Review: Hari Hara Veera Mallu: Ambitious But Messy

 

Movie: Hari Hara Veera Mallu Part 1
Rating: 2/5

Cast: Pawan Kalyan, Nidhhi Agerwal, Bobby Deol, Satyaraj, Tanikella Bharani, Sunil, Nasser, Aditya Menon, Kabir Duhan Singh, and others

Director: Jyothi Krishna, Krrish Jagarlanudi

Produced By: Mega Surya Productions

Release Date: 24-07-2025

Story:

Taking place in the 1650s, Hari Hara Veera Mallu tells the story of Veera Mallu (Pawan Kalyan), a Robin Hood-esque character who catches the eye of the King of Kolluru. On a royal mission, Veera tricks the king and sneaks away with Panchami (Nidhhi Agerwal). Later on, Qutub Shah (Dalip Tahil) figures out his cleverness and assigns him a way more important mission: to track down the legendary Koh-i-Noor diamond. Veera agrees and sets off for Delhi, where Aurangazeb (Bobby Deol) has the diamond. The rest of the film concentrates on how personal is this mission for Veera Mallu and what is his backstory.

Performances:

Pawan Kalyan plays the title role and tries to lift the scenes with his presence. He is good in action scenes and does well in a couple of emotional scenes, but besides that, he does not show much impact because of the poor characterization. Nidhhi Agerwal and Bobby Deol make their presence felt, while Satyaraj, Tanikella Bharani, Sunil, Nasser, Aditya Menon, Kabir Duhan Singh, and others are just okay.

What worked for the film:

The initial moments of the first half work well. It has three well-made action scenes: the fight at Machilipatnam port, the battle at Charminar, and the Kushti showdown in Kolluru. All the action episodes are carried out well and bring the impact. MM Keeravaani's background score is superb, and it lifts the good scenes to the next level.

What did not work for the film:

The film's pace slows down a bit in the latter part of it. The narrative wastes time with filler scenes that test the audience's patience. These parts do not add any value to the film, and they bring the tedious feel.

As the second half progresses, it becomes aimless and dragged. The emotional scenes in the backstory fail to make a mark, and the climax, which should have ended with a tense cliffhanger, drags on with a weak action sequence and a pointless sequence of Tornado.

The movie really struggles with its visual effects. The key scenes, like the hill showdown, really take a hit because of the poor CGI that pulls you out of the experience. For a movie this big, the VFX is surprisingly subpar and takes away from some intense scenes.

Hari Hara Veera Mallu Review and Verdict:

Pawan Kalyan's Hari Hara Veera Mallu starts well and delivers some engaging episodes in the first half, capped off by an interesting interval. But the movie totally falls apart in the second half with a pointless storyline alongside terrible VFX and never recovers from the damage.