Around the 30-minute mark in Zebrathe film’s protagonist ponders about landing up in trouble purely because of the butterfly effect theory. The early portions of the film, too, are full of promise, talking about how the human tendency to break the written law and find loopholes in a rigorous system is often the root cause of all chaos. Zebra is ambitious not just in terms of its concept, but also how it attempts to bind multiple threads and characters into one topsy-turvy coherent universe that revolves around money and the many ways to make it spin. However, co-writer and director Eeshvar Karthic struggles to effectively build on the premise that drives entirely on chaos.
Despite the story moving at a brisk pace, the chain of events that lead Surya (Satyadev) into the rabbithole of crimes and corruption seem overdrawn. It doesn’t help that the film spends a lot of time on one of Surya’s side-quests that, although crucial in the larger picture, doesn’t keep us gripped on its own. To be fair, the concept of banking frauds is established in a fairly simplistic manner, without making the proceedings too jargon heavy. However, in its attempt to keep this new world simple, Eashvar Karthic forgets to keep interesting. By the time the film hits the interval mark, you realise there are two many characters and developments to follow, and that most of your attention is spent on merely following the events, instead of being thoroughly immersed in them.
Director: Eashvar Karthic
Cast: Satyadev, Priya Bhavani Shankar, Daali Dhananjaya, Satya, Jennifer Piccinato, Sathyaraj
A big drawback of Zebrais that Surya’s arc and journey is familiar, and devoid of any saucy turns or surprises. The audience, then, finds themselves merely following Satya’s actions instead of actively rooting for him. (To his credit, Satyadev performs with a lot of earnestness, staying steady even when the film struggle to hold its ground).
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