Rana Naidu follows the titular character, whose father’s return brings back painful memories of the past as well as threatens the peace and happiness of his family. The series is now streaming on Netflix.
Story
Rana Naidu is a fixer for celebrities; his unconventional job entails solving the problems of famous and rich people. Rana and his wife, Naina, live a comfortable life with their two children, Nitya and Ani.
Rana also has two brothers, Tej and Jaffa. Tej used to be a stuntman but now has Parkinson’s disease because of their father. Jaffa, on the other hand, was molested as a child by a god-man and has not been able to fully heal.
When their father, Naga, who went to prison for a murder he claims he did not commit, gets released early, Tej and Jaffa welcome him, but Rana is outrightly hostile.
Rana blames Naga for the death of his sister and the current condition of his brothers. He is not ready to forget the past or forgive him. Rana is determined to send Naga away by any means possible, but Naga wants to be close to his family.
It is a family feud that involves murders, violence, and more. Rana is an expert when it comes to solving other people’s problems, but will he be able to solve his own family problems and deal with his father?
Performances
Rana Daggubati as Rana Naidu is brilliant in the show. He is able to depict his character’s ever-present anger and resentment accurately. When the script requires him to bring out the sadness that lies underneath, like in the scene where he cries in pain after killing his molester, he makes the audience feel for him.
His real-life uncle, Venkatesh Daggubati, as Naga, leaves a long-lasting impression with his Hyderabadi Hindi. While his humor is entertaining, his warnings are effective; his performance gives layers to his character.
Sushant Singh brings a touch of softness to his character, Tej. The audience soon realizes that while Tej is sensible, he can also be dangerous at times.
Abhishek Banerjee’s Jaffa seems like a man haunted by his past. Banerjee’s performance moves the audience because he makes them see the pain that his character could never leave behind.
Unfortunately, the script does not give Surveen Chawla enough space to showcase her talent; she is reduced to an angry and frustrated wife who keeps asking the same questions in the same manner over and over again.
The performances of Ashish Vidyarthi, Gaurav Chopra, and Suchitra Pillai need to be appreciated. They played their parts well and managed to leave a mark in a show with a huge cast.
Positives
The central conflict of the show revolves around the feud between Rana and Naga, and the show manages to craft their scenes in a manner that the audience can feel the tension and intensity whenever they appear on-screen together.
There are several gray characters in the show, and they are still very different from each other. These are not clichéd characters; these characters are unique and they compel the audience to understand them, even when their actions are utterly immoral.
The idea that sexual assault can haunt people for the rest of their lives is depicted in the show. It tries to take a closer look at the extent of damage that it does to the survivors and highlights the fact that sometimes even several years cannot heal a person.
Negatives
For the most part, the show introduces characters and then gets rid of them, making the audience question the purpose that they serve. The plot appears to be scattered for a long time and only comes together toward the end.
The show’s female characters seem insignificant on their own; they seem to be there just to aid the story of the male characters. Be it Naina, Mandira, or Ana, they are present only to serve the male characters from the sidelines.
Verdict
Rana Naidu is full of drama, action, and thrill, but the plot seems all over the place for the most part. While Rana and Venkatesh Daggubati’s chemistry is fantastic, the show could have been better.
There are all kinds of vices in the show that will keep the audience entertained if they accept this family drama as it is without questioning the role of the minor characters and judging their actions that do not serve any purpose.
Also Read: Rana Naidu ending explained: Do Naga and Rana reconcile?
