Wikipedia

HIT: The Second Case

HIT: The Second Case is a 2022 Indian Telugu-language crime thriller film written and directed by Sailesh Kolanu.[3] It is the second installment in the HIT Universe following HIT: The First Case (2020). The film stars Adivi Sesh, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Suhas and Rao Ramesh. The plot follows Krishna Dev (KD), a police officer in the Andhra Pradesh state's Homicide Intervention Team (HIT), as he investigates gruesome cases involving dismembered female bodies.

HIT: The Second Case
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySailesh Kolanu
Written bySailesh Kolanu
Produced byPrashanti Tipirneni
Nani as (presenter)
Starring
CinematographyS. Manikandan
Edited byGarry BH
Music bySongs:
M. M. Srilekha
Score:
John Stewart Eduri
Production
company
Release date
  • 2 December 2022 (2022-12-02)
Running time
118 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Budget₹15 crore[1]
Box office₹42.5 crore[2]

HIT: The Second Case was released on 2 December 2022 to positive reviews from critics and became a commercial success at the box office.

The film was followed by a standalone sequel titled HIT: The Third Case on 1 May 2025.[4]

Plot

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Ram Prasad Koduri, a humble carpenter, discovers his wife Jhansi’s extramarital affair. When he threatens to expose her, she falsely accuses him of sexual assault. Ostracized by society and broken in spirit, Ram Prasad builds a treehouse at home and commits suicide.

In present-day Visakhapatnam, Krishna Dev (KD), a sharp and intuitive Superintendent of police (SP) in the Homicidal Intervention Team (HIT), is in a live-in relationship with Aarya, an entrepreneur and women’s rights activist. KD is assigned a disturbing murder case involving Sanjana, a bar worker, whose body is found dismembered and stitched together with parts from three different women. Forensics reveals that the killer has an extra tooth and left a UV-reactive pub stamp on a severed hand.

KD suspects Raghavudu, who refuses to reveal his alibi to protect his secret affair. Under political pressure, KD’s superiors plan to kill Raghavudu in a fake encounter. KD uncovers evidence proving his innocence and stops the encounter at the last moment, but Raghavudu later commits suicide. KD receives taunts from the killer, who threatens Aarya and another woman, Rajitha.

As the investigation deepens, KD links the dismembered parts to other missing women, Tanya and Pooja, all connected to a women’s welfare association. He discovers that Jhansi, a past victim and president of the same association, had a son named Rajeev. Soon after, KD is attacked and Aarya is abducted when her security detail is withdrawn.

KD tracks the clues to a dental clinic owned by Rajeev Kumar Koduri, Ram Prasad and Jhansi's son. Traumatized by his father's suicide and his mother’s betrayal, Rajeev seeks revenge on women he views as morally corrupt, starting with his mother and continuing with other women’s association members. Rajeev is revealed to be Kumar, Rajitha's boyfriend, who captures KD and threatens Aarya.

Using wit and a distraction by his dog Max, KD breaks free and defeats Rajeev with help from Varsha, a fellow officer. Rajitha confesses she was coerced by Rajeev. Varsha had located the clinic via a GPS tracker in KD’s car. Disillusioned, KD declines to continue in HIT and transfers to Telangana. He marries Aarya, and they begin a new life together. Arjun Sarkaar arrives as KD's replacement as the new SP, teasing a sequel.

Cast

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Production

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After the success of HIT: The First Case, Nani announced a sequel in February 2021, one year after the film's release.[5] Sailesh Kolanu, who directed the first film of the franchise, would also be directing the sequel. Adivi Sesh replaced Vishwak Sen in the sequel as the main character.[6] Nani wanted the franchise to be "concept oriented" rather than "star oriented," so he moved the setting from Telangana to Andhra Pradesh and chose Sesh as the protagonist.[7] Meenakshi Chaudhary was cast opposite Sesh.[8] Sen said he missed out on the sequel due to scheduling conflicts, and wished he'd be a part of HIT 3 or 4.[citation needed] The film was then formally launched in March 2021 with a pooja ceremony.[9] Principal photography commenced in August 2021 in Visakhapatnam.[10] In December 2021, Nani confirmed that 90% of the shoot was completed with filming also taking place in Hyderabad.[7] In July 2022, it was announced that the final schedule would commence in August 2022.[11]

Music

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The music of the film is composed by M. M. Srilekha and Suresh Bobbili. The film score is composed by John Stewart Eduri.

All lyrics are written by Krishna Kanth.

Track listing
No.TitleMusicSinger(s)Length
1."Urike Urike"M. M. SrilekhaSid Sriram, Ramya Behara4:36
2."Poratame 2"Suresh BobbiliSailesh Kolanu3:45

Release

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HIT: The Second Case was released theatrically on 2 December 2022.[12] Originally the film had been scheduled for release on 29 July 2022.[13] However, Sesh announced that the film was postponed due to the promotional works of his film Major (2022) and the film having production delays.[14][15] On November 25, the film received an A certificate because of its gruesome nature and use of profanity.

