They Call Him OG (Ojas Gambheera) is director Sujeeth’s unapologetic love letter to his idol, Pawan Kalyan, crafting a stylish, high-octane action drama set in the gritty 1990s Mumbai underworld. The film follows Ojas Gambheera, a samurai-trained gangster who returns from a long exile when the ‘adopted’ family of his mentor, Satya Dada (Prakash Raj), is threatened by the ruthless Omi Bhau (Emraan Hashmi). The story is a familiar one—a messiah figure returning to save the day—and while its unique origin story rooted in Japan and the martial arts angle add a distinct aesthetic, the overall narrative is weak and highly predictable.
Pawan Kalyan is undoubtedly the main draw, dominating the screen with unmatchable swag, style, and attitude. His performance in the action sequences—particularly the introduction, the high-voltage interval block, and the police station sequence—is a treat for his fans, bringing back flashes of his vintage action hero persona. However, this intense focus on the star often comes at the expense of layered storytelling. Many pivotal characters, including those played by Sriya Reddy and Priyanka Mohan, feel underwritten, and even the clash between Kalyan and Emraan Hashmi, in his Telugu debut, lacks the desired intensity, with Hashmi appearing wasted in a token villain role with limited scope.
The KGF Hangover and Repetitive Elevations
A significant hurdle for OG, and many recent large-scale South Indian action films, is the lingering influence of the KGF franchise. The success of that film has seemingly solidified a template where the protagonist’s elevation scenes—replete with stylized slow-motion shots, mass-y background characters describing the hero’s mythos in awe, and scenes designed purely for fan worship—have become boring and repetitive. While these moments are guaranteed to draw cheers from the core audience, for a regular viewer, they feel like an algorithmic setup that over-prioritizes spectacle over genuine emotional connection or story progression. OG is so focused on building the larger-than-life legend of Ojas Gambheera through these constant ‘hype’ sequences that it neglects to build any real tension or empathy for his struggles or personal loss, making the emotional subplots feel contrived and formulaic.
Lacking Freshness Compared to Good Bad Ugly
The film’s narrative deficiency is highlighted further when compared to other recently released star vehicles, particularly Ajith Kumar’s commercially successful Good Bad Ugly. While both films belong to the ‘retired gangster forced to return’ sub-genre and are heavy on fan service, OG delivers nothing much fresh in terms of story or innovative screenplay. Good Bad Ugly, despite its own set of flaws and mixed reviews regarding narrative balance, was perceived by audiences as a much better entertainer with a sharper commercial screenplay that effectively reinvented the star’s mass persona for modern audiences, ultimately proving to be a highly successful outing at the box office. OG, on the other hand, risks feeling like a gorgeous retread of familiar tropes that have been executed more compellingly, or at least more entertainingly, elsewhere.
Technical Grandeur vs. The Music Score
Technically, They Call Him OG is a visual feast. Cinematographers Ravi K. Chandran and Manoj Paramahamsa deliver superb, vibrant visuals, perfectly capturing the moody, gritty ambiance of the Mumbai setting. The production design is first-rate, and the film boasts a slick, polished aesthetic.
However, the music department presents a mixed bag. Thaman’s background score is undeniably a pillar of the film, often in “rampage mode” and successfully elevating several sequences to an exhilarating level, proving to be the film’s consistent mainstay. Nevertheless, when compared to the celebrated and often boundary-pushing background scores of Anirudh for his recent big-star films, Thaman’s work here, while energetic and effective, is merely “okay” on the broader scale. It’s custom-made to be a hit with Telugu mass audiences, but it lacks the universal, iconic resonance that a stronger film and score could achieve. While it works brilliantly to mask the narrative shortcomings, it doesn’t quite stand on its own as a masterpiece.
Verdict
They Call Him OG is, at its core, a mass-market spectacle that succeeds in its primary goal: showcasing Pawan Kalyan in a powerful, stylish avatar that his fans have long waited for. The action sequences and the star’s charisma are the film’s undeniable high points. However, a thin, predictable storyline, underdeveloped supporting characters, and an over-reliance on the now-tired formula of constant protagonist elevations inherited from the post-KGF action films, prevent it from becoming a genuinely great film. While it is a must-watch for fans eager to see their favorite star in full glory, the film’s lack of novelty in story and execution makes it a decent, but ultimately average, watch for the regular moviegoer.
CINEMA SPICE RATING: ★★½ (2.5/5)