Telugu cinema has repeatedly turned to the horror-comedy genre to deliver crowd-pleasers. Often, a handful of genuinely funny stretches have been enough to carry narratives that are otherwise uneven. As long as the laughs land, audiences have been willing to overlook the rest. Director Merlapaka Gandhi returns to this familiar template, this time throwing K-dramas and K-pop into the mix in the hope of lending the genre a fresh twist.

The premise of Korean Kanakaraju is intriguing. The ashes of a Korean man somehow end up in an unassuming bar in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district. Through a bizarre turn of events, Kanakaraju (Varun Tej) accidentally mixes alcohol with the ashes, drinks it and becomes possessed.

What follows is a tug-of-war between Kanakaraju and the Korean spirit inhabiting him. The Anantapur setting also allows the film to tap into the region's association with a major Korean automobile manufacturer, tying into Chaitra's (Ritika Nayak) dream of visiting Korea and her fascination with K-pop and K-dramas. Before long, the story attempts to bring together Rayalaseema machismo and Korean gang wars, with Kanakaraju's hapless friend Kistappa (Sathya) caught in the crossfire.

Korean Kanakaraju (Telugu)

The film takes over 45 minutes to arrive at its central conflict. That would not have been a problem had the opening stretch been engaging. Instead, Kanakaraju’s introduction, his family dynamics, the romance and the local rivalries are all written in a generic fashion, padded further by songs that barely leave an impression.

Korean Kanakaraju finally comes alive once Kanakaraju is possessed. A few pre-interval sequences, particularly those set in a factory, are handled with flair. Animal lovers, however, may find the subplot involving a pet dog named Jung Kook and its fate difficult to stomach. The film plays it for morbid humour, but it may not work for everyone.

The narrative gathers momentum once the action shifts to Korea and Kanakaraju, Chaitra and Kistappa begin to understand what they are up against. It helps, of course, if you don’t stop to wonder why the Korean police are nowhere to be seen.

Beyond a handful of twists, the gangster drama remains largely predictable. A comic subplot featuring VTV Ganesh and child actor Revanth also fails to land.

The standout moment in the latter half is a genuinely funny sequence involving Kistappa and his father (Muralidhar Goud), whose video call is repeatedly disrupted by poor mobile connectivity.

Beyond that, the film overstays its welcome. The visual effects are unconvincing, and the VFX-heavy climax is neither imaginative nor exciting in execution.

Korean Kanakaraju leans heavily on Sathya’s comic timing, and he delivers, as always. But there is only so much heavy lifting he can do when the writing lets him down. Varun Tej is sincere as a man caught between two personalities, but the film never gives us enough reason to invest in his predicament. Ritika Nayak does what she can with a limited role, while Srinivas Avasarala makes a brief appearance that adds a touch of gravitas.

By the time the drawn-out climax finally ends, it is hard to care about either the man possessed, or the one leaving destruction in his wake.

Published - August 07, 2026 02:19 pm IST