Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email The hype and feedback from friends who watched this movie was good. I was given the impression that it was about second marriage and woman’s struggle. But I feel the theme was something else.
I couldn’t catch it at the cinema,so saw it on VCD recently and did not regret it at all, even with the high expectation caused by friends’ comments. The producer being Vasanth, you can expect something different in the movie.
The movie stars Prithviraj (of Mozhi, Kana Kanden, Parijatham fame) as Ravichandran, a software engineer (well, don’t they all are nowadays!), Padmapriya (of Pattiyal, Thavamai Thavamirinthu fame) as Banu, and Nitin Sathya (from Chennai 600028) as Rathnavelu, as the main protagonists. Supporting casts includes Raghav as Padmapriya’s elder brother and Prithviraj’s good friend, and Nasser as a church priest.
The story is quite straight forward. In the beginning, we get to see Rathanvelu (Nitin) accompanying his friend for matchmaking session. However, the friend did not like the prospective bride, and Rathnavelu steps in and proposes to marry her, which of course is Banu (Padmapriya). All was fine and dandy until after few months, the couple have not consummated their marriage and Banu grows impatient with Rathnavelu for his cold behaviour on bed. They go for check-up and finds out that Rathnavelu is impotent, which he claims of not knowing beforehand. Banu is heartbroken. We then see Rathnavelu talking to Nasser about his wedding. Nasser coordinates the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) group of which Rathnavelu attends. Rathnavelu tells Nasser that he had told everything to the bride’s family and even says the bride herself is unable to bear children. Nasser believes him and does not suspect anything.
The couple tries adoption, but eventually return the child since Rathnavelu is reminded of his impotency everytime he sees the child. All the time, Rathnavelu suggests divorce, but he knows Banu would not do it. Banu decides to work and find a job at a school where she can be close to kids. But Rathnavelu feels insecure seeing her mingle with others, and hurts her one night after she confront him on his impotency (being told by Nasser over the phone). One thing leads to another, and they file for divorce. Rathnavelu is angered and vows revenge.
Fast forward a bit, and we see Banu moving to town with her brother and meet Ravi who lives in the same building. Her brother has told him about Banu’s plight and Ravi is willing to marry her. He approaches her as “Chandran” over the phone, but Banu is disillusioned by men and rejects his approach. He then makes an appearance in person and introduces himself as Ravi. This Ravi/Chandran comedy goes on for a while until they are finally married. Ravi in person and Chandran on the phone.
On a trip to outstation, Ravi is helped by Rathnavelu. Later Rathnavelu finds out that his ex-wife is married to the very person he had helped. He plots to destroy their marriage. He befriends Ravi and learns many things about them. One fine day, he kidnaps Banu from her house, substitutes a dead body and blows up the kitchen. Ravi and Banu’s family are distraught and drown in sorrow, thinking that Banu had died. Rathnavelu even visited Ravi and offered condolences upon hearing that Banu had died.
Time flies, and Ravi still keeps in touch with Rathnavelu. Rathnavelu had taken Banu to his house and imprisoned her in a room. He made the room soundproof and totally sealed. This went of for months. One day, to fulfill his twisted needs, he invited Ravi to his house and enjoyed knowing that husband and wife are in the same house, suffering for different reasons. He was tormenting Banu by telling her that Ravi is in the house, but not even his smell can enter her room. Unfortunate for Rathnavelu, as Ravi leaves the house he notices that Rathnavelu has a shirt with the same pattern that Banu did for him (Ravi). He became suspicious. After Rathnavelu left for work, he returns to the house, and suffice to say that husband and wife are reunited.
When Rathnavelu returns home, he finds Ravi outside his house and invites him in. Later the doorbell rings, and when he opens the door, Banu stood there. Unable to take this, Rathnavelu goes berserk and runs out. Later, we see him at a mental hospital.
In terms of story, this is definitely a different tune compared to the normal run-of-the-mill ones we see. The focus is on alcoholism and the breakdown of marriage due to health condition caused by alcohol. The story was disrupted by the positioning of the songs, which came at ackward times. I also felt that the movie dragged especially in the beginning part. There weren’t any separate comedy tracks. Situational moments of laughter were provided by Prithviraj. Dialogue was well scripted and enjoyable to listen at times. The part where Ravi tries to woo Banu is hilarious, interesting and would be enjoyed by couples.
In terms of acting, Prithviraj just had to repeat his romantic acts like in Mozhi, while Padmapriya had more acting scope here. Nithin did well too, but his voice was not good. Not sure if it was dubbed.
3 of the songs were good. Alaghu Kutti Chellam (which featured 100 different children), Pesukiren Pesukiren (my favorite) and Oh Intha Kaadhal Ennum. Music was by Yuvan Shankar Raja.
Conclusion: Different story, worth watching.
Cast: Prithviraj, Padmapriya, Nitin Satya, Raghav, Nasser, Suhasini
Genre: Drama
Acting : 7/10
Story : 8/10
Special Effects: 7/10
Cinematography: 7/10
Overall Oomphness: 8/10
