With close to three decades experience as an actor Vivekh has not only made it to the list of evergreen comedians of Tamil cinema but also stamped his prowess as a character artist. He has also acted has lead hero in a few films in his illustrious career and the latest such attempt comes as ‘Palakattu Madhavan’ reminding us of the evergreen character played by K.Bhagyaraj in his classic film ‘Andha Ezhu Naatkal’.
In this film Vivekh is back to what he is best at-doing comedy- a role that is in complete contrast with the one he played in ‘Naan Thaan Bala’ his previous film as the lead man.
The endeavor to entertain us begins with the title that is accompanied by a tag line, ‘Ivan Tamizhan’ as the term Palakkadu is usually associated with Malayalees.
Story:
Palakattu Madhavan (Vivekh) and Lakshmi (Sonia Aggarwal) are love married couple with two daughters.
Lazy Madhavan quits his job in the company which has also employed his wife for a better pay. After a few failed attempts to become wealthy he ends up adopting a woman (Semmeen Sheela) from a old age home as his mother eyeing on the monthly income that he can get from her investments.
Madhavan brings her home and treats her very well that makes his foster mother consider him as her son and treat his wife and children as her family But Lakshmi could not put up with the new member in the family as the latter is over demanding and dominating and eventually moves her out. . The rest forms of how Madhavan gets his mother back and what turns him a responsible family head.
What works and what do not?
The film travels on a tried and tested path of comedy and sentiment that usually works out well with youngsters as well as family audience. The film fairly succeeds in offering these two quotients.
Vivekh with his experience, expertise and also earnestness to make a mark as a hero makes the film watchable if not engaging. He leads the comic bandwagon in first half and lightens up the screen with his trademark wit that also includes satire on the happenings in the society. However the double entendres and sexist comments on women come as a tough pill especially for family audience.
While the first half offers some moments to laugh, thanks to Vivekh’s trademark wit laced with satire. The second half has more of family bonding and sentiment and most of the scenes depicting them can be termed as not boring or bad.
The director or the creative department seems to have had little care about production values (For which the director may not be entirely responsible). It is very much evident that most of the outdoor scenes are taken inside studios and a little care could have avoided making it this much blatant.
Some important turn of events in the story seem lack reasoning. Madhavan adopting a mother for want of money but treating her so affectionately and the reason shown for Lakshmi suspecting the old woman of trying to separate her from her husband are not convincing. These are just examples.
Performances
Vivekh proves that he is not just a comedy actor by emoting well in sentiment scenes. He also looks very smart in a dream song where he is made to wear blazers.
Sheela who has made a comeback in Tamil films pleases us with the performance as a caring grandma’ we would come across in every family. Sonia Aggarwal uses the scope offered by her role to perform. But the larger intention of casting this talented actress seems to be to add up the glamour quotient in the film.
Mano Bala and Cell Murugan deserve mention for their supporting roles. ‘Motta’ Rajendran brings the roof down with his cameo.
Composed by Srikanth Deva ‘Sandoshame’ is pleasant to hear and the affection that grows within the family has been portrayed very well. ‘Uchimela’ sung by Anirudh Ravichander is foot tapping. Others are misplaced and neither pleasant to the ear.
It is better not to comment about the technical aspects of the film.
Verdict : Watch it for Vivekh and his brand of comedy
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