Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (Tamil, 2017)

Through the film, based on true events from 2000’s, Writer-Director Vinoth presents the chilling episodes of robbery in a fashion that’s disturbing (in a good way!) and the arduous methods required to be adopted by the police in a way that lets us respect & appreciate the men behind the work.

Karthi, as the ‘never-say-die’ officer Theeran, sets the screen on fire exhibiting a fiery performance and makes us believe the respect he earns from his fellow ‘boys’ in the operation (the prominent face of Bose Venkat among others).

The robbers’ group is a sure-shot casting coup by Vinoth! Oma (played by Abhimanyu Singh), Kali and the entire clan fascinates the viewer with their ruthless ways and the backstory that offers explanation on why they are the way they are takes the tale away from being a mere ‘revenge’ story

The detailing vindicates the abundant research that has gone behind the case and the very setup of the case as presented (moving across states) brings about the intriguing aspects of the complexities that run deep-rooted with a country like India & also allows us to appreciate the technical advancements of today that have come to be of help to police investigations!

The technical trio that hogs the limelight involve Sathyan Sooryan’s camerawork (providing the perfect stage for the adrenaline pumping action sequences to steal the show – the one with the buses is a screamer), Ghibran’s loud but effective background score & Shivanandeeswaran’s editing that presents heavy details in a manner that is consumable.

The film takes quite a while to warm-up and set the engines revved up thanks to an uninventive romance track between the lead pair, even though the writing behind the pair tries to make up for the clichés as the relationship progresses.