Euphoria Movie Review: After the notorious failure of Shaakuntalam, director Gunasekhar takes a sharp turn with Euphoria, a grounded, youth-centric social drama that moves away from the large-scale, VFX-heavy spectacles he was previously known for. The result is a film that is undeniably sincere in its ambitions.
At the center of the film is a bright young woman, played by Sara Arjun, who dreams of passing the civil services exam. Her world falls apart after she falls into the trap of substance abuse following a fateful party. Along with his story runs another painful thread. Bhumika Chawla plays a mother who watches helplessly as her own son destroys himself through drugs. Together, these two arcs paint a disturbing picture of how addiction, crime, and moral decay are tearing families apart in modern urban India. The film does not shy away from touching on sensitive topics such as violence against women, child protection laws and the growing menace of drugs in the city.
This is a movie with an iron back. He chooses a position on each issue he raises and never deviates from it, neither for commercial convenience nor for the comfort of the audience. The writing is sharp and loaded with punchy dialogue that lands like a punch, particularly in the courtroom and confrontation sequences.
Opening time is when Gunasekhar is at his best. The pacing is tight, the tension builds effectively, and viewers are drawn into the world without much setup. What really sets Euphoria apart from other message-based films is how it handles the idea of second chances. We’ve all heard the saying that everyone deserves a second chance, this movie takes that cliché by the throat and forces you to confront what it really looks like in practice. When the person seeking redemption is someone who has committed the unforgivable. When the victim has to exist in the same world as their abusers and is given another chance to live. Gunasekhar offers no easy answers. It shows us the confusing and heartbreaking reality of what redemption costs and who pays the price. Watching each character navigate their second chance forms the gripping backbone of the second half and adds layers to the film that really move you. You’ll find yourself questioning your own beliefs about justice, forgiveness, and whether some lines, once crossed, can ever be redrawn.
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A significant portion of the film’s dialogue is based on parental responsibility, and surprisingly, Gunasekhar doesn’t take the lazy route of putting all the blame on the mother, an old trope that Indian cinema has relied on for decades. Here, parents are equally responsible. Absent fathers, emotionally unavailable fathers, fathers who throw money at their children instead of time, the film points the finger in all the directions that deserve it. It’s a welcome and long-overdue change that adds real substance to the conversation the film is trying to start.
The performances in all areas are exceptional. Newcomer Vignesh Gavireddy remains impressive in his debut, carrying the emotional weight of his character with surprising maturity. Through his character, we witness the complete collapse of a young life enslaved by drugs. We see the highs that seduce him, the crushing lows that follow, and the slow descent from boy to convict. Gunasekhar not only shows us this journey; it makes us feel every flash of emotion along the way. The despair, the shame, the brief moments of clarity drowned out by the next dose. For a debut performance, Gavireddy carries this devastating arc with a maturity that is nothing short of remarkable. You not only see his destiny unfold, but you live it with him.
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Bhumika Chawla’s return to Tollywood seems significant here; she brings a quiet devastation to her role as a broken mother. Sara Arjun, riding on the success of Dhurandhar, leaves a strong impression in her crucial role and the audience clearly connects with her presence. Gautham Vasudev Menon, who plays the investigating police officer, does complete justice to his role: measured, intense and convincingly authoritative. Kaala Bhairava deserves a special mention, its music gives the film an avant-garde, almost hallucinatory texture, which matches the theme perfectly.
Most of the film is presented with almost documentary realism, without unnecessary melodramas or Tollywood-style nonsense. Gunasekhar lets uncomfortable truths breathe on the screen without diluting them to make them palatable. This is both the film’s greatest strength and the reason why some viewers may find the length demanding. At two and a half hours, it feels long in places. But every scene that might test your patience is in service of something essential, whether it’s exploring parental responsibility in a world that’s moving too fast for families to keep up, or showing how thin the line between innocence and destruction has become for today’s generation. There are also times when the social messages become a bit preachy, which is a trap that many message-based Telugu films fall into. Make no mistake, this movie will make you deeply uncomfortable. And that’s the point.
Gunasekhar proves that he still has the ability to create powerful cinema when he boils it all down to raw storytelling, strong performances, and a message that matters. Flawed in its rhythm, perhaps, but brave in its conviction.
Cast of the movie Euphoria: Bhumika Chawla, Vignesh Gavireddy, Sara Arjun
Euphoria film director: Gunasekhar
Euphoria Movie Ratings: 4 stars