Movie: Seedan
Cast: Dhanush, Ananya, Krishna Nair, Suhasini
“Seedan” falls into the category of movies that intend to exhibit normal village/town life in a real way, sans grandeur. At times this works in its favour and at other times it falls flat for want of a cohesive screenplay.
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Its story is set in the temple town of Palani, where Mahalakshmi (Ananya) works round-the-clock. Right from, heating the water, preparing coffee to cooking et al. She is a home-grown maid since childhood (when she is orphaned) and the only stress buster for Sheela (the veteran actress), the grand old woman and the palace's leading lady. Maha's only friend is the Lord with whom she shares all her thoughts and feelings.
As fate would have it, Mano (Krishna Nair), grandson of Sheela who alights at Palani, en-route to London to build his career, falls in love with Maha. It's fate because, he is the ‘real' dream boy of Maha and she fondly accepts. But, as north pole and south pole cant unite, the love birds decide to part ways, reluctantly though. But, why? Because of an alliance finalised by Suhasini who plays Mano's mother. While the mother-son duo share a friend-like relationship, she too is helpless as the marriage deal is done. Suhasini pleads Mano-Maha to forget and forgive.
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Maha shows all her wrath, grief and pain on the Lord and vows not to ‘treat' him anymore. As she puts the lamp off from the Lord, Saravana (Dhanush) enters in the avatar of a ‘cook', who was slated to join long back to assist Maha in her kitchen chores.
This is when the screen lights up and the pace picks up. Dhanush promises to help her unite with her lover at any cost. But Maha finds little truth in it, only to realise who Saravana is, in an emotionally-woven climax.
Cast and crew
The role for Dhanush is a piece of cake given his experience in the industry so far. Supporting artistes have done justice and Suhasini pulls off a neat performance. Ananya does command her share of applause especially in the melo-dramatic scenes. With very few young actors from the State, she ought to be the right choice for such demanding roles.
Vivek's comedy as the saffron-clad saint (fake, though) evokes few laughs. Dhina's music is satisfactory and doesn't mark any uproar in his 50th film, yet sets the mood for the movie. Cinematography is textbook-borrowed, with few lingering visuals such as the moon-lit Palani seen from the terrace.
Bottomline: Despite being a decade-old remake (from Malayalam), “Seedan” could strike a chord with home-centric denizens. Multiplex audiences can stay away.
K.J. VENKATESWARAN, working professional