'Pepe' movie review: Bogged down by blood and gore

‘Pepe’ explores an age-old conflict between two groups in a fictional village set in Karnataka.

There is a stream. The privileged upper caste reside on one side of the stream. A group of marginalised communities migrate to the village and settle on the other side. While the upper caste initially exploits the oppressed, soon enough a leader emerges among them. This is where the conflict begins.

At its core, ‘Pepe’ is an interesting story with good intent. However, the treatment of the film with the idea of projecting the protagonist as a mass hero, pulls it down.

The film begins with the killing of Dharma, Pepe’s (Vinay Rajkumar) father. The reason for his death remains a mystery. However, things seem fishy — Dharma who belongs to an oppressed caste marries Sunitha (Aruna Balraj) from a Brahmin family. Sunitha’s father has refused to accept the couple for years. Pepe spends half of his life trying to find answers about his father’s death, and on this journey, he goes on a rampage killing almost every person who is introduced on screen.

But, not all intent is lost. The movie has a few redeeming points. Pepe’s love interest (and cousin) Sindhu (Kaajal Kunder) is an interesting character. Most films that deal with caste, even ‘Kaatera’ for that matter, feature an educated upper caste Brahmin woman who tries to question the prejudices and restrictions set by her community. Sindhu plays the same role
here. The film’s most interesting scenes and dialogues involve her.

When Sindhu returns from a meat market after meeting Pepe, her mother is shown pouring buckets of water over her head. Her grandfather mutters about how the family has been following certain rituals (madi mailige) for generations. To which she breaks into an argument with him. In another interesting scene, in a fit of rage she blurts out harsh truths about the family. In response, her grandfather pulls her into the house and physically abuses her. She smirks and says she is menstruating and how by touching her, he has broken the rules he is so proud of.

Unfortunately, these interesting visuals and powerful dialogues are diluted by blood and gore. Shreelesh S Nair’s ‘ambitious’ project ends at this unsatisfying note.