Critics and reviewers bashing the movies, actors, producers etc is one story and vice versa is something new, probably tired of online media's presence after a movie's release, for a change the director has brought down all guns by targeting the online critics, youtubers, reviewers, trollers to show that movie making is no joke and takes more homework than what we assume. Laxman has directed this flick quite ambitiously venturing into subject untouched with a shoestring budget and a couple of extended cameos from Shiva and Bobby Simha does the job.
Cinema has evolved over the years drastically, from the days of MGR to the current Thala-Thalapathy references people's taste has been the primary importance of movie makers, so with so many commercial movies thriving on same old fights, duets, item songs and cliche the youngsters take up matters on their own and post their views online, most probably with a smirk and loads of sarcasm, much to their happiness the amount of likes and shares are enormous. So how does this go down in the Producer's camp? After spending crores of money a simple click of a button changes perspective so what does he do? Well, that is what Masala Padam is about, or rather tries to show the audience what is reality.
A reality show with an ace respected producer on one side and the critics on the other side, a brickbat fight which leads one thing to another and ends up like Mudhalvan like scenario where the Producer challenges the young reviewers to come up with unique commercial movie and he would produce it. Accepting the challenge they go about in search of studying all classes of people almost in "Kathai Thiraikathai Vasanam" Style with the help of Laksmi Devy a photo journalist. They decide to make a movie out of lives of three varied personalities; Shiva the middle class funny lad, Simha the angry goon, Gaurav the spoilt dude and as usual how love can change perspective and what happens in the end forms the plot.
Each director has his own aspirations and forms a story based on day to day happenings, as the movie progresses the director tries valiantly to show that the three personalities are simply not characters and have more emotional connect than what meets the eye. Shiva's humor and Simha's ruthless rage is intact and both appear as if the role is tailor made based on their real life.
So with all these, what is the end note? Well a wonderful short speech from Venkat Subha who is a real life critic leaves us on a heavy thinking note; Cinema isn't just made for the critics, but for the common man who walks into fantasize a world for the 2 hours and become the hero of it as he leaves the theater, even though the reality is something else.
That said, the movie starts ambitiously and in the means to convey the emotional connect between the characters the execution goes tad slow juggling between characters and some dull music by Karthick still drags down the movie's intention.
Verdict : Hard hitting truth for the critics and reviewers.
