Navarasa Review: Thunintha Pin - Sarjun-Atharvaa's film bites more than it can chew

When it’s evident that a filmmaker has shot day for night, your suspension of disbelief gets ruined. A chunk of the early portion of this film is hampered by this. It’s a film that bites a lot more than it can chew in its 30-odd-minute duration. It tries to present to you the courage of a Naxal leader but is cautious not to belittle the courage of officer Vetri (Atharva).

Rasa: Veeram (Courage)

Director: Sarjun KM

Cast: Atharvaa, Anjali, Kishore

Streaming on: Netflix

Meanwhile, there’s a wife (Anjali)—pregnant, so you can feel more empathetic towards her—who’s waiting for her missing husband to return. The story is by Mani Ratnam, so it’s quite hard to shake off the Roja echoes in these spaces, even if this film barely matches up to that one. Meanwhile, this idea of an officer and a Naxal having an ideological battle inside a jeep feels interesting on paper, but sparks don’t fly during the actual conversation.

The real problem is how, with all the jumps in time and perspective, the small ideas don’t really come together to make a riveting whole. Perhaps the biggest indictment is how even though guns are shot, blood is shed, and sacrifices are made, not once do you feel the rise that a true act of courage invariably makes you feel.