Movie : Kalavani
Cast: Vimal, Oviya, Saranya, Illavarasu, Ganja Karuppu, Soori
What a pleasant surprise “Kalavani” proves to be. Amidst overhyped movies, here comes a rollicking entertainer with lesser known stars.
Plot
“Kalavani” is a simple, breezy, romantic comedy set against a village mileu. Arriki (Vimal) is a tutorial college student yet to pass his Std XII. But that is his last concern. He lives with his mother and sister, while his father (Illavarasu) is away in Dubai working hard for the family. Most of the money sent by him is wasted by Arikki. But his mother (another good performance by Saranya) believes that all this is due to some bad omen and that Arikki will soon prosper as predicted by some astrologer.
Meanwhile Arriki falls in love with Maheshwari (Oviya). She too reciprocates his love, but the two are from villages that are always at loggerheads with each other and Maheshwari's brother Elango (Thirmurugan) has a lot of axe to grind against Arriki. All this leads to a rib tickling climax that is sure to bring the roof down. The comedy track involving Ganja Karuppu (though it is reminiscent of some earlier movies) is a scream. It also helps that it doesn't stick out from the main narrative.
The strong point of “Kalavani” is the characterisation. All characters, small or big, have been etched out well.
Well executed
The title role fits Vimal to a T and the youngster has come out with flying colours. His poker faced comedy has you in splits many a time.
Oviya looks cute and also emotes well (a rarity these days). Thirumurugan as the angry young man is menacing. The performances of Ganja Karuppu, Saranya and Illavarasu make the film click big time. The music of S.S. Kumaran (of “Poo” fame) gels well with the narraive. That the songs are of a shorter duration is another plus. Omprakash's camera is good.
Bottomline: Kudos to Sargunam for showing that realistic movies set against the village backdrop need not always tell dark and disturbing stories. Two thumbs up for Sargunam's “Kalavani”. It is a welcome relief for Tamil movie buffs who were waiting for a solid entertainer sans bloodshed and obscenity.
BHARATH VIJAYAKUMAR
