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Friday, April 26, 2024
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TAMIL VEPPAM
EDITOR'S PICK
Rating: **
Veppam is yet another movie attempting to depict the world of
underprivileged and the inevitable underworld that thrives along. Debutant
director Anjana, who made ad films before joining Goutham Vasudev Menon, has
made the film look slick, thanks to her narrative style and Om Prakash`s
cinematography.
The script shows her hard work, but it also betrays her shortcomings in making a
gripping movie about poor.
The beginning is interesting. It starts with young girl Revathy (Nithya Menen)
casually walking into the sea and getting drowned. It looks like a suicide, but
you cannot be sure about it as the camera follows the caption that reads `18
years back...`
Cut to the past, you see an ailing mother in a slum area struggling for her
life. Her sons are tensed, but her husband Jothi (Shimmor) is desperate for
money to buy booze. He even beats up his sons and wife and pushes off.
A stereotypical portrayal of a poor home in a slum area, you might think. Wait.
There is more shocking elements in the film. The mother eats poison. Reason? To
relieve her sons from the burden of looking after her. The father is still
unperturbed, but a good hearted neighbour comes to their rescue by taking the
responsibility of raising them.
Elder brother Balaji (Muthukumar) follows in the footsteps of his guardian and
becomes a painter, while younger Karthik (Nani) is in college.
Vishnu (Karthik) is Karthik`s best friend. Guardian`s daughter Revathy and
Karthik fall in love.
The irresponsible Jothi has now become a pimp and Viji (Bindhu Madhavi) is among
the sex workers he maintains. Vishnu falls for Viji.
Then comes Ammaji (Jennifer), a female don who rules the roost. Jothi is
dependent on her for his survival.
Vishnu wants quick money and approaches Jothi to get him some work. What happens
after that is the movie all about.
It could have been an engrossing affair with plot having interesting twists and
turns - two brothers with disturbed past, a girl, who loves a boy who is not
settled yet, an irresponsible father who becomes a pimp, a love affair of a sex
worker, the clash between underworld operators, and a mystery over drug pocket
and a murder.
But Anjana hasn`t succeeded in putting all these into a good film. The script is
slow and at times, confusing. The director takes a long time to establish the
intimacy between Karthik, Vishnu and Revathy.
The first half doesn`t move forward at all. The main conflict between the
frustrated sons and scandalous father could have been engaging. But the director
brings in too many sub-plots that dilute the overall impact.
The complex relationship between the brothers is not well etched. The build-up
about Ammaji looks funny given the way it is busted by two youngsters without
much strain.
Cinematographer Om Prakash and music director Joshwa Sridhar have added value to
the film by their creativity. Nani is a surprise package while the casting of
Bindhu Madhavi as a sex worker is interesting. Both have done their parts well.
Karthik, usually seen as software engineer in movies, takes a different role
(rustic) and does justice to it. Nithya Menon looks slim and plays her role with
ease.
Director Anjana`s narrative style is slick and smart. But she has to brush up
her skills in scriptwriting to make an engrossing movie. She has done her
homework well but her depiction is replete with stereotype scenes.
The attempt to provide us with a realistic depiction on the rougher sections of
the city falls short of expectations, as the whole effort looks like an
outsider`s view.
Overall, the movie has some positives in terms of looks and narrative style, but
it lacks the punch
