Review: Vishwanath & Sons

Film: Vishwanath And Sons
Starring: Suriya, Mamitha Baiju, Radhika Sarathkumar, Raveena Tandon
Written and Directed by Venky Atluri
Producers: Suryadevara Naga Vamsi & Sai Soujanya
Banners: Sithara Entertainments & Fortune Four Cinemas & Srikara Studios
Music: G.V. Prakash Kumar
Director of Photography: Nimish Ravi
Editor: Navin Nooli
Executive Producer: Yalamanchili Gopala Krishna (Nani)
Rating: 3.5 stars

After having swept audiences off their feet with his financial crime thriller ‘Lucky Bhaskhar’, director Venky Atluri comes up with a new age family drama in Vishwanath And Sons — a film that is fairly entertaining and reasonably engaging.

The film is about a super successful, wealthy middle-aged man Vishawanth (Suriya) who is a devout son and also an olympic gold medallist in shooting. Vishwanth’s mother (Radhika Sarathkumar) is proud of her son and has every reason to be. After all, her son looks after her like a queen and takes great care to ensure every wish of hers is fulfilled. Did I say “every wish”? Well, almost every wish, for there is this one wish of hers that he hasn’t fulfilled and that is her desire to see him get married and produce a heir to ensure that the family lineage continues.

Vishwanath has no interest in marriage but he sees reason in his mother’s wish for a child to continue the family line. Therefore, he prudently chooses to have a child through a surrogate mother in the US, cleverly eliminating the need to have a woman in his life. A year later, he returns home with his son.

Although his mother is not entirely satisfied with the way her son has got her a grandchild, she is nevertheless happy that she now has a grandson. The family celebrates the arrival of its newest member and life turns pleasant for Vishwanath.

However, a few months later, they discover the child has a medical problem which will require one of his parents to donate their bone marrow to him. Unfortunately, Vishwanath’s bone marrow does not match the baby and it becomes evident that the surrogate mother’s bone marrow is what can save the child.

So, Vishwanath goes to the US in search of the surrogate mother, a final year medical student called Maddy (Mamitha Baiju) who agrees to come to India to save the child if she is paid 75,000 Dollars as fee for her troubles. Vishwanath pays and gets her to India. What happens after her arrival at the Vishwanath household is what the story is all about.

The biggest plus and the strongest factor in favour of the film is the manner in which Suriya’s character has been written. It is evident from Vishwanath’s character how Venky Atluri envisions an ideal man.

Strong, independent, fearless, successful on the one hand and at the same time, balanced, patient, kind, helpful and responsible on the other. Suriya is all of these.

In particular, the manner in which he has a special phone, just to receive calls from his mom, which he picks up on its first ring, is just spot on. It shows an adorable kind of love that only boys have for their moms.

Also, the idea of Suriya opting for a surrogate woman to deliver his child and thereby eliminating the need for a wife is bound to appeal to several young men and boys who are fast losing their faith in the institution of marriage, thanks to the existing biased legal framework of the country that is loaded against men.

Mamitha Baiju as the vibrant, cheerful, vivacious Maddy, slips with into her character with effortless ease. She is the next big factor that works in favour of the film.

Radhika Sarathkumar, as Suriya’s mom, delivers a neat performance in the limited time that she is on screen.

Pleasant organic humourous sequences all through the film make this film a geniune entertainer.

On the technical front, G V Prakash’s music and Nimish Ravi’s visuals complement each other and that serves as another plus to thefilm. Navin Nooli keeps the film’s narration tight and gripping and there is not even a minute of boredom in the entire film.

On the whole, Vishwanth and Sons is a genuine feel good entertainer that leaves you leaving the cinema hall satisfied and with a smile.