Karthikeya

Chandoo Mondeti's 2014 Telugu film is set in a village around a temple that has been locked for years. Everyone who tries to open the door is said to meet with something; a young doctor who believes in scientific explanation decides to find the reason. The construction rests on the tension between belief and explanation. The narrative proceeds as though it will tip into the supernatural and in the final section ties to a wholly material account; that choice separates it from similar films. It was made on a low budget and succeeded at the box office without known actors, and was noted as an example of independent thriller-making in Telugu cinema. Nikhil Siddhartha leads. The rhythm is heavy in the first half and quickens in the second. Who it's for: those who like mystery thrillers and low-budget genre cinema. Who it's not for: viewers expecting a supernatural resolution; the film deliberately refuses one.