Viduthalai 2 - Vetrimaaran's signature intense drama is too preachy

Vetrimaaran's 'Viduthalai'  starring  Soori, in the lead was a masterpiece that raised important questions about police brutality on the oppressed.  In the sequel the acclaimed storyteller has attempted to chronicle the rise of 'Vaathiyaar' played by Vijay Sethupathi who formed the crux of the 2023 blockbuster hit.  Will 'Viduthalai 2' complement the original or will turn out to be superfluous remains to be seen.

The first part dealt with the conflict between the police and the rebellious People's Force, the arrest of Vaathiyar, the rampage of the authorities against those who supported him etc. Vetrimaaran, in the sequel goes to great lengths to delve into the backstory of 'Vaathiyaar' such as the two men who inspired him to take up the fight against the system and his personal life.  All this unfolds in non linear fashion alongwith tense moments of the cops headed by Raghavendra (Chetan) taking Vaathiyaar deep into the forest to finish him off.  The chief secretary (Rajiv Menon) cold bloodedly plotting the proceedings also provides more tension.  All this leads to a riveting climax.

Vijay Sethupathi has yet again delivered an award worthy performance as Perumal aka Vaathiyaar.  Its a delight to watch his body language and voice modulation change according to his screen age and the various emotions his character goes through.  The ironical smile he gives when bullets riddle him in the end makes the audience root for his character, understanding its importance as an unsung hero, leader and a teacher.  Soori has very little screen time but since he is the narrator his presence is felt throughout.  His transformation from being the government's watch dog to a Vaathiyaar loyalist is convincing with the climax riding on his shoulders.  Manju Warrier is effective as a rich upper caste woman who gives up her privileges to become a communist and fight for the people's cause.  Chetan is pure evil as the egoistic cop who will kill his own men to save face.  Young Ken Karunas wins hearts as the young man who inspires the protagonist with his full blooded histrionics and bone crunching fight scenes.  The rest of the cast including Rajiv Menon, Ilavarasu, Gautham Vaasudev Menon, Thamizh and others have done their jobs well.

What works best in 'Viduthalai 2' are the first forty minutes or so that shows Vaathiyaar's dismissive attitude towards his captors (Gautham Menon and co) alternating between cuts of the revolutionary Karuppan (Ken Karunaas) whose death inspires Perumal (Vijay Sethupathi).  Similarly there is also the mentor (Kishore) and Mahalakshmi (Manju Warrier) with whom Perumal falls in love.  The scenes involving Rajiv Menon, Ilavarasu and Saravana Subbaiah who play the chief minister's close circle ready to bend the law for the sake of politics are very interesting.  The journey of Perumal from an ordinary school teacher to a communist and later on a naxalite is well developed.  The character also becomes stronger when he questions his own methods and chooses to take the right path.

On the downside Vijay Sethupathi is made to mouth communist ideologies in all the scenes he appears which is tiring after a point.  The manner in which he narrates his flashback to the cops who are going to encounter him is also not organic.  Vetrimaaran tries too hard to underline his high points thereby stretching those scenes beyond their tangibility.  A good example is the audience cleary understand why Manju Warrier has grown her hair after marriage to Vijay Sethupathi but she still goes on to explain it.  Above all the first part set the audience up for an emotional and life changing journey of Kumaresan with Perumal but sadly that has been reduced to the bare minimum. 

Ilayaraja's songs for 'Viduthalai 2' are already hits and his background score is far from his best.  Velraj has given his all to capture the various degrees of violence and difficult terrain to perfection making it an immersive experience.  The editing and the rest of the technicalities are of the highest quality.  Kudos to Elred Kumar for backing the director's vision blown out of proportion.  Vetrimaaran as usual is very clear in conveying his messages and ideologies through his films and 'Viduthalai 2' is no different.  But after sitting through the overly preachy film one feels that there is nothing fresh in 'Vaathiyaar's flashback to warrant a dedicated close to three hour long run time.

Verdict : Go for this Vetrimaaran brand of film in which Vijay Sethupathi once again shines as an actor.