Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
The 2026 action-horror-comedy ‘Korean Kanakaraju’ follows an urn that comically travels all the way from Korea to the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh, where a young man called Kanakaraju (Varun Tej) unwittingly consumes the ashes inside and gets possessed by a malevolent spirit. And yes, he becomes Korean Kanakaraju, suddenly speaking the foreign tongue with ease, which one thug hilariously mistakes for Malayalam.
While I don’t watch a lot of Tollywood films, horror-comedy is my favorite genre, so the novel premise of a “Rayalaseema youth being possessed by a Korean ghost” sounded fun as hell. But here’s the biggest problem with Korean Kanakaraju: the ghost doesn’t even appear until more than 40 minutes into the film! That’s just cheating the fans who came for the wild ghostly plot.
In fact, in something that could easily make it into IMDb’s “Crazy Credits” section, the opening title sequence of Korean Kanakaraju rolls in after more than half the film is already over. That would’ve been hilarious if the movie had been consistently fun or entertaining until then. It’s not. While Korean Kanakaraju does have some funny moments, the creators’ decision to give precedence to violent action and a romantic subplot about Kanakaraju falling for a young working woman called Chaitra (Ritika Nayak), instead of the supernatural stuff, is a massive test of patience.
Chaitra is a bit of a Koreaboo. She works for a South Korean automobile manufacturer, randomly says “annyeo” to people instead of greeting them with a simple “hi,” and has a dog she’s named after a very popular K-pop star, which was kinda funny, although I am not sure if the idol’s fans will appreciate the joke. She meets Kanakaraju at his photographer friend Kishtappa’s (actor Satya) studio when she comes for a visa photo and he starts to romantically chase her.
When Kishtappa figures out that he is possessed by a Korean ghost, he turns to his exorcist father for help. They eventually learn that ghostly Korean Kanakaraju will only go away after tying up some unfinished business in South Korea. Chaitra of course, decides to become their Korean guide since she speaks the language and is obsessed with the country. Will they figure out what the spirit wants and finally get it to leave Kanakaraju’s body? That’s the primary mystery of the tale.
Unfortunately, despite the fresh premise and some cool action sequences, most of Korean Kanakaraju is a complete mess. Once the story shifts to Korea, the already over-the-top violence gets dialed up even further, and I couldn’t help thinking the creators should’ve simply committed to making a serious action-horror film. Instead, Korean Kanakaraju tries to stuff action, horror, comedy and romance into the same film without getting the balance right. The romantic subplot was completely unnecessary and feels forced.
Visually, the colorful cinematography in the opening half hour is fun, but later comes some very obvious, low-effort AI-generated graphics and special effects that are quite the eyesore in certain scenes. It’s understandable when shoestring-budget productions turn to accessible and affordable AI tools, but Korean Kanakaraju clearly isn’t some tiny production that couldn’t afford to put more effort into its visuals.
Ultimately, Korean Kanakaraju will probably work best for viewers looking for an action film with a supernatural twist. If (like me) you came here primarily for the ridiculous promise of a Telugu guy being possessed by a Korean ghost, prepare to wait and then be underwhelmed. This isn’t really a horror-comedy with action thrown in; it’s an action film with a mean ghost.
P.S. If you’re in the mood for a genuinely silly Korean horror-comedy after this, try Handsome Guys.
Watch Korean Kanakaraju on Netflix.
Read Next: Chumbak Review: Cast Is Funnier Than the Script (Audio Version Below)
