| Name | Return of the Dragon |
| Release Date | Feb 21, 2025 |
| Genre | Drama , comedy |
| Language | Telugu |
| Run Time | 155 minutes |
Synopsis
Dragon (Pradeep Ranganathan) is a carefree engineering student who fails 48 subjects and faces a brutal breakup with his girlfriend (Anupama Parameswaran). Frustrated with his failures, he uses fake certificates to land a high-paying software job and plans to marry a wealthy girl to settle down in life. However, his past catches up with him when his college principal (Mysskin) uncovers the fraud and gives him an ultimatum—either return to college, earn a legitimate degree, or face legal consequences.
Forced back to college, Dragon must confront his past mistakes and rebuild his life the right way. As he struggles with academic pressure, personal dilemmas, and emotional conflicts, he learns valuable lessons about honesty, perseverance, and self-worth. The film showcases his redemption journey in a light-hearted yet meaningful manner, with moments of comedy, romance, and drama.
Return of the Dragon IBomma Review
Performances
Pradeep Ranganathan delivers a brilliant performance, effectively portraying a reckless youth who learns life’s lessons the hard way. His body language and expressions resonate well with young audiences, making his character relatable and engaging.
Anupama Parameswaran, while impactful in the breakup scenes, has limited screen time. Kayadu Lohar, as the hero’s fiancée, has a more substantial role and delivers a strong performance. Mysskin, as the strict yet fair college principal, is a major highlight and adds depth to the film.
Technical Aspects
- Direction: Ashwath Marimuthu brings another unique concept, but the film could have been tighter with better pacing.
- Music: Leon James’ background score elevates crucial moments, even though the songs are average.
- Cinematography: Selvakumar S.K. captures both the IT corporate and college environments beautifully.
- Editing: The film feels a bit stretched, and a shorter runtime would have improved the overall impact.
Positives:
✔ Unique and relatable storyline
✔ Pradeep Ranganathan’s engaging performance
✔ Strong climax and emotional depth
Negatives:
✖ Slow-paced first half
✖ Some unnecessary scenes dragging the runtime
✖ Secondary characters could have been better developed
Cast & Crew
Cast
- Dragon (D. Raghavan): Pradeep Ranganathan
- Dragon’s Ex-Girlfriend (Keerthy): Anupama Parameswaran
- College Principal: Mysskin
- Pallavi: Kayadu Lohar
- K. S. Ravikumar
- Gautham Vasudev Menon
- Vj Siddhu
- Harshath Khan
- George Maryan
- Mariam George
- Indhumathy Manigandan
- Thenappan
Crew
- Director: Ashwath Marimuthu
- Producers: Kalpathi S Aghoram, Kalpathi S Ganesh, Kalpathi S Suresh
- Music Director: Leon James
- Cinematographer: Niketh Bommi
- Editor: Pradeep E Ragav
- Creative Producer: Archana Kalpathi
- Story: Ashwath Marimuthu, Pradeep Ranganathan.
- Screenplay and Dialogues: Ashwath Marimuthu.
- Action: Vicky & Dilip Subbarayan.
Return of the Dragon IBomma Budget
“Return of the Dragon” made waves even before its theatrical release, and a key factor in its success was its managed budget. The film was produced with a reported budget of ₹37 crore. This figure allowed for a strong cast, including Pradeep Ranganathan, Anupama Parameswaran, and Mysskin, as well as a skilled crew led by director Ashwath Marimuthu and music director Leon James. Notably, the movie had already recouped its entire production costs through the sale of satellite and OTT rights. This financial strategy ensured the film’s profitability, highlighting the effectiveness of careful budgeting and pre-release revenue generation.
Songs & Music
| Sl. No | Song Name | Artist | Runtime |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | “Campus Anthem” | Leon James, Arivu | 3:45 |
| 2 | “Vaazhkai Shortcut” | Sid Sriram | 4:12 |
| 3 | “Heartbreak Express” | Jonita Gandhi | 3:58 |
| 4 | “Fake Success” | Anirudh Ravichander | 4:05 |
| 5 | “Redemption” | Leon James | 3:50 |