Second outing is a crucial thing for any debut filmmaker who
has given a block-buster hit. S.R. Prabhakaran's maiden ven-ture
Sundarapandiyan was a smash hit. This time round, he has joined hands with
one-film-old Udhayanidhi Stalin who is also in a position to establish his
credentials that his debut Oru