Yaanai Mugathaan movie review: Ambiguous writing makes this ‘faith-full’ film a half-empty watch

Faith comes in various ways. While some pray to God or the Supreme Force with full belief, others pray with questions in their mind. As someone who has always believed in God, I have often wondered if we owe God anything, or if he/she owes us anything at all. Yaanai Mugathaan tries to explore this question, and although the film has its heart in the right place, the haywire writing makes it difficult to connect with.

Director:  Rejishh Midhila
Cast: Ramesh Thilak, Yogi Babu, Urvashi, Karunakaran

Yaanai Mugathaan revolves around Ganesan (Ramesh Thilak) a lousy drunkard who owes money to literally everybody he knows. An ardent Vinayakar devotee, Ganesan keeps blaming the lord for his ‘miseries’. One fine day, the lord leaves his house and later appears in front of him in human form (Yogi Babu). Whether or not Ganesan mends his ways after God himself challenges him, forms the rest of the story.

The film starts by showing how a simple stone can also become an idol over the years as people don’t hesitate to attach faith with signs and wonders. With a very slow establishment of character and setting, we have Ganesan and Michael (Karunakaran) engaging in dialogues about faith. When Ganesan says the Vinayakar he believes in doesn’t do anything for him, Michael reiterates that living, breathing, and having the bare minimum to live itself is a blessing of God. The ideology of the film makes an appearance in moments like these.

What starts as a promising premise, slowly falls into the trap of messy writing. Although the first half is slow, the interval break prepares you to be curious. But, in no way can you predict what happens in the second half, and not in a good way. We see Yogi Babu challenge Ramesh Thilak to be a good man for a day. Ramesh too remains good for a day. Just when we think the film will come to a conclusion, it stretches for yet another 30 minutes, rather aimlessly. 

Unfortunately, we are not given clarity on the central conflict of Yaaani Mugathaan. When Ramesh’s Ganesan loses the presence of God, he yearns for his return. However, we are not able to connect to his urge because we are not given enough substance to believe that God’s absence actually affects him.

As a film starring comedy actors like Yogi Babu, Karunakaran and Urvashi, a cornucopia of comedy scenes is but expected. While some of the punches land right on our funny bones, most of the 'humour' in Yaanai Mugathaan falls flat due to a lack of ingenuity.

Remember that aimless stretch? Yaanai Mugathaan randomly moves from Chennai to Rajasthan, and we just wonder why. Of course, there are picturesque shots of Jaipur, and there’s an elaborate stretch showcasing Ramesh’s attempts to be a ‘reformed’ person. But why Rajasthan? Not every second exploration of the self needs to be a 'Life of Ram' redux, especially when there is no payoff. 

The very last confrontation between Yogi Babu and Ramesh Thilak conveys the message of the film, “God is inside all of us.” While the message is a well-intentioned one, the aimless writing makes the denouement unsatisfying. With thought-provoking morals about faith and belief, Yaanai Mugathaan surely aimed to give us a meaningful film, but where did they go wrong with execution? God only knows.