Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru (Tamil, 2016)

Police procedurals are not uncommon in Tamizh cinema. But most of them stray away from the investigation to delve deep into the life of the either the victim, or the assailant or the investigative officer. This is where ’Dhuruvangal Pathinaaru’ scores as it has a razor-sharp focus on the plot with only minor wisecracks populating the narrative. The writer-director and the producer deserve the plaudits for this aspect.

Rahman must actually be bored of being approached to play an investigative officer repeatedly in Tamizh cinema (Billa, Raam come to mind), yet he manages to impress every single time as he brings the necessary sophistication for the role. Kudos to him for accepting to do this under a debutant and also underplaying throughout letting the plot play him many a time.

Terrific performances from the supporting characters too right from the guy who plays the smart constable to the guy who has a conversation with Rahman in the present to the henpecked husband to the multiple constables to bring out the authenticity of the police station setting. Even Delhi Ganesh who plays a miniscule role adds so much given his natural reaction to a shocking news. The short film crew is a nice touch too given the amount of such folks roaming on the streets these days.

For a relatively fresh team, the technical work is astounding. The sound design by Sachin Sudhakaran and Team are so good that they give the creeps with the eerie dark setting amidst a harsh downpour. Jakes Bejoy’s score adds to the grim setting and he underplays effectively. The brothers Sujith & Sreejith Sarang work fantastically in tandem with their respective cinematography and editing departments being less gimmicky and more focused on bringing out the complex plot with clarity.

A whodunit thriller can become underwhelming if the rug is pulled from under the feet at the climax. It is often a tight rope to walk but it is amazing to see the maturity and conviction with which Karthick Naren has handled it. The success often lies with the subtle utterances and the making and it is here that Karthick has excelled by embellishing each scene with tremendous detail that keeps the audience engrossed. Even the typical red herring scenario is well handled placing the exact amount of doubt in the audience’s mind without overdoing it.

A fresh cast generally helps an investigative thriller as it is tough to come to predetermined decision about the perpetrator. However, when almost the entire cast is fresh the impact of the crime is not fully felt by the audience. A known face here and there within the boundary of the crime would have made the audience root for vengeance more than what actually transpired.

In spite of the plot and the making compensating, there are multiple occasions where one feels the need for a more punchy dialogue. It is perhaps here where there is room for improvement for the young writer in Karthick.