These days, directors and heroes never tire of saying that their film is different. Before Chatrapathy's release both Sarath Kumar and director Sri Mahesh said that the movie had a unique treatment.
And when you see the film, the only thing that is different is the new low of absurdity that the movie has plunged. The liberties they have taken with facts, especially relating to military affairs, is baffling. In these days of information overflow, how can filmmakers show Siachen glacier as luxuriantly green grassed? Just because the hero has to be shown as all-conquering, the director has gone to the extent of showing the hero as a one-man army.
The story is so simple that it could be written at the back of a stamp. The movie begins with Sarath Kumar working as a bus driver in a women's college in Chennai. He takes a group of men to a remote village and bumps them off for killing a young girl after eve-teasing her.
He also kidnaps a local dadha and murders him besides giving a warning to all goondas operating in the city. This upsets dadha's master and mentor is a politician, Mahadevan, and he raises suspicion over the Sarath's past.
The rest is all flashback where Sarath is shown as an honest military officer and a winner of Param Vir Chakra for his heroics in getting back Siachen Glacier (stupidly filmed in Ooty or Kodaikanal) from Pakistan. He returns to his village from the war field, only to face the wrath of local dadhas for denying to sell his piece of land to them.
The goondas happened to be Mahadevan's associates, who kill Sarath's sister (Saranya) and razes down their house and an orphanage run by them. This enrages Sarath, who kills all the goons and flees from the village to settle in Chennai.
The denouement is about Sarath putting an end to the machinations of Mahadevan.
The film is full so many gaping holes and logic-less ideas that you feel like screaming 'enough'. The screenplay is something like that has been filched from kindergarten student's rough note. A major portion of the movie reminds one of Vijayakanth's Ramana, the rest is more on the shades of Rajnikanth's Baba.
On the plus side, Sarath looks refreshing on screen, relaxed in stunt sequences and also in romantic numbers. Kurumbu fame Nikitha plays a perfect Tamil heroine appearing in a couple of scenes and a couple of romantic numbers.
Vadivelu, playing Sarath's friend, walks away with honors with his typical brand of coarse comedy.
S A Rajkumar is as usual pedestrian. Produced by Baburaja, Chatrapathy, directed by Sri Mahesh, has nothing much to offer. You can go to this film if you like the popcorn in the theater.
