Director: Kuzhandhai Velappan
Cast: Kreshna, Swathy Reddy, Prakash Raj, Guru Somasundaram
Kuzhandhai Velappan’s debut action thriller Aanmai Thavarael, which was on human trafficking, was an engaging fair. His present film Yakkai, a murder mystery revolving around a medical scam lacks conviction as the narration comes across as a bit derivative.
The film opens with an intriguing scene where in the middle of the night, a BMW is pushed from the 24 floor of a hospital with its chairman Dr Krishnamoorthy (Radha Ravi) at the wheels. Cut to ground, we see police officer Sahayam (Prakash Raj) at the crime scene who is in charge of the investigation. The doctor’s son Sriram (Guru Somasundaram) arrives from the US but he seems somewhat insensitive about his dad’s death, thus establishing that he is the baddie of the film.
In a parallel track, Kathir (Kreshna), a viscom student interested in photography sees a girl Kavitha (Swathy Reddy), a school teacher, at a bus stop interacting with a deaf and mute kid and it was an instant love for him. One can’t help but be reminded of Asin’s intro scene with Suriya in Ghajini. Suddenly, in a series of murders – including an auto driver, an ambulance driver and the hospital manager, a twist takes place and Kathir is exposed as the killer at the interval block. How the two stories converge at the end forms the rest.
Kreshna as the hyperactive person with a permanent grin on his face did not create the right impact. Perhaps, the problem is with the characterization. Even Swathy’s character is not etched well. Prakash Raj as the investigative cop as usual proves his versatility. Guru Somasundaram – who was critically acclaimed for his performance in Joker – plays an American returned sophisticated guy and is a total miscast. The problem with the film is the weak screenplay and a bumpy narration.
On the technical front, Yuvan Shankar Raja’s songs are adequate and the BGM is good. Cinematography by Sathya Ponmar is a plus.
