DADA - A youthful contemporary tale with old world charm

Kavin of 'Saravanan Meenatchi' and 'Bigg Boss' fame found success on the big screen with the pure horror 'Lift' and this time he has come up with a family friendly film that deals with relationships.  Whether 'DADA' will catapult the star in the making's career remains to be seen.

Manikandan (Kavin) a careless and irresponsible youth and Sindhu (Aparna Das) who is the pole opposite of him are lovers.  The film opens when Sindhu declares she is pregnant and Mani's first reaction is to abort. She refuses and forces him to find a house for them. However situations force them to go to the police and both the parents disown them.  The couple get married with the help of a friend who also allows them to live in his luxurious villa.  Mani, finds a menial job but situations force them out of the villa to a small house in the slums.  Sindhu tries her best to adapt to the situation while the immature Mani often gives in to temptations of alcohol and wayward friendships.  In one of their fights when the pregnancy is full he angrily asks her to die and a heartbroken Sindhu becomes ill and is rushed to the hospital.   Mani who in his anger switches off his mobile learns of her hospitalization late and when he reaches Sindhu had abandoned their boy baby and attempts to find her fail. The entire responsibility of bringing up the child falls on Mani, who himself is just a man child.  The rest of the screenplay is how he transforms into a good father.  By a twist of fate  Sindhu unexpectedly reenters the father-son's lives and what happens next is what 'DADA' is all about.

Kavin's performance in the initial scenes are so real that you instantly start disliking him and root for Aparna.  However once he breaks down at the orphanage where he tries to abandons his child and decides to live for him he completely transforms into a loveable guy.  Most importantly he does all this in  a grounded realistic manner that is a treat to watch.   To sum up Kavin shows potential to fill the shoes of Navarasa Nayagan Karthik in exuding charm and expressing a freaky side subtly.  Aparna Das is simply superb as the young girl who breaks the stereotypes and stands her ground in continuing her premarital pregnancy.  The scene in the first half where she breaks down when Kavin hurts her and in the climax when she meets her son are absolutely moving due to her powerful histrionics. However her screen time is less and her point of view is completely missing in the screenplay which is an injustice to her.  K.Bhagyaraj and Aishwarya Bhaskar appear as Kavin's parents bringing their vast experience to make the sentiments relatable.  Aadvik who plays Aaditya around whom the entire story is woven is natural and is endearing to watch especially in the climax.  There are several delightful performances by the supporting cast right from Pradeep Antony of 'Aruvi' and 'Yazhl' fame playing the office colleague with a crush on the heroine to the actor playing Kavin's mature brother to Harish Kumar the nerdy friend who is always there for the hero.  VTV Ganesh is a scream as the catalyst who helps the lead pair reunite.

What works best in 'DADA' is the writer-director's fusion of a modern tale with old world charm which will surely attract the youth as well as the family audiences a la 'Love Today'.   The film wastes no time in getting to its point right from the very first scene and travels without much deviation.   Kavin's character arc comes a full circle from a man who at the start takes pride in never shedding tears to him weeping when he sees his wife and son together at the end.  The flashes of brilliance in the writing can be witnessed in the orphanage scene as well as when Kavin makes a girl who has a crush on him understand his true feelings.  After a long time in a Tamil film the comedy scenes work perfectly to evoke laughter.

On the downside the baby does not look like a one day old when he is first shown and it is questionable justifying Bhagyaraj punishing an innocent child by abandoning his way word son.  The screenplay does not fully explore the real difficulties a single man will face brining up a newborn.  The writer loses his vision in the second half filling it with 80s style resolutions which are saved only due to the acting. The reason behind Aparna abandoning the child is straight out of a serial.  The song dance routine at the end is off note.

Jen Martin has utilized his songs in some of the highpoints of the screenplay that helps elevate the mements.  His background score is rich and is pleasing to the ear.  Ezhil Arasu K's lenses have got up and close to the lead players capturing the intricate expressions while Kathiresan Alagesan has provided a smooth flow of the story with his cuts.  S. Ambeth Kumar has produced the film under his banner Olympia Movies.  Debutante writer-director Ganesh K Babu has come with a relatable tale in true K. Bhagyaraj style and has given the audience a much needed break from violence and horror.  He is a welcome new addition to the new age filmmakers who have impressed with their very first works.

Verdict : Go for this refreshingly relatable youthful entertainer that is for the family too.