Vachadu Gelichadu Review

You cannot judge Vachadu Gelichadu easily.  This is not to talk about the screenplay, which falters very badly.  This is not to make a point about the quality of performances, which are pedestrian barring Nanda's.  This is to drive home the point that the film's concept, though interesting, sounds not only clichetic but also too mawkish to be entertaining for the modern audience.

Director R Kannan comes up with a good story to begin with.  However, the format and the props leave much to be desired.  You hope that the climax will have something interesting in store for you, but the twist disappoints you.  If the first half builds up the tempo, the second half fails to sustain the momentum.  Read on to know why.

It is Ramachandrapuram in 1995 where two school-going half-brothers, one brilliant at studies and the other a dim-wit, lead a life of rivalry.  When the younger one burns the only photograph of the elder one's late father, the latter decides to kill him by throwing him into a well.

Cut to the present, Arjun (Jiiva) comes to Mumbai to meet Ramana (Nanda), a dreaded goon.  After making his way by swindling Santhanam, a beleaguered cook at Ramana's house, Arjun begins narrating his love story to Ramana.  Why Ramana entertains him and listens to his routine love story, sans any value for him, is a question for now, which is convincingly answered towards the end.

The first half ends up giving us some sugar rush moments as well as creating an element of suspense.  Through the one hour, you keep guessing about Arjun's intention and how Ramana is related to his story.  The suspense is revealed just before the interval block: Ramana accidentally killed Anjana's (Tapsee) father during a gang war and now Arjun demands that he surrenders to the police, sine qua non his lover would not marry him.

Will Arjun finally get his revenge?  Why does Ramana tolerate the nuisance in the form of Arjun?  Is there, above all, something more than what meets the eye?  The second half satisfactorily answers all these questions, but not before subjecting you to a certain degree of torture.

Performance-wise, Vachadu Gelichadu fares ordinarily.  Jiiva delivers a dull one, with neither his emotions nor dances really impressing.  There is no depth in Tapsee's acting.  Santhanam, who tries to tickle the funny bone, is failed by the comedy scenes which hamper the pace.  Nanda, however, stands out.  He delivers a studied performance, without going over-board.

On the part of the director, he should have got his screenplay right.  There are too many chinks in the proceedings.  Songs are not placed well and are intrusive, with Thaman's music touching an all-time low.  Though sibling-relationship forms the soul of the film, emotions are superficial in the movie.

All in all, Vachadu Gelichadu fails to sustain the audience's attention in the second half, where it most needed to.