Matka
Avinash Ramachandran
Indian Express
Varun Tej anchors a meandering film that says a lot but conveys little
Varun Tej is the epicentre of this sprawling saga that wants to be a lot but ends up becoming a middling shadow of what it could have been
A young boy comes to a new city. The city is unkind to him and his mother. He makes a promise that the city will know of his name… soon. A few years later, he goes on to make such a big name that Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is forced to intervene. Then, the antagonists and the system decide to take on the one man who wanted to rule it all. This is the story of KGF. Incidentally, this is also the story of Varun Tej’s latest film, Matka.
Matka
Sangeetha Devi Dundoo
The Hindu
A sincere Varun Tej cannot salvage this boring drama
Director Karuna Kumar’s Telugu film ‘Matka’ scores in its attention to the period setting but falls way short of leveraging its potential to be a soaring drama
How does a business venture that does not require much investment work, a character wonders in director Karuna Kumar’s Telugu film Matka. We sell hope and buy people’s trust, explains the protagonist (Varun Tej as Vasu) whose character is inspired by gambler Ratan Khatri, also known as the ‘matka’ king. His statement and the scenes on a train that precede it, showing the potential for gambling and how it can turn ordinary citizens into addicts, perk up an otherwise predictable narrative.