Kombaiya Pandian is the most influential and feared man in his village and the surrounding villages of Sattur, with a loyal aide Kidaari being his trump card to power over his numerous enemies. When an attempt is made to kill Kombaiya Pandian, his aides are sent scurrying to find out who could have dared to do so and a whodunit mystery unfolds and in the process, we get a look at his meteoric rise from being a thug to such a towering stature.
Language:
Tamil
Running Time:
139 min
Rating:
U/A
Release date:
02 September 2016
Directed by:
Prasath Murugesan
Produced by:
M. Sasikumar
Written by:
Prasath Murugesan
Starring:
M. Sasikumar
Nikhila Vimal
M.U. Ramasamy
Vela Ramamoorthy
Napoleon
Suja Varunee
O. A. K. Sundar
Vasu Mithra
Music by:
Darbuka Siva
Shot by:
S. R. Kathir
Editing by:
Praveen Antony
Distributed by:
Vasundra Devi Cine Films

What’s Hot

  • The rustic feel of a village revenge drama is upheld by the vividly captured moments of crucial impact to the story, thanks to the unique frames and visual angles used by S. R. Kathir, the man whose brilliance emanates from behind the camera – undoubtedly that invisible character who brings the story to life.
  • Vela Ramamurthy as Kombaiya Pandian feels so authentic with his naturally evident confidence in the way he carries himself throughout the movie. Sasi Kumar fits like a glove into his role as the rough and tough hot-headed aide of Vela. Nikhila Vimal plays Sasi Kumar’s love interest and is instrumental in adding the much needed romantic relief to an otherwise raw and violent array of events that dot the storyline.
  • Darbuka Siva’s foray as the music director is a dream start with his background score being the talk of the movie and a couple of well-paced songs that support the movie to thrive without holding it back. A mesmerizing effect on the viewers is always good to help absorb the action and Siva delivers with aplomb.

What’s Not

  • The narration of the events from the past of Kombaiya and Kidaari is done by their close aide who is also a part of the family. When it is revealed that the narrator is the only person who knew everything from the word go, it deals a low-blow to the audience who have been misled intentionally in a search for the offender from the past – a grave loss of focus indeed.
  • A non-linear screenplay can be quite tricky to handle and it seems to have caught up with the director as he tries to build suspense at more than one instance of the flash back portions – something that is a no brainer as the current state of affairs is already established each time the narration cuts back to the present day!

Badges

Acting
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Cinematography

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

'Kidaari' backed by some fine acting and technical masterclass, puts up a valiant struggle to overcome the pitfalls injected by the weak treatment meted out to a potent subject – but ends in futility as its too huge an obstacle to surmount!