Raakshasa Review: The Zee5 Kannada web series, featuring Vijay Raghavendra and a remake of Tamil series Vilangu, becomes too mechanical rather than immersive for its own good.
Language: Kannada
Director: Suhan Prasad
Cast: Vijay Raghavendra, Mayuri Kyatari, Mahadev Hadapad
There is always a sense of cautious optimism when a proven thriller gets adapted into another language. On paper, it sounds safe as the story has already worked, the suspense is tested, and the emotional beats are already in place. However, because you already know the thrill, it might become dicey.
Raakshasa, the Kannada adaptation of the Tamil series Vilangu, becomes a reminder that thrillers don’t survive on plot alone. They need atmosphere, restraint, and a deep understanding of tension. And this is precisely where Raakshasa falters.
Well, I, for one, had not seen Vilangu before Raakshasa. I watched it only after finishing the Kannada remake first. However, even as a standalone thriller series, Raakshasa falters in keeping up with the pace and in immersing the audience with its narrative.
At its core, Raakshasa follows a familiar cat-and-mouse chase between law enforcement and a criminal mind, set within a narrative framework that hinges on suspense, layered character motivations, and carefully timed revelations. Set in North Karnataka, it follows SI Hanumata (Vijay Raghavendra) as he begins to uncover several missing persons case. What looks like a crocodile attack slowly unravels to be more.
The original thrived on its simmering tension, grounded realism, and moral ambiguity. The Kannada version, however, struggles to recreate that psychological depth, opting instead for a flatter, more procedural approach. Director Suhan Prasad clearly needed to make it more immersive rather than being clinically perfect in adapting the original and thereby losing its soul.
The writing is where the cracks first begin to show. The screenplay moves from one plot point to the next with mechanical precision, but without emotional weight. Scenes that were meant to unsettle or linger feel hurried, as if ticking boxes rather than building dread. The pauses that allow tension to breathe are replaced by hurried transitions, and the result is a narrative that feels more functional than immersive. In fact, despite the limited time for each episode (roughly 20 minutes) and the twists, the narrative fails to take the audience along.
Performances, too, are uneven. Vijay Raghavendra anchors the series with sincerity, but the material rarely allows him to explore the complexities his role demands. His performance remains earnest, yet constrained by dialogue and staging that rarely dig beneath surface-level conflict. Mahadev Hadapad’s performance as Beera is inconsistent.
The supporting cast is similarly competent, but rarely compelling. No one is particularly bad, but no one truly elevates the material either, leaving the series stuck in a frustrating middle ground.
Visually, Raakshasa adopts a familiar OTT thriller aesthetic with dimly lit interiors, moody backgrounds, and restrained colour grading, but without the atmospheric layering that makes such choices effective. Instead of enhancing the tension, the visual palette often feels generic, blending into the vast sea of crime thrillers that populate streaming platforms today.
What truly weakens Raakshasa is its inability to justify its own existence beyond being a remake. While adaptations often bring cultural specificity or narrative reinterpretation, this series remains overly faithful to the structure of the original without capturing its soul. The emotional undercurrents, ethical dilemmas, and psychological tension that gave Vilangu its identity are diluted here, replaced by a safer, more predictable storytelling approach.
In an era where audiences are increasingly discerning, especially with thrillers, familiarity is no longer enough. Raakshasa is watchable, yes, but also largely forgettable. It neither offends nor excites, landing instead in a narrative limbo where competence becomes its biggest limitation.
Rating- 2 out of 5 stars.
Watch the trailer of Raakshasa here:
The series is streaming on ZEE5.
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