rest of the drama is illogical and predictable.
Overall, “Saakini Daakini” is illogical. And a lousy remake of a Korean actioner.
Bottom line: Ignorable
