Gultoo is a 2018 Indian Kannada language cyber-thriller film written and directed by Janardhan Chikkanna and scored by Amit Anand,[1] released by Vivid Films. It stars Naveen Shankar and Sonu Gowda along with Rangayana Raghu and Avinash. Shanti Sagar is the film's cinematographer.[2]

Gultoo
Theatrical Poster
Directed byJanardhan Chikkanna
Screenplay byJanardhan Chikkanna, Avinash Lakshmaiah
Story byJanardhan Chikkanna
Produced byVivid Films
Starring
CinematographyShanthi Sagar H G
Edited byBharath M C
Music byAmit Anand
Production
company
Vivid Films
Release date
  • 30 March 2018 (2018-03-30)
Running time
127 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageKannada

Plot

edit

Alok Naveen Shankar) is an orphan who gains popularity in his college by hacking an online movie booking website, enabling his seniors to watch a movie as part of a ragging task. After college, he and his friend Aasthi (Ram Dhanush) stay together where Alok works as a Computer Science trainer in a Computer Institute where he falls in love with Pooja (Sonu Gowda). Pooja is later revealed to be an undercover officer of the Indian Intelligence Bureau. She seduces and sleeps with Alok to collect the details and password of his computer. Later with the help of Phaneesh (Pawan Kumar), a techie, she tries to pin Alok, who turns out to be the prime suspect in the theft of the Sudhar data from the storage centre.

Cast

edit

Production

edit

Casting and filming

edit

Shankar's entry into Gultoo was through association with college batchmate and director Janardhan Chikkanna.[3]

Marketing

edit

Multiple posters were created for the film during its release. Director Janardhan Chikkana told The New Indian Express that "there was a producer-pitch trailer, in which every actor wore glasses with round frames, and this became a highlight".[4]

Soundtrack

edit
Gultoo
Soundtrack album by
Amit Anand
Released2018
Recorded2017
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length18:28
LabelVivid Films and Divo
ProducerAmit Anand, Hriday Goswami

Amit Anand composed the score and songs for the film. The lyrics for the songs were written by Jayanth Kaikini, Kiran Kaverappa and Anoop Ramaswamy Kashyap.

Track list
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Saalaagi"Anoop Ramaswamy KashyapSaindhavi, Deepak Doddera04:03
2."VTU We love you"Kiran KaverappaRaghu Dixit, Ankna Arockiam05:32
3."Neenondu Ashcharya"Jayanth KaikiniEesha Suchi, Deepak Doddera04:05
4."Kadalaache"Anoop Ramaswamy KashyapSupriya Lohith, Raghuram03:51
5."Kaanada Preethi"Anoop Ramaswamy KashyapJasmine Munns, Amit Anand01:01

Critical response

edit

The film opened to positive reviews from critics upon theatrical release. Writing for The News Minute, Rakesh Mehar praised the film, saying that “it comes as a bit of a surprise to see Sandalwood pick up on the topic of Aadhaar and data theft so quickly.”[5] Rating the movie 3.5 out of 5, Sunayana Suresh from The Times of India says “The freshness in the narrative and the extensive research show that director Janardhan Chikkanna is someone to watch out for.”[6] “Gultoo has the elements of a musical-romance and a thriller. But it is spread out in the form of a tragicomedy – a tragicomedy because the viewers are left scratching their heads at the blatant truth staring at them and applauding the makers’ vision at the same time" quoted The First Post.[7] Deccan Chronicle said that “amidst all sorts of smart ‘leaks’ which has rocked the nation, raising big questions over the safety of all our personal data, here comes a perfect infotainment revolving around one such 'leak’ from another engineer turned director who makes an impressive mark, hacking into a sensible tale in his debut venture.”[8] Prakash Upadhyaya from IB Times states that “It is a new-age movie that deals with data theft and exposes the way our data is being mined for money. It tries to showcase how our every single moment is recorded and has a price on the internet. In short, the movie shows how technology can bring misery to our lives but doesn't take a stand on whether tech is good or bad.”[9]

References

edit
  1. ^ "Gultoo promises a new face of crime". The Indian Express. 5 September 2017.
  2. ^ "TOI on Gultoo Trailer". The Times of India. 3 April 2017.
  3. ^ "Gultoo can't be found in dictionaries: Debutant Naveen Shankar". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Gultoo is on crime and privacy: Janardhan Chikkanna". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  5. ^ "'Gultoo' review: This unusual thriller is a rare find in Kannada cinema". The News Minute. 30 March 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  6. ^ "Gultoo Movie Review, Trailer, & Show timings at Times of India", The Times of India, retrieved 21 May 2018
  7. ^ "Gultoo movie review: Janardhan Chikkanna's potboiler feels relevant in times of Aadhar and Facebook data breach". Firstpost. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Gultoo movie review: An engaging 'infotainment'". Deccan Chronicle. 30 March 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
  9. ^ Upadhyaya, Prakash. "Gultoo movie review: An eye-opening new-age entertainer". International Business Times, India Edition. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
edit