Review – Marainthirunthe Paarkum Marmam Enna

Review:
Film: Marainthirunthe Paarkum Marmam Enna
Director: R Rahesh
Cast: Dhruva, Aishwarya Dutta, Anjana Prem, Saranya Ponvannan, Mano Bala, Radha Ravi, Mime Gopi, Arul Doss, Ramachandran Durairaj and J D Chakravarthy
Music: Achu
Cinematography: P G Muthiah

Marainthirunthe Paarkum Marmam Enna (What is the mystery behind watching me in secret?) is a grim story rooted in reality. It looks to shine the light on the dangerous menace of chainsnatching that has only continued to grow with time. In fact, the team couldn’t have come up with a more suitable title for a crime story.

Jilla (Ramachandran Durairaj) is a vicious chain snatcher who takes pride in the fact that he has been in this business for over a decade. Needless to say, his confidence has reached a stage wherein he snatches chains without fear from unsuspecting, vulnerable, defenceless women.

He has had a free run, with nobody to stop either him or his boys despite the fact that they have caused grevious injuries to their victims on several occasions.

What emboldens Jilla is the fact that he is backed by Mani(Mime Gopi), a powerful gangster who heads several chain snatching gangs like that of his. What’s more, Mani also has enough connections in both the police and political circles to get his boys out of trouble everytime the law catches up with them.

One night, Jilla and his team set out for work. They work like professionals with each member of the team being assigned a particular task. One is given the job of identifying potential victims. Another determines the point at which the chain is to be snatched from the victim. This is done after he surveys the area to first ensure that there are no videocameras or factors that can hamper the getaway of criminals after they commit the crime. Then, when he gives the go ahead, a team of boys indulge in the act of chain snatching. Like most other occasions, the team succeeds this time too. But just as they are making their getaway, another chain snatcher attacks them and steals their prize from them.

Stunned and humiliated by the attack, Jilla is intent on finding out the identity of the attacker. He calls up his master, Mani, who leaves no stone unturned to find out more about the new person who has begun snatching chains. However, there are very few clues to work upon and therefore, they have no other option but to let go and wait.

They don’t have to wait for long as the newcomer attempts to strike a second time. This time, however, Jilla and his boys are prepared. They nab the newcomer and thrash him black and blue. He identifies himself as Japan (Dhurva). Japan tells them that he is a novice and that he is out to make a quick buck, which is why his plan was to steal from chain snatchers. Just when the gang is on the verge of killing him, Jilla’s boss Mani gets an idea and realises he could use Japan’s services instead of killing him. He interferes and offers Japan the opportunity to join the team. Japan takes up the offer and soon becomes part of all operations. However, Japan is reckless. He does not follow instructions nor is he a team player. He often does what pleases him and invariably causes a lot of problems to the team, which is used to working as a single unit.

During the next hunt, Japan does exactly what has been prohibited by Mani. He chooses to snatch chains on the stretch adjacent to the beach. Next, the spotter in the team picks a victim but instead of snatching her chain, Japan snatches the chain of another woman at the last minute. In the process, his bike slips and he falls. His helmet too comes off disclosing his identity. Although he manages to get away, he realises that the lady from whom he snatched the chain is the wife of a senior police officer. Needless to say, the police begin to crack down on chain snatching gangs…

Rahesh, who is making his debut as a director with this film, has done a fantastic job with regard to screenplay and dialogues. The film itself is exceptionally well made with very few drawbacks. The director seems to have done extensive research on the chain snatching gangs operating in the city and gives a detailed idea of how gangs spot victims, look for points or places where they are most vulnerable and then exploit their vulnerabilities. For instance, in the film, Jilla, while training Japan, tells him to pick only women with children as victims. Jilla says, ‘Women with children will only be worried about their children’s safety while a woman without kids will look to chase you.” He also says that only women in sarees are to be targetted as women in salwars allowed them mobility. Such details actually educate the public about the modus operandi of such dangerous gangs.

The film makes a valiant attempt to point out that these gangs are really dangerous because they have continued to thrive and flourish, even when other crimes have come down. It points out that the crime of chain snatching is not just about losing jewellery, it is much more serious in nature as often there is a chance that the victim’s neck could break.

The film also shines the light on the dirty deals that these notorious gangsters have with the cops, the jewellery shop owners and how they use stolen bikes to carry out their attacks. In fact, the kind of information that the film provides is bound to both startle you and educate you at the same time. Rahesh shows how certain jewellery shop owners tip off these gangs about certain customers who have bought huge quantities of jewellery and how these gangs, after looting these customers, sell back the same gold to the owners for a much lesser price.

The film has good performances from all the gangsters — be it Ramachandran Durairaj, Arul Doss or Mime Gopi. Radha Ravi too does a neat job of his role as always.
Dhruva emotes well but then, his dialogue delivery isn’t upto the mark. He seems to be in a hurry to deliver his lines and that makes his performance a less than perfect one. Aishwarya Dutta, who plays Bharathi, a police trainee initially and then subsequently, an officer, looks completely at sea in the role. The same can be said of J D Chakravarthy, who plays her senior in the police department. Both, for a moment, don’t even look the part.

However, the other heroine in the film, Anjana Prem, looks promising as she plays her part with conviction. Achchu’s music is good as is P G Muthiah cinematography.

On the whole, Marainthirunthe Paarkum Marmam Enna is definitely worth a watch!!!