sivanandam gb

The OTT platform has thrown open the entertainment world to many who would find it difficult to enter the world if cinema. It gives the creator a freedom sans the expectations of a box office. And one such wonderful thriller is Vadhanthi in Prime. The performances of everyone, right from veteran Nasser to the new comer who has lived the character of Velonie, is perfect and do not go overboard, anywhere. The excellent writing and its screen adaptation makes it a gripping tale of human emotions. We are just sucked into the series almost immediately and it continues to haunt you till you have seen the end. The drama is subtle, the locations exotic, the photography breathtaking, the music apt and casting and performances of the artists excellent. Credit goes to the writer and director for maintaining the suspense till the very end. Anything more said would definitely rob you of the thrills. Suryah lives the role of inspector Vivek often oscillating from duty at office and his need at home. There are a few unnecessary deviations but that is excusable considering the efforts that have been invested into bringing on screen such a gripping tale of love and lust.

It takes off from where it ended. And what a take off. The entire team has to be lauded for this engrossing drama. The technicalities are top notch and new to audience like me from Tamilnadu. Mohanlal effortlessly pulls of one of his best performances. The background score adds authenticity to the proceedings. The movie's strength is it is a thriller without the thrills of a thriller. And herein lies the strength of Jeethu Joseph. An edge of the seat entertainer. Hope it will be remade in Tamil with Kamal Hassan in the lead, but it is a remote possibility. Malayalam movies have never ceased to surprise me and this one does it quite convincingly. A pity that it has not a theatrical release. My respect for Malayalam movies is enhanced by this one. Good one

AFWAAH is a bold take on the present day communal politics so brazenly indulged by the saffron brigade. The events are cleverly interwoven and presented convincingly. Though the lead characters played by Nawazuddin Siddique and Bhumi Pednekar have adequately performed there is not much in the screenplay to exploit their prowess. Cow vigilantism, love jihad and other scheming measures adopted by the saffron brigade have been aptly exposed. Sudhir Mishra should be congratulated for his fearless presentation of the subject others would fear to take upon in such testing times for freedom of expression.

Maamannan by Mari Selvaraj could have been just another movie on Social Justice but for the performance of Vadivelu and Fahadh Fazil. They have lent their heart and soul to their characters that we forget to see Vadivelu and Fahadh. They have lived their roles as Maamannan and Ratnavelu, the under privileged and the Lord. AR Rahman has provided the necessary fillip to the sensitive proceedings that elevates the viewing. Udhayanidhi and Keerthi Suresh play good support to the narrative. It is good to see an entirely different Vadivelu and one does wonder why such a wonderful talent was kept in the dark all through these years. Mari Selvaraj has the freedom to explore and present the movie in a much larger canvas and production values than his earlier movies due to obvious reasons and he has succeeded in presenting a much better and authentic visual. The technical aspects of the movie are very good and at times tend to go overboard in a few scenes. Watch the movie for Vadivelu, Fahadh Fazil and AR Rahman. Mari Selvaraj has brought together an unimaginable combination of stars and technicians who have let the director do the talking.

A feel good movie with a difference. Fahadh Fazil never fails to throw a surprise at the audience. He is such a natural performer that you remember him only as Pachu in this wonderful movie. The twists and turns are so very natural and will catch you unawares. The spontaneous fun moments are a real treat to watch and enjoy. The casting is perfect and the director takes credit to make us gel with all the characters in this splendid movie. The dialogues are quite candid and enjoyable. Music and photography enhances the viewing experience. Trust Malayalam movies to watch and enjoy something out of the box. Great!!

Vetri Maaran has come out trumps. This is something special from him. He has brought out the best from his artists and his technicians and the result is there for everyone to indulge and enjoy the intensity. Whenever and wherever the corporate greed tries to engulf the natural resources in any part of the world for its own greed, unmindful of the ecological imbalances and harm to ecology and human habitat, it is the LEFT brigade that raises its spirited fight against this unjust usurpation. This is once again manifested in this latest and once-in-a-lifetime presentation by Vetri Maaran, and HOW. It leaves you dumbstruck by its narrative and visuals and unique performances from the assembly of apt starcast rooting for more and Vetri Maaran, rightly, promises a second Part. His contribution to Tamil cinema is immense and this movie proves his calibre as a master in his own class. Tamil Cinema and the people of Tamil Nadu should feel proud of Vetri Maaran and his VIDUTHALAI

VIKRAM watched in Hollywood 3 Theatres in Vancouver, Canada. VIKRAM by Lokesh Kanagaraj is an exhilarating experience, only to be had in theaters. It is not the kind of movie you can sit and enjoy at the comfort of your home on a Saturday afternoon. The big screen viewing along with exciting and thumping music will leave you in awe. The well written screenplay, splendidly filmed, definitely makes up for the one liner of a story. The director, who is only 3 films old, has etched out characters to perfection and has extracted the best out of the all the actors. It is not a movie of the Star Kamal Hassan. In fact he takes a back seat and lets his co stars get crucial screen space and presence which is the novelty of this movie and makes a compelling viewing. This move by the star and the director has paid rich dividends in giving us a great experience. The movie throws many surprises at you which evokes thunderous applause from the audience which is the outcome of better writing and execution. The technical aspects of movie is flawless and classy to be seen to believe. For the audience it is worth a wait to watch this magnificent movie and one cannot but hope for a sequel which, if materializes should be an equally good one from Lokesh Kanagaraj and his team and the thought itself is highly gratifying.

Taanakkaran is something novel to Tamil Cinema. Earlier into the movie we are given a dose of how the Britishers formed the police force in India and about the servitude of the force. This is a story to reiterate that the present police force very much remains the same and what a way to tell! The director takes us through the rigours and intricacies of police training which we haven't seen in celluloid. The director wins hands down by not yielding to the popular demands of Tamil movie audience by a predictable end. Instead he has stuck to reality in exposing that it is the system in the police force that is the villain and no heroics of the hero could alter it. Vikram Prabu and the host of character artists have been well cast and performed. It is indeed refreshingly different to view such a movie in Tamil. And it is a lesson to those big stars and the producers who always play safe on trusted formulas to explore and experiment with untouched subjects. Tamil Cinema is changing and what a change...!!!

Alia Bhatt is the victim and the saviour in this boldly directed movie by Bhansali on the travails of the world's oldest profession. The portrayal of Ganga and Gangubai later on by Alia Bhatt is proof enough of the talents of this young artist. One might feel that she went a little overboard but that is understandable. The hard hitting dialogues, so casually rendered by Alia has the desired results and hurts our conscience. The final speech in a conference is so real and spontaneous that brings the best out of the character. The period setting is wonderfully executed by the master. It is an Alia Bhatt movie throughout and the supporting characters have done justice to their performance, though Ajay Devgn looks a bit tired and jaded. A riveting movie and an equally riveting performance by the lead character.

The movie, based loosely on a popular English News Channel anchor, is a bit slow to take off but compensates later on fast track. The arrogance of holding the media and news is incredibly well portrayed by the ever dependent Tovino Thomas. Malayalam movies never cease to make untouched subjects into mainstream movies and Naaradan is one such experiment worth watching. The tribulations and travails of the business of news making is so well executed by the director that henceforth we shall watch all news channels with skepticism. News reporting is just another business with cut throat competition to remain on top and the ways and means to get to the top is by no means ethical. A must watch for the sheer arrogant exuberance of the lead character