Sakthi (2011 film)


Sakthi is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language fantasy action film directed by Meher Ramesh, starring Jr NTR and Ileana D'Cruz, with Prabhu, Jackie Shroff, Pooja Bedi, Ali, and Brahmanandam in supporting roles. The film was produced by C. Ashwini Dutt through Vyjayanthi Movies, and the music was composed by Mani Sharma.
The follows Sakthi, a tourist guide who accompanies the home minister's daughter Aishwarya and their friends on a journey across various Indian states. Aishwarya has been unwittingly carrying a magical diamond with her, due to which a vengeful Egyptian woman Faqtooni enlists the help of her younger son Bashim and his henchmen. As they try to capture Aishwarya, Sakthi turns out to be her protector and eventually finds himself getting linked to the diamond and its secrets.
One of the most expensive Telugu-language films, Sakthi was released on 1 April 2011, with the Tamil dubbed version titled Om Sakthi releasing on 2 April 2011. It opened on more than 700 screens worldwide, receiving mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

Faqtooni, an Egyptian woman, vows to seek revenge for the death of her husband Mukhtar and trains her sons Bashim and Raakha. She wants to retrieve a magical Jwalamukhi diamond and a Rudra trident. Her brother Jaffer reveals that Mahadevaraya, the Home Minister of India, possesses the diamond. In order to retrieve it, they target his daughter Aishwarya who goes on a secret trip with her friends, after unwittingly packing the diamond in her bag. In Jaipur, they meet Sakthi, a tourist guide who comes to their rescue when goons trouble them. Mahadevaraya learns of Aishwarya's escape from home and two police officers are assigned to find her. Mahadevaraya requests his former partner Jackie to hand him over the trident in exchange for his entire wealth, but Jackie declines. While in Kashmir, Aishwarya falls for Sakthi after he saves her life. Later, she is kidnapped by Bashim's henchmen but rescued by Sakthi after a fight. Bashim manages to find out they're now heading to Haridwar, where Sakthi comes across the diamond while taking a dip in the Ganges. A sage senses it and informs Mahadevaraya about the cleansing of the diamond and arrival of Aishwarya's protector. The two cops looking for Aishwarya inform them about her presence in Haridwar. While leaving the city, Aishwarya proposes to Sakthi but he declines. Soon, Bashim and his henchmen attack them but Sakthi, revealed to be an undercover agent, protects everyone and captures Bashim after a huge shootout.
On the other hand, Faqtooni tries to retrieve the trident from Jackie but he demands a huge sum. Aishwarya is questioned about the diamond but she doesn't know anything. Sakthi explains to officer Siva, his father, that he went undercover to protect Aishwarya as she was the target of a terrorist group. On the other hand, Raakha is sent to India to rescue Bashim. Aishwarya finds pictures of her in Sakthi's bag, which leads to Sakthi confessing that he loved her from the moment he saw her. Sakthi, along with his parents and Aishwarya, goes to the temple for his birthday and finds the box with the Jwalamukhi and opens it. Siva informs Mahadevaraya and is called to Hampi along with both the diamond and Aishwarya. Raakha attacks the prison and frees Bashim who, having overheard a conversation, tells him Siva is heading to Hampi. Raakha attacks Siva and other officers but is left wounded by Sakthi who gains powers after touching the diamond. At Hampi, Bashim tries to snatch the diamond but is killed by Sakthi with an ancient sword. Proclaiming Sakthi as the protector, the sage explains how Rudra, the protector of a secret Sakthi Peetha, sacrificed his life while protecting his pregnant wife and Mahadevaraya's parents from Mukhtar and his henchmen. Jackie, who was initially known as Janaki Varma, killed Mahadevaraya's parents after being paid by Mukhtar and managed to flee with the Rudra trident. After killing Mukhtar, a dying Sakthi handed over his newborn son to his loyal servant Basava, who sent him away via the river. He was discovered by Siva and his wife and eventually raised by them as Sakthi.
Sakthi retrieves the trident after killing Jackie's henchmen, Jaffer and Jackie himself. However, Sakthi is betrayed and shot by Mahadevaraya's partner Prachanda, who then acquires the trident and hands it over to Faqtooni as she arrives with a resurrected Raakha. Mahadevaraya stabs Prachanda to death, and Raakha knocks him unconscious. Faqtooni forcibly takes the sage and Aishwarya to perform the compulsory rites conducted every 27 years, and as Raakha begins destruction, Sakthi arrives and fights using the trident. Faqtooni is thrown into a deep pit, while an indestructible Raakha is killed after the sage instructs Sakthi to stab Raakha in his eyes, which were implanted from Mukhtar's severed head. Mahadevaraya regains consciousness, while Sakthi places the trident back and walks out with the diamond in his hand, accompanied by Aishwarya and the sage.

Cast

123Telugu.com gave the film 3 stars out of 5, praising the action sequences, songs and cinematography while criticizing the direction, writing and Egyptian episodes.
Radhika Rajamani from Rediff.com gave the film 2 stars out of 5 and found the locales to be well captured, but criticized the Egyptian connection and the second half.
Times of India gave the film 2.5 stars out of 5 and praised the cinematography, Jr. NTR's performance, dance and action sequences but criticized the writing and music.

Box office

Sakthi created a record by opening in all five theaters of the Mangalagiri town of Guntur District. It also created a number of pre-release business records in Andhra Pradesh.
The collections saw a decline in the second week as the film collected a total of INR 15.64 crore in Andhra Pradesh. By the end of its theatrical run, the film collected a total of INR 19.01 crore worldwide.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack, composed by Mani Sharma, was released on 27 February 2011.