Guru (Sundeep Kishan) struggles financially while running a library that was passed down to him by his mother. He also runs a YouTube channel and is desperate to increase its following. He uses the voice of RJ Sam (Faria Abdullah), alters it using AI and manages to give his channel a boost. Furious with him, Sam confronts Guru, but their confrontation soon turns into attraction and eventually love.
Meanwhile, Veeraya Reddy (Sampath Raj) loses a key drive that provides access to a money vault. His lover Sarangi (Magalakshmi Sudarsanan) joins hands with his rival. Guru learns about the money and somehow gets hold of the key. Will Guru attempt to steal the money from the vault? Will Veeraya Reddy stop him?
Analysis
Directed by Jason Sanjay, son of Tamil superstar Vijay, “Sigma” is a template-driven heist thriller. From the very beginning, with characters being introduced through title cards, it becomes clear that the debutant director is following a familiar template rather than bringing anything particularly fresh to the genre. Following an established template is not necessarily a problem, but the dull narration certainly is.
After introducing the characters and establishing the money vault and the key needed to access it, the film shifts its focus to the love track between Sundeep Kishan and Faria Abdullah. This portion is tedious and fails to generate any chemistry. Things get worse with Raju Sundaram’s buffoonery in the guise of a doctor and a comedian’s routine involving “Kavithalu” (poems). Instead of adding energy to the proceedings, these portions slow the film down further.
The supposed twist involving Sampath Raj is hardly exciting. A lot happens in the first half, yet very little of it makes an impact. That is the biggest problem with the film’s writing and narration.
The second half moves into the actual heist, with some action episodes, an item song and an absurd climax. At 2 hours and 25 minutes, the film feels considerably longer because of the sluggish writing and direction.
The Telugu dubbing is another weak link. The Telugu translations of English words are riddled with errors, while some of the dialogue sounds unnatural. For instance, one character uses the phrase “Okatimbabu Koti” to refer to Rs 1.25 crore. Such expressions simply do not sound natural in Telugu. Lines such as “Dope keep dorakadam kastam” also retain a distinctly Tamil flavour rather than sounding like natural Telugu dialogue.
At one point, a character says, “Audience ki edi kavalo adi ivvu” (give the audience what they want). Ironically, the film itself appears unsure about what contemporary audiences expect from a heist drama.
The performances are largely functional. Sundeep Kishan relies on familiar expressions and mannerisms, while Faria Abdullah appears less convincing and seems unsure of the material. Sampath Raj is adequate, but the rest of the cast fails to leave much of an impression.
Thaman’s background score is also fairly routine. The cinematography and production design, however, are neat.
As a writer and director, Jason Sanjay struggles to give “Sigma” the pace, freshness or engaging narration that a heist thriller needs.
Bottom Line
“Sigma” is a formulaic heist thriller that tests your patience more than it entertains. The weak writing, sluggish narration and largely mediocre performances make the film a tedious watch. There is plenty happening on screen, but very little of it creates excitement.