Movies carrying sensitive themes and unique storylines set in Madurai villages are the order of the day in Kollywood. Adding one more in the long list is 'Virunthali'.
Directed by Whaterman, the film aroused a lot of curiosity pre-release thanks to aggressive promotion. Unfortunately, the end product fails to impress the audience.
What begins on a promising note ends up a tame affair. Though the basic knot is good, Whaterman seems to have watered down the theme and laced it with so-called commercial elements that prove to be a mismatch.
The loosely etched characters fail to strike a chord with masses. Though the songs by S S Kumaran are catchy and cinematography by Sajjan Kalathil is worth mentioning, jerks in screenplay and loopholes in narration take away all the sheen.
Ishvar (Ishvar) is the son of a popular man at Melpavur village in Madurai. His father is a big shot who is in prison. He loves his father a lot. He waits eagerly for the day he returns.
Enters Archana (Dhyana), a law student to the village. After initial hot verbal encounters, it's romance between them. In the meantime, Ishvar helps his friend to marry his lover. However his friend is killed in a fight for property. Ishvar avenges the killers and returns to the village to see the end of his lover and love affair.
Ishvar looks good as rough villager. Dhyana is adequate. Nasser provides some grace to the script, while Balasingh plays a post man. Dialogues are by Singampuli, who also plays the comedian's role.
The father-song bonding and romance remind one of films like 'Paruthiveeran'. Whaterman had tried to balance mainstream and off- beat cinema. But ended up serving a stuff that is far from convincing. Had he concentrated on making the script intact, the end product would have been appealing.
