DNK

A relatively foolproof formula for making underdog stories work is to cast emerging faces as the leads. The connection is instant, and the audience tends to root for them. YouTuber-turned-actor Mouli Tanuj Prashanth made the most of that advantage with his feature debut, Little Hearts, a year ago. When the same actor tries to punch above his weight, outsmarting his kith and kin at every turn in his sophomore outing, DNK (Donga Naa Koduku), a crime comedy, it can leave viewers with mixed feelings. DNK, marking Sreenu Kambala’s Telugu directorial debut, is desperate to impress. The low-stakes crime caper is a hotchpotch of several Telugu hits over the years, tailored specifically for an Instagram Reels/YouTube Shorts-consuming audience. So much so that there is barely any breathing space between its dialogues or plot turns. The pitch is high, silence is rare, and every second sequence feels like the director’s attempt to prove himself a cinephile.