Asvins review: The first half lets you down, but the second half works big time

Director Tarun Teja comes up with quite an impressive plot in his film Asvins and looks to narrate a horror story in a style that is significantly different from the usual pattern adopted by makers of such films.

While the makers seem to have made a considerable effort to serve something unique and interesting to fans of horror films, the fact remains that only one portion of Asvins works and the other fails miserably in their objective.

Before going into the details, here is the synopsis:

Ashvini Kumaras and Black Tourism

Asvins‘ background is based on mythology. As the title suggests, it revolves around the Hindu Gods of Ashvini Kumaras, also known as Ashvins.

For those who do not know, Ashvini Kumaras are twin Gods who travel by a chariot and are known for their abilities to heal.

As the film begins, we are told that a farmer who lived years ago had two twins. However, the children die and the farmer prays to Ashvini Kumaras to revive them. Pleased with his penance, Ashvini Kumaras revive one of the twins and bring him back to life. They bless the boy and hand over two identical idols to him.

The gods tell the farmer that the idols, which appear like humans but with the heads of horses, are powerful and will ensure that the child will not die in any unnatural way as long as he has it with him.

Soon after their departure, an evil power that knows the significance of the horse idols looks to gain possession of one of them.

It appears to the boy as a human and promises to revive his twin brother if he gives it one of the idols. The young kid, who longs for his twin brother, agrees and hands over one of the idols to the dark power.

With this background information offered, the story shifts to the present day where five YouTubers leave for a mansion on an island in the UK to make a documentary to promote Black Tourism.

Black Tourism is tourists expressing a desire to travel to places historically associated with death and tragedy.

The mansion that they are to document is uninhabited after the death of an archaeologist called Aarthi. What the YouTubers find there is what Asvins is all about.

Attention: Strictly no entry for individuals under 18!
Step into the cinemas to experience the world of Asvins on June 23rd in Cinemas, 18+ only!!!⁰@SVCCofficial @BvsnP @sakthifilmfctry @praveen2000 @iamvasanthravi @sakthivelan_b @taruntejafilm #Asvins #AsvinsonJune23 pic.twitter.com/XQRPlRNakx

— Vasanth Ravi (@iamvasanthravi) June 20, 2023

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A story of two halves

Director Tarun Teja’s Asvins can be described as a film of two halves. While the first half lets down audiences, the second half works big time.

Although the first half begins on a strong note, the plot soon loses steam and evokes boredom. This is because of two factors.

One, the visuals, for the most part, are presented to the viewer from the point of view of the character in the scene. Although interesting at first, this form of presentation turns monotonous after a point and induces an element of boredom.

The second factor that makes you lose interest is the predictable developments.

However, the story picks up pace again in the second half as the pieces begin to fall into place. The makers have something refreshingly new to offer in the second half and look to make up for the lapses in the first half.

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Brilliant performances

Vasanth Ravi, who plays the central character of Arjun, delivers quite a nice performance. There are quite a few shades of grey that he has to portray in the film and he does it with practised ease.

But the performance of actress Vimala Raman, who appears for a brief time in the film, actually takes your breath away.

Coming up with a brilliant performance, she lives her part and puts the element of fear back in your heart. One reason why the second half works better than the first is because of Vimala Raman’s performance.

Another actor who delivers a commendable performance in Asvins is actor Udhayadeep, who plays one of the five YouTubers named Rahul.

Technically, the film is brilliant on almost all counts. Be it the location, the sound, or the visuals, the director couldn’t have asked for more.

The background score of Vijay Siddharth, in particular, is exceptional. Tunes befitting the scene and the mood seem to have been used judiciously and that is one of the reasons why the film manages to make an impact.

The music director must share credit with his sound designers Sachin and Hari for their outstanding work in the film.

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Verdict

In all, Asvins is a reasonably well-made engaging horror thriller that works, if you have the patience to sit through right till the end.

(Views expressed here are personal.)