‘Nagaram Marupakkam’ - neat entertainer by Sundar (IANS Tamil Review)

Film: “Nagaram Marupakkam”; Director: Sundar C; Cast: Sundar C, Anuya, Vadivelu, Srinivasan, Bose Venkat; Producer: Avni Cinemax; Music: Thaman; Rating: two and half

Sundar C. returns to his original profession with “Nagaram Marupakkam” (the other side of the city). The filmmaker, who has turned a hero, has ventured into direction after almost five years. His comeback is decent as the film has come out as a neat entertainer.

The story is about Gate Selvam (Sundar C) who comes out of jail and wants to turn a new leaf. However, Chakkara Pandi, his close friend in the police department (Bose Venkat), deceives him and puts him back into the criminal track. Selvam, who could not see through his friend’s intentions, takes the risk to help his friend.

Meanwhile, Selvam meets Bharathi (Anuya) who is in a sorry state. Love blossoms between them and Selvam wants to say good-bye to his criminal activities. But he has gone too far to defend his friend and hence finds it quite difficult to get rid of the underworld.

Can he discard his past successfully? Does he realize the ulterior motives of his friend, who wants to use him to earn money through illegal methods? Can he marry Bharathi? Watch the movie to know the results.

Sunder C., the director, hasn’t opted for a fresh story or a new backdrop. We have seen the same backdrop with the same storyline (a dada wanting to lead a normal life getting haunted by his past) umpteen number of times. But Sunder C. scores with his racy screenplay with a lot of interesting twists in it. The way he has handled the scenes is commendable.

The hotel scene for example, is quite impressive. The way the protagonist falls into the trap of the police officer has been depicted well. The sub plots involving some fringe rowdies and smuggler Bhai (G. Srinivasan) are well connected with the main narrative. The camerawork is adequate while the music is just about okay.

Vadivelu’s comedy track creates some laughter though he goes overboard in a few scenes taking too much comical liberty.

Sundar C. has underplayed his character which doesn’t have any heroism. There are no punch dialogues or gravity defying stunts. He comes as an ordinary man, who happened to be a rowdy.

Anuya, who has the girl-next-door appearance, handles her character well. Veteran G. Srinivasan as smuggling gang leader is a delight to watch. Bose Venkat as the wily cop is the pick of the lot.

The pre-climax portion is too long for the comfort of viewers. The friendship, which is the major reason for which he takes lot of risks, hasn’t been established strongly.

Despite such flaws “Nagaram” works because of its racy script and neat execution.