Aruvi - Will haunt you long after she fades out
Dream Warriors Pictures headed by S.R. Prabhu and S.R. Prakash Babu is known to back quality films like 'Maya', 'Joker' and the recent 'Theeran Adhigaram Ondru'. Their latest offering 'Aruvi' directed by Arun Prabhu Purushothaman will not only enhance their reputation but will find its place as one of the modern gems of Tamil cinema.
The story (Warrants a spoiler free review) begins with a police investigation about a terrorist Aruvi and as each of the people associated with her is grilled a facet of the girl is revealed. She is her father’s most favorite child but as she grows up to be a teenager due to a seemingly immoral conduct she is hated by him her mother and kid brother and thrown out of the house. What is her sin and what happens to her as a homeless girl and how is she treated by the men of the society and how she retaliates and justifies her existence is told in a riveting screenplay.
It is not an exaggeration to state that Aditi Balan is born to play ‘Aruvi’ and her performance is one of the best ever in Tamil cinema. Be it her casual air when smoking and drinking (justifiable),breaking into a smile or whimpering into tears,she is a class act. The scene in which she delivers a lengthy monologue on the TV show without a pause is the stuff of a mass hero. Once the suspense about Aruvi is broken, Aditi with her sheer talent holds the audience on in her every action till the very end when she leaves everyone in the film and outside it dazed in a jumble of emotions. Kudos ! The rest of the cast play around Aditi like the accompaniments of a symphony with special mentions going to Anjali Varathan as the transgender Emily, Lakshmy Gopalswamy as the television host and Pradeep Antony as the assistant director. If the guy playing Subash the set boy provides laugh out loud humor when he orders for beer from the police, the actor playing the sound recordist with just his voice modulation of the words “Rolliiiiiiiiiing Sir” alone brings the house down.
Apart from the exemplary acting, the screenplay of ‘Aruvi’ packs all the ingredients right from suspense, humor, thrill and tragedy to a very relevant core subject that has been most sensitively handled. The backstage truth about reality shows like “Solvathellam Sathyam’ has been deconstructed to such minute details serving both as a tool for humor as well as thought provoking. How an everyday girl with dreams like everyone is forced by destiny and the men in the society to become an emotional extremist is told in a very natural buildup of sequences and characters. The most admirable part of Aruvi’s characterization is that she suffers tragedy in style and maintains her swag till the very end that will surely give hope to others. AIDS is a taboo subject that few have attempted in Tamil cinema in all these years and ‘Aruvi’ will create a new perspective on the disease and its sufferers.
On the downside the writer-director's eagerness in exposing the television reality show takes the focus off from his subject but can surely be forgiven as the humor quotient is high in it. Aruvi holding the television station hostage is also not convincing just like her ability to use the gun with seemingly unlimited supply of bullets. The team is sure to make a few enemies in the form of a popular television show and host and Vijay fans for a scathing troll on their idol.
Shelley Calist the cinematographer for the better part of the first half has used loose frames and hazy movements to good effect to bring out the heroine’s turmoil and later settles for static and lingering shots which are equally effective in conveying all her emotions. Raymond Derrick Crasta has also worked in tandem providing jump cuts and a grainy effect that suits the subject to the maximum. Bindhu Malini and Vedanth Bharadwaj’s songs written by Kutti Revathi and the director himself are all used in the background to amplify the heroine's character and serves the purpose well. Arun Prabhu Purushothaman is a welcome find to Tamil cinema who has delved deep to tell a unique story and that too using a very modern new age style filmmaking. His depth as a writer and grip over the medium can be summed up in the climax when he puts the sinners and the sinned at peace with each other that is more heart tugging than the inevitable tragedy. Get ready for the awards season, Arun and Aditi.
Verdict: Go for it to experience a rare little gem and be warned as Aruvi will haunt you for a long time to come.
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