Review – Kalakoothu

Name: Kalakoothu
Director: M Nagarajan
Cast: Kalaiarasan, Prasanna, Dhansika, Srushti Dange, R N R Manohar, Mahendran, Pondy Ravi and others.
Music: Justin Prabhakaran
Cinematography: P V Shankar

Director Nagaraja’s Kalakoothu is a grim tale about friendship, love and ego.

Hari (Kalaiyarasan) and Eswar (Prasanna) are thick friends, who trust each other implicitly and whole-heartedly. The reason for the special bond that exists between the two friends is that both of them have stood by each other during the loss of their dear ones. The film in fact begins at a time when the two friends were boys and in school.

Eswar, who has just lost both his parents, is dropped at school by his granddad. Initially, Hari and Eswar fight with each other. However, when Hari loses his mother, Eswar is able to empathise with him as he himself has gone through a similar situation. He therefore extends a hand of friendship and consoles Hari, who soon becomes his best friend. Soon, Eswar’s grandfather passes away and it is Hari’s turn to reciprocate the love and support that was once provided to him. The friendship thickens. Years roll by and the two grow up to be strong young men.

Hari has a college-going girlfriend called Gayathri (Sai Dhanshika), who hails from an influential family. Eswar, however, prefers to remain single as he believes anybody who gets attached to him dies. Despite Eswar’s reluctance to have a relationship, he ends up falling for Revathi (Srushti Dange) who has a crush on him. In fact, it is Revathi who proposes to Eswar. He accepts her proposal and the two start seeing each other. Just when things are all falling in place, Revathi turns a turncoat and chooses to marry another guy her dad’s picked for her. Her act of betrayal leaves Eswar crushed.

In the meantime, Eswar goes to the rescue of Hari’s school-going sister, who is harassed by the son of a corporator. Eswar gives him such a sound thrashing that the Corporator’s son’s ego gets hurt and he craves for revenge.

Almost at the same time, Gayathri’s grandad, who falls ill and is hospitalised, insists that her wedding be solemnised before he is taken for an operation. This makes Gayathri’s parents decide that they will get her married to her maternal uncle, a vicious and violent thug who does business using force. The trying circumstances demand drastic decisions, the outcomes of which are deadly…

Director Nagarajan’s film is engaging but then, there are portions one feel can be trimmed a little to make the film a lot better than what it is now.
For instance, the initial portions, where the two friends meet as boys in school could be reduced fractionally.

Then, the film has a generous dose of violence, something that is unique to the southern part of the state. The violence is so stark and in the face, that it not only induces a tinge of fear but also an aversion to such sequences. One generally gets the impression that it would have helped a lot if the violence had been toned down a bit.

On the positive side, the film has some really lovely romantic sequences. The relationship betwee Hari and Gayathri is a treat to watch. The romantic portions have a certain dignity to them, unlike how it is showcased in most other films in recent times. Dhansika as Gayathri does a fabulous job in the film. Her mannerisms, expressions and dressing all take one back to the eighties and nineties in rural parts where even those in love maintained a distance between them before wedding. Srushti Dange too plays her part to perfection. Adorable at first and despicable once she turns a backstabber, Srushti impresses.

Prasanna as Eswar and Kalaiyarasan as Hari are perfect. The casting couldn’t have been any better. Both actors are really good at what they do and they have no problems coming up with impressive performances.

On the whole, Kalakoothu is a grim tale about friendship that is rich in romance.