Madura Veeran movie review: A decent if not fitting tribute to Tamil pride

Film: Madura Veeran
Director: PG Muthaiah
Cast: Shanmuga Pandian, Samuthirakani, Meenakshi, Vela Ramamoorthy, G. Marimuthu and PL Thenappan
Rating: 2.5/5

When Madura Veeran was announced sometime last year, it felt like the makers were going to cash in on the Jalikattu protest that rocked Tamil Nadu. Thankfully, the film doesn’t piggyback on the Jallikattu protest, but instead chooses to narrate a story that uses the Jallikattu backdrop and pays decent tribute to Tamil pride. It’s also one of the Jallikattu-based films where we don’t see the hero (Shanmuga Pandian) take part in the protest; neither does he use the sport to prove his masculinity, which is a welcome relief.

After cranking the camera for films such as Poo and Kanden Kaadhali, Muthiah makes his directorial debut with this decent rural entertainer. Muthaiah merely uses the Jallikattu backdrop to discuss about caste-based politics and how it’s still prevalent in several parts of Tamil Nadu. In just over two hours, he succeeds in telling a story that, while asking the right questions about caste and honour, also makes for an engaging watch. The writing needed coherence, especially how most scenes in the first half come across like they were added without any purpose. Nevertheless, it’s not one of those directorial debuts we can easily be written off, for Muthiah shows promise which is sure to take him a long way.

The story revolves around Shanmuga Pandian, who wants to avenge the death of his father. Vijayakanth’s son Shanmuga Pandian does a decent job of rising up to the occasion but definitely needs to polish his acting skills. He’s effective in the action scenes and thanks to his tall structure can land a kick on someone’s chest and it looks majestic on screen. Samuthirakani plays the father and he easily elevates the film with his terrific performance. As the do-gooder, he makes us see people beyond their caste. Some of the scenes featuring Samuthirakani might feel preachy, but they are hard-hitting and can stir up a discourse.

Madura Veeran shines in parts, but the sum of the parts isn’t effective enough to make us praise the overall intent.

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