The tricks and tactics adopted by medical and engineering colleges to collect capitation that runs to lakhs through their agents is an open secret. We are caught in the system, something that was blatantly exposed during the medical seat scam (in 2013 and in 2016) in Tamil Nadu. But what would happen if an individual decides to seek justice and face them head on?
Debutant director Sakthi Rajasekharan’s Yeidhavan deals with need for transparency and reform in the field of medical education, and the lack of awareness on part of the public. The film is an attempt to expose the malpractices that are rampant in the field.
It is the story of Krishna (played by Kalaiarasan), an entrepreneur who sells currency counting machines and the situations he faces when a member in his family aspires to pursue an MBBS course. Yeidhavan is also the story of Dharma (Krishna, who returns after a hiatus), a car thief and a ruthless gangster, who rubs on the wrong side of Gaurav (newcomer Gautham, a dubbing artist), the devious owner of a medical college.
It’s puzzling than an educated Krishna doesn’t bother to do any kind of background check before admitting his sister to a medical college. When things go awry, he strategically plays a cat and the mouse game to finish off people who he thinks are responsible. Since Madras , a lot is expected from Kalaiyarasan, but he disappoints – there’s sluggishness in the action scenes, and inadequate emotions during intense scenes. While Gautham and Krishna’s convincing performances largely contribute in keeping up the tempo of the film, we wish Satna Titus had more scope.
Casting is a big strength and so is Parthav Barggo’s background music. Yeidavan is a film with a good intent, but it loses steam as it does not offer solutions. What many of director Shankar’s protagonists did was to fight corruption with style but Yeidhavan only sends across a message and stops at that.
