Amarakavyam (2025) REVIEW ft. Dhanush, Kriti, and Priyanshu

Director Aanand L. Rai returns to familiar territory with Tere Ishk Mein, his third project with Dhanush. This romance pairs Dhanush with Kriti Sanon for the first time, taking us to the ghats of Benaras.

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The film features A.R. Rahman’s soundtrack and has Prakash Raj, Priyanshu Painyuli, and Tota Roy Chowdhury in supporting roles. It plays across India in three languages, diving into love’s messy, complicated side.

What Happens

Meet Shankar—a student leader with serious anger issues. Then there’s Mukti, studying psychology and convinced she can fix violent men through her research.

She picks Shankar as her test case. The plan? Turn this aggressive guy into someone calm and collected. But feelings get in the way, as they always do.

The film jumps between past and present, showing us how these two got tangled up. Benaras becomes more than just a setting—it’s where love gets tested, where emotions run wild, where things fall apart or somehow stay together.

Performances Worth Noting

Dhanush throws himself into Shankar completely. You see the rage bubbling under the surface, but also this desperate need to be loved. He makes you believe in this troubled character.

Kriti Sanon surprised me here. Mukti isn’t just another pretty face with good intentions. She’s complicated, makes questionable calls, and Kriti plays all those shades convincingly. I didn’t expect her to hold her ground this well opposite such a powerful co-star.

Prakash Raj packs emotion into his limited scenes as the father. Priyanshu Painyuli brings warmth as the best friend, someone you’d want in your corner when things get rough.

When It Clicks

The opening half moves smoothly. Rai knows how to balance heavy drama with moments that let you breathe. A few sequences really stuck with me—that proposal scene where everything shifts, the bar confrontation building tension.

Rahman’s songs flow naturally into the story. “Jigar Thanda” hits different emotionally. “Chinnaware” feels like a love letter to Dhanush’s Tamil identity. I appreciated how the music never feels forced or inserted just for the sake of it.

The camera work captures Benaras honestly. No overdone romanticism, just the city as it is. Costumes tell you about the characters—Mukti’s polished look versus Shankar’s raw, street vibe. Even the fights look real, not choreographed to death.

Where It Stumbles

After intermission, things get messy. The story tries fitting too much in, losing the clarity it had earlier. Plot turns happen fast without enough setup, leaving you scrambling to keep up.

Three hours is pushing it. Some scenes add nothing, just making you check the time. The ending stretched my patience—emotional yes, but could’ve said the same thing in less time.

That famous title song? Barely there. I came expecting to hear it properly, walked out feeling shortchanged. Also, character choices in the later parts don’t always make sense, which breaks the emotional connection.

What People Are Saying

Industry sites gave it middle-range ratings—around 3 out of 5. Solid performances got praised everywhere. The long runtime and confused second half? Major complaints across the board.

Social media had strong reactions. People called it intense, emotionally draining in the best way. The climax got lots of love. Dhanush and Kriti’s pairing worked for most viewers.

But length became the common gripe. Even folks who loved the performances wished someone had cut 30 minutes. The incomplete title track frustrated Rahman fans too.

Final Thoughts

Tere Ishk Mein aims high but doesn’t quite nail the landing. Rai creates powerful individual moments throughout. When the film focuses on just two people falling apart and coming together, it works.

The lead actors carry this film. Without Dhanush and Kriti going all in, this would’ve fallen flat. They make broken, difficult people worth caring about. That’s not easy to pull off.

Everything looks and sounds right—music, visuals, atmosphere. But the script needed another pass, maybe cutting 20-30 minutes. If you liked Rai’s earlier romantic films or don’t mind longer runtimes, there’s enough here worth seeing.

The performances alone make it theater-worthy. Just prepare for some pacing issues in the second half and bring patience for those slow stretches.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars