Kairam Vaashi reviews KD: The Devil, the Prem-directed Kannada mass masala film starring Dhruva Sarja as Kaalidasa, a naive young man stepping into the world of rowdyism in 1970s Bangalore. Backed by an ensemble that includes Sanjay Dutt, Shilpa Shetty, V. Ravichandran, Ramesh Aravind, Reeshma Nanaiah, and a Sudeep cameo that lands a genuinely massy moment, the film swaps Prem's usual "mother sentiment" for "brother sentiment" — the hero fears his brother and is, oddly enough, a fan of his villain, with clear Rama-Anjaneya, Rama-Lakshmana, and Rama-Bharata parallels woven through. Kairam unpacks why KD works despite the noise — the high-pitch, the tacky VFX, sets that often feel like sets, distracting wigs and all. He credits the screenplay's smart writing touches, William David's spirited camerawork, fully committed performances from Dhruva and Reeshma, and a Prem who feels re-energized after a quiet stretch. From a single-shot action sequence to a machete-versus-umbrella moment in a high-drama theatre scene to a major twist that genuinely lands, Kairam argues the film's innate energy smooths over its bumps and marks a much-needed return to big-scale mass masala filmmaking — for Prem and for the Kannada industry. Watch the full review for the THR India bottomline.
