Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga Movie Review: Questionable choices drown out the superficially good intentions

Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga Movie Review:

Intent. For a really long time now, many films have been given a certain sense of leeway because they had their heart in the right place. Even when the execution faltered, these films were excused because they might have told a story that needed to be said. But the thing with such intent-heavy films is that they also run the risk of laying bare the fallacies of the said intent. There is a thin line between representation and sensationalism, and many a time, it is on this front that the intent cookie finally crumbles. Director Dinesh Lakshmanan’s Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga is, unfortunately, one such film that builds its case gradually, albeit exhaustingly, only to come down like a house of cards. 

Director: Dinesh Lakshmanan

Cast: Arjun, Aishwarya Rajesh, Anikha, Praveen Raj

Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga opens with the gruesome murder of writer Jebanesan (Logu NPKS) on a lonely road, in the middle of the night, by someone wearing a black suit, black shades, and a black helmet. Is it a serial killer? Why was the writer in tears when talking to his daughter? Why was he killed so brutally? Even as these questions crop up, we are introduced to Inspector Magudapathy (Arjun), a no-nonsense cop, who casually reads the book, “Hidden Evidence”. The film wastes no time in plonking Magudapathy right in the middle of this murder, and he is assigned the case since it happened in his jurisdiction. So far, so good, and I hoped this feeling would stay longer… Alas!

Writer-director Dinesh isn’t interested in dishing out a simple investigation drama. He wants to build layers around it to flummox the audience, but the route taken is so convoluted that it is not just uninteresting, but makes us think if we really want to know who killed Jeba, or what connects him to the city’s big shot and a construction company owner, Varadharajan (Ramkumar). 

We are shown two friends, Adhi (Praveen Raja) and Prankster Rahul’s character. While the former has a sleep therapy job that helps him treat snoring in patients, the latter has nothing better to do than just tag along with his friend. Oh, Rahul’s character is also given the tag of being an ‘aunty’ hero, who believes he can charm any middle-aged woman in his area. This is seemingly milked for comedy purposes, and Magudapathy would have had a tougher job investigating the case of the missing laughs. 

Soon enough, we are introduced to Meera (Aishwarya Rajesh), a teacher at a school for autistic kids, who also doubles up as the love interest of Adhi. Of course, it is clear as day that this profession of Meera isn’t a random choice. It is even clearer that Meera isn’t going to be just a docile teacher. It is all the more clear that Jebanesan isn’t what the world thinks him to be. And then, one thing leads to another, and we are told that an ugly-looking building with questionable safety features holds the answers to all the questions, including the accidental death of a young girl a few months back. 

Now, on paper, these ideas should have worked, especially since the film is heavily inspired by a real-life case that shocked the collective consciousness of a nation. But the way the narrative unfolds is where the problems start compounding. The way random scenes like the one involving a hidden camera, a suspecting husband, an innocent wife, and a message-spouting Magudapathy rears its unnecessary head. The romantic sojourn of Adhi and Meera is so one-note and supremely bland that even when it fleetingly makes sense later, the gnawing boredom doesn’t go away.

Although the final act has a semblance of redemption, all of it becomes a moot point courtesy of the lack of sensitivity that belies the intent of the film. In fact, despite the earnestness of Aishwarya Rajesh and Arjun, who can sleepwalk through such roles, the film doesn’t really work because there is only so far that intent can take a film. It also doesn’t help that the film feels amateurish in a few places, especially with its unnecessary detours into ‘fun’ zones, the introduction of the antagonists, and the investigation that is so convenient that it takes the zing away from police procedurals. Remember how we used to have investigative dramas that used the personal diary to solve crimes? Here, we have a manuscript that conveniently presents itself to our protagonist. Come on!

Also, it is high time filmmakers get the memo that showcasing sexual violence on screen needs to be done with a lot of care. Even though actor Anikha, who plays the young girl, delivers the best performance in the film, her character deserved an empathetic lens, and not what this film decides to use. It is the latest to join the list of films that believe the audience needs to ‘see’ what happened to ‘understand and empathise’ with what happened. If the depiction of sexual violence is one problem, the flippant gaslighting that happens to a single mother, played by Abhirami Venkatachalam, is another major problem. For all its showboating, Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga actually hands every woman character in the film a raw deal. They are either silenced by fear or need a male saviour to swoop in to save the day. Even the heartfelt monologues are shallow because the film never gives us space to create an emotional bond with characters that are undergoing immense turmoil. The film keeps them superficial, and us, at arm’s length. 

The film needed a lot more finesse to tell a story that definitely had the potential. It also needed a lot of clarity in the path it took to make a pertinent point. Theeyavar Kulai Nadunga ends up being a half-baked vigilante film that had a good idea, and decided to run with it, hoping that intent would save the day. Unfortunately for everyone involved… today isn’t that day.