'Slum Bala' - gripping crime drama not to be missed (Kannada Film Review)

Film: 'Slum Bala'; Cast: Vijay, Shubha Poonja, Shahsi Kumar, B. Suresha, Dharma, Umashri and others; Director: Sumana Kiththur; Story-Screenplay-Dialoguewriter: Agni Sridhar; Camera: A.C. Mahendar; Music: Arjun; Rating: ***

Kannada film industry is witnessing a plethora of crime movies glorifying gangsters. All these films have an overdose of violence.

'Slum Bala', inspired by Agni Sridharh's much appreciated book 'Daadaagiriya Dinagalu' about the politics, police and underworld connection, will also go down as one more memorable film made in the gangster genre.

Based on the life of a real life gangster Vinayaka Bala, the film directed by journalist Sumana Kiththoor stands out for its realistic approach and refined narration.

Writer-journalist Sridhar, who debuted with award winning film 'Aa Dinagalu', proves his mettle as a writer once again with 'Slum Bala'.

Kiththoor shows a lot of promise in her debut film. She has chosen the best artistes and the technicians too have done a good job. The film sans commercial ingredients like unbelievable action sequences and spectacular songs has quite a few engaging moments.

The story revolves round an innocent young guy Vinayak Bala (Vijay) who climbs the crime ladder to achieve notoriety. His daring acts bring him a super stature in the crime world. In his journey, he is helped by a cop, Shanthakumar (Shashi Kumar), and a politician, Prasad Nayak (Suresh), who wants to win an election at any cost.

Everything was going smoothly till Bala, who lives in slums with his doting mother, falls in love with bar girl Mallige. Bala wants to cement his relations with Mallige (Shubha Poonja) by marrying her, but neither the inspector nor the politician allows him to do so. Their betrayal shatters Bala.

Vijay, the winner of the prestigious state award, shines in the role by delivering a strong performance. Shubha Poonja looks good and natural in her deglamourised role. Aswath, B.Suresha, Umashri, Shashi Kumar, Sathya have complimented the lead actors with their performances.

Music director Arjun has done remarkable job. Mahendar's camera work suits the mood of the film.

'Slum Bala' will appeal to viewers looking for issue-based realistic movies. The narration is authentic and hard hitting.