Cath ZJ

The movie build up was good and many people already talked about the protagonist and the storyline so I don't repeat it here. But there's one incident that just didn't go well for me. The protagonist shuts down a 59 year old guy who expresses concerns about indian culture, by saying he has no rights to talk about culture as he will probably live another 10 years at the best. That reeks of ageism. It's basically telling all our senior citizens that they are not allowed to have opinions in the functioning of the society because they are going to die shortly anyways (has anyone lived forever? Why is age so important to telugu film directors?). The message on indian culture or the lack of it could be conveyed in a better way than making mockery of someone's age. Maybe the director of the film is young. But he needs to grow up and realise every person has equal rights to speech regardless of their age. Well he can disagree with them but respectfully.

The best part of the film is its cinematography. It feels very slow at places and I fast forwarded all the songs except the first one. Most emotions in the movie are subtle and relatable. They are not over the top like you watch in some other movies. I am not sure any movie has captured the beauty of Madurai this well. Loved the loving moment between the grandfather and his granddaughter sitting in their courtyard, rain falling gently enough but leaving them soaking wet, when Meenakshi gently rests her head on her grandfather's lap. Loved the small window that shows the beautiful rain when opened, in the scene where Meenakshi wants her first kiss to be special. The traditional furniture thrown in many scenes in the film is precious and would make an antiques collector fall head over heels in love with it. There should have been some character development for the other characters considering it's a long film. Btw, Bangalore is not all a concrete jungle or glass buildings as the movie shows. It has its own beautiful traditional side but I get that the movie is more about Tamil culture. Probably as much about Madurai as it is about the couple. It's a simple romcom done in south indian style. Beautiful cast as well. Ignore the haters who moan about everything and enjoy the film. Loved the end credits as well. It leaves you with a sweet feeling.