| Director:
Pushkar- Gayatri |
 |
|
Cast: Arya, Pooja, Lal, John Vijay, Jegan, Ashwini, Nellai
Siva |
|
Genre: Drama |
 The
film centers on an auto driver's roller-coaster ride through the
rough lanes of life, and his highs and lows, all narrated in a
matter-of-fact casual way. There may not be many low points in
the narration. But then there are no high points either.
So, while Chandru (Arya), one of the fastest auto drivers round
the lane, indulges in illegal races when he wants to make a fast
buck; goes through the ups and downs in his relationship with
mentor Bigle (Lal); seduces and discards Bigle's cousin and
intended bride Rani (Pooja); reels under debts and loses his
auto; and the race to his rival 'son of a gun' (John Vijay going
jarringly overboard with his act), we watch it all with
disinterested objectivity. For we neither feel empathy towards
Chandru's plight nor elation when his fortunes turn around
overnight.
Arya plays Chandru with casual
ease bringing out the wild shades in the character effectively.
Lal as Bigle and Jegan as 'Supply' give necessary support.
Pooja could have been better
utilised than the few scenes she gets. Some of the lines are
off-colour and make you squirm in embarrassment. The
half-a-dozen songs thrust in haphazardly also break whatever
pace the narration has. Again, there is a lot of talk about
auto-racing, but the couple of races shown hardly generates any
interest or thrill.
 The
ending is a bit abrupt too. The makers seem to have taken
inspiration from the English film 'Fast and Furious' where late
night illegal motor racing formed the plot.
One can appreciate the debutant
director duo of Pushkar and wife Gayatri attempting to break
away from the routine format and trying a different approach.
But there is not much that involves a viewer here.
Malini Mannath
|
