Karthi and Jyotika are fresh from critically acclaimed performances in 'Kaithi' and 'Ratchasi' respectively and their combo with 'Dhrishyam'/Papanasam' fame Jeethu Joseph telegraphs an edge of the seat thriller. Does 'Thambi' meet the expectations of the audience remains to be seen?

Sathyanandam (Sathyaraj) is a sitting MLA with a clean image who fights against a corporate that is planning to take over land from a tribal community in his constituency. His rival Manimaaran (Bala) is always looking for an opportunity to tarnish his image amongst the people and sides with the corporate.  Personally, Sathyanandam's wife (Seetha) and daughter (Jyothika) are pining for his younger son Saravanan who is missing for the past fifteen years having runaway due to an unfortunate incident. A police inspector from Goa informs that Vicky (Karthi) a fraudulent youngster is the lost son and he is brought home. Vicky plans to act as the son for as long as he could and then somehow steal the huge fortune that the family owns. There is also a romantic angle with Sanjana (Nikhila Vimal) a childhood sweetheart of the original Saravanan who tries to rekindle the feelings with the imposter. Murders start to happen and everyone is a suspect and what happens next is shown with many a twist and leads to a thrilling climax.

Playing a grey shaded character is very much in Karthi's zone and he shines through in every scene be it expressing the devil in him with a glint in his eyes, trying to win the family over with fake emotions and then in the climax bewildered by the situation he lands in. In the fight scenes, Suriya's younger brother is a tornado proving once again that he is a complete package and a star actor. Sathyaraj after a long time gets to play a multidimensional character and he reminds the audience who he is in just one look he gives Karthi which is cleverly framed as the interval block. Parvathi is one more character in Jyothika's comeback that further cements her position as a towering actress maintaining a rigidness the character needs in most scenes and loosening up when the emotional scenes with the brother happen. Bala (Siruthai Siva's brother) is excellent as the politician with his own character twist while Seetha, Ilavarasu, Anson Paul and Ammu Abhirami as the younger Jyothika play the other important characters to perfection. The two most cute people on the show are the five-year-old Ashwanth (Super Deluxe kid) and the eighty-year-old Sowcar Janaki. Its a crime on the part of the writers to waste Ashwanth for an ineffective plot twist.

What works best in 'Thambi' is the thrilling climax and the scenes leading to it that throws one twist after another with most hitting the target. The grey shades of all the characters help to sustain the interest till the very end. The scenes between Ashwanth and Karthi and Sowcar Janaki and Karthi are fun-filled and provide the lighter moments.  

The biggest problem with Thambi apart from the slow-moving screenplay is the sudden change of heart of Karthi which is a big letdown. There is also a lack of nativity in the scenes and in the initial sequences, most of the character's behavior is contrived and inorganic. The emotional impact is missing in all the major tragedies in the film.

R.D. Rajasekhar's camera captures the Ooty landscape in all its glory of lakes and vegetations and the indoor lighting always gives the impression that something eerie is on the anvil. Govind Vasantha has used his signature violin bits to amplify the thrills but his songs are just functional.  V.S. Vinayak has packed in the punches with his cuts in the big reveal. Jeethu Joseph has once again gone for a 'Drishyam' type story co-written by Renzil De Silva that works well only in the latter part of the screenplay.

Verdict : Go for this well-enacted mystery thriller with more than a few effective twists.