Dacoit is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video
Rating: 2.75/5
Winning the audience’s trust is never easy. Very few actors create that feeling where people think, “If it’s his film, the ticket money won’t go to waste.” Adivi Sesh belongs to that category. Films like Kshanam, Evaru, Goodachari and Major clearly show the kind of reputation he has built over the years.
Since Sesh also has a storyteller’s mindset and understands the kind of scripts that suit him, his journey has become even smoother. The story of Dacoit is also written by him. After the massive success of Major, expectations were naturally high. Adding a love-story angle, bringing in Anurag Kashyap, and backing from Annapurna Studios� only increased the buzz around the film.
So, does Dacoit live up to that hype?
Hari (Adivi Sesh) is a prisoner serving a 13-year sentence for murder.
Desperate to escape, he breaks out of jail and plans to flee abroad using a fake passport. But for that, he needs money. To arrange it, he plans a robbery. And for the robbery to work, he needs a driver.
That’s where Saraswati (Mrunal Thakur) enters the story — his former lover, and also the very reason he ended up in prison. Why does Hari choose her as his partner despite their painful past? Why does Saraswati agree to help him? How did their love story begin, and why did it fall apart? And finally, does the heist succeed?
These questions form the rest of the film.
The movie blends crime and romance — two very different genres — and surprisingly, the combination works for the most part. The director manages to maintain a decent balance between both. The first ten minutes focus heavily on Hari and Saraswati’s love story, and honestly, that portion feels a bit dull. But since it becomes the emotional base of the film, viewers need some patience there.
Things pick up once Hari plans his prison escape. The drama around it builds genuine interest. Soon after, there’s an energetic item song where Adivi Sesh tries out some surprisingly lively dance moves for the first time, and the song actually works.
The main hook comes when Hari decides to rob a hospital instead of the usual bank robbery route. That setup feels fresh. The film also revisits the COVID-era atmosphere and touches on corruption and exploitation that happened in hospitals during the pandemic. But revisiting those memories may not work for everyone. The story honestly wouldn’t have lost much even if those portions were avoided.
The logic behind involving Saraswati in the heist is handled reasonably well. The interval twist lands nicely too. By the end of the first half, the robbery plot and Hari’s planning leave a stronger impression than the love story itself.
The second half leans more into emotional territory and tries to turn Dacoit into a deeper romantic drama. Some twists are predictable, but a couple of reveals still manage to surprise. The climax reminds you of old-school Telugu cinema, though it still manages to work emotionally.
One interesting strength is the way the film sets up small details early and pays them off later. A dialogue about a ring that initially feels unnecessary gets a meaningful payoff towards the climax. Moments like these are neatly written.
To be fair, the core story itself is pretty flat, and many twists are easy to guess. But the editing pattern and background score create tension and maintain interest even during predictable scenes. The director uses fragmented cuts, overlapping dialogues, and fast transitions to give ordinary scenes a more gripping feel. These tricks help the film feel more stylish than the actual writing sometimes deserves.
As always, Adivi Sesh shows strength in screenplay structuring. The payoffs are smartly designed. At the same time, a few logic gaps stand out badly. One police officer refuses to hold a gun because he’s wearing a religious garland — which feels silly because profession and faith are two separate things. Also, the story happens during the COVID period, yet the film casually treats ₹2000 notes as active currency even though they had already been withdrawn. It’s surprising to see such careless mistakes in a film made by otherwise detail-oriented creators.
Adivi Sesh hasn’t really done full-fledged romantic roles before, so this feels slightly new for him. At the same time, it looks like he’s slowly trying to move toward a more mass-hero image. Since he appears in almost every scene, the film heavily depends on his presence.
Mrunal Thakur turns out to be a very good choice for Saraswati. She brings emotional believability and sympathy to the role. With someone like Anurag Kashyap in the cast, audiences naturally expect something extraordinary from that character. The role is decent, but not powerful enough for an actor of his stature.
Prakash Raj, Sunil and the rest of the supporting cast do their jobs well, though there aren’t many standout performances.
Technically, the film gets strong support from all departments. The editing style works really well. The background score feels fresh, and the use of the song “Kannepettaro” is impressive. The production values from Annapurna Studios are solid as expected. Casting familiar actors even for small roles helps scenes connect faster with the audience.
In one line, Dacoit is basically an emotional love story wrapped inside a commercial crime drama. It has flaws, predictable moments, and some weak logic, but it still manages to provide enough engaging content to make the ticket price feel worth it.
