Care of Kaadhal movie review: Charming and faithful remake of C/O Kancharapalem
Care of Kaadhal is one of those films that leave you with a rewarding experience only if you’ve patiently waited for the end, and the way the stories culminate makes for a moving experience.
Care of Kaadhal
Director: Hemambar Jasti
Cast: Vetri, Karthik Rathnam, Ayra, Mumtaz Sorcar and Nishesh
Hemambar Jasti’s Care of Kaadhal - which features four stories of love and longing, set in a small town – is a charming and mostly faithful remake of the heartwarming C/O Kancharapalem. These love stories featuring characters across different age groups are very familiar tales, but what makes them stand out, is the way they come together in the end.
Care of Kaadhal is one of those films that leave you with a rewarding experience only if you’ve patiently waited for the end, and the way the stories culminate makes for a moving experience.
The story is centered on a 49-year old yet-unmarried peon and a 42-year-old widow officer who has recently joined the office. An unlikely bond develops between them and they start to like each other. But at their age, what they seek is companionship and not love. Velu, a school kid, has a crush on his classmate Sunitha, and he goes out of the way to impress her. Bhargavi, an upper class girl in her 20s, falls head over heels for Joseph, who works as a henchman for the local rowdy cum councilor. Dhaadi, who works in a liquor store, falls head over heels for Salima, who is a sex worker.
The film cuts back and forth between these stories and it is filled with both heartwarming and gut-wrenching moments. But the film never gets too heavy for viewing as it maintains a lighthearted treatment except for some scenes that hit us like a ton of bricks. In one of the scenes, Dhaadi, without judging his girlfriend for being a sex worker, silently places a packet of condom in her hand and asks her to take care. It’s a beautiful scene which is also a reminder about how many men would accept a woman in such situations.
The film talks about love having no age barriers and it makes this point beautifully through the story of the peon and his widow officer. The segment featuring Bhargavi and Joseph which meets an upsetting end is slightly contrived as it talks about religion being the villain in their relationship.
Unlike the original, Care of Kaadhal is set in Madurai which is a bigger city than Kancharapalem. In C/O Kancharapalem, the city played a character by itself but it isn’t the case with the remake. Another aspect where the remake fails to match the original is in the casting. The original introduced 86 debutant actors and each character looked so authentic on screen. Apart from these few minor grouses, Care of Kaadhal works as effectively as the original and it leaves you smiling in the end.
Get more updates from Bollywood, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.