The theatrical rights of the film were sold at a cost of ₹145 million (US$1.7 million).[16] A Hindi dubbed version was released theatrically on 30 December 2022.[17] The film premiered on Amazon Prime Video on 6 January 2023.[18]

Reception

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HIT: The Second Case received positive reviews from critics.[19]

Balakrishna Ganeshan of The News Minute rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Sailesh Kolanu's HIT 2 is one of the best-written Telugu films in recent times, with each character, scene, and dialogue having relevance to the story".[20] Arvind V of Pinkvilla rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and wrote "The thriller, executed with aplomb by Sailesh Kolanu, wants to be a consummate whodunit, in the sense that it shifts its focus away from who committed the crime to what are the killer's motives for committing it".[21] Manoj Kumar R of The Indian Express rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "HIT 2 is a significant improvement over the first iteration. One can only hope that Sailesh fills in the gaps in his storytelling and becomes a more refined filmmaker with HIT 3".[22] Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "The film delivers what it promises when it comes to the gore and taking the HIT universe forward".[23] Rotkim Rajpal of India Today rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "HIT 2 is a middling thriller that caters only to Advi Sesh but doesn't do justice to its inherently engaging story".[24] Sakshi Post rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and termed the film as a "gripping thriller" and wrote, "If you are a fan of crime thrillers, you would surely love this. Watch it for Adivi Sesh".[25]

References

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  1. ^ "HIT 2 BOX OFFICE COLLECTION, CAST, BUDGET, HIT OR FLOP". 30 November 2022.
  2. ^ "Is Hit 2 Hit Or Flop? Box Office Result of Adivi Sesh's 'HIT: The Second Case'". 8 December 2022.
  3. ^ "HIT 2 – Adivi Sesh's career-best opening". 123telugu. 3 December 2022.
  4. ^ "HIT 2 box office collection day 1: Movie becomes biggest opener for Adivi Sesh". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 December 2022. the film that received mixed to positive reviews from audiences and critics praising performances, screenplay, cinematography, background score, crisp runtime and direction of the film.
  5. ^ "Nani announces HIT 2, says its time to go on a nailbiting journey". The Indian Express. 28 February 2021. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  6. ^ "Telugu film HIT sequel announced with Adivi Sesh in lead; producer Nani unveils first poster". Firstpost. 20 March 2021. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  7. ^ a b "'HIT 2': Nani Reveals Why Adivi Sesh Is The Perfect Choice For The Film". Outlook. 17 December 2021. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  8. ^ Adivi, Sashidhar (4 March 2021). "Meenakshi Chaudhary bags Hit 2". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 11 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Adivi Sesh in the next 'HIT'". The Hindu. 22 March 2021. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  10. ^ "Adivi Sesh joins the sets of HIT 2". Telugu360. 3 August 2021. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  11. ^ Hymavathi, Ravali (23 July 2022). "Adivi Sesh Confirms That 'HIT 2' Final Schedule Will Begin In The Next Month". www.thehansindia.com. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
  12. ^ "Adivi Sesh's Hit: The Second Case gets a release date". Cinema Express. 15 September 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  13. ^ News9 Staff (2 May 2022). "Adivi Sesh-starrer HIT 2 to have theatrical release on July 29". NEWS9LIVE.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ "HIT 2 Postponed to December?". India Herald. 25 July 2022.
  15. ^ "HIT 2 Trailer Launch Date: హిట్‌ 2 ట్రైలర్‌ వచ్చేది ఆ రోజే.. నాని, అడివి శేష్ ఫన్నీగా ఎలా అనౌన్స్‌ చూశారో చూడండి". Hindustan Times Telugu. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Hit 2 Pre Release Theatrical Business". News18 Telugu (in Telugu). 29 November 2022. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
  17. ^ "Hindi version of Adivi Sesh's Hit: The Second Case to release on this date". Indian Express. 22 December 2022. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  18. ^ "HIT: The second case on OTT platform: Release date, where to watch, cast and plot". India Today. 6 January 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  19. ^ "HIT 2 box office collection day 1: Movie becomes biggest opener for Adivi Sesh". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 December 2022. the film that received mixed response from fans and critics alike.
  20. ^ "HIT 2 review: Adivi Sesh's film is thoroughly gripping". The News Minute. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  21. ^ "HIT 2 Movie Review: This Adivi Sesh starrer is both intelligent and thrilling". Pinkvilla. 2 December 2022. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  22. ^ "HIT 2 movie review: Adivi Sesh starrer is a significant improvement on HIT 1". The Indian Express. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  23. ^ "Hit : The Second Case Movie Review : Delivers when it comes to gore but not the rest". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  24. ^ "HIT 2 Movie Review: Meant only for Adivi Sesh fans". India Today. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  25. ^ "HIT 2 Review, Rating". Sakshi Post. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2022.

Notes

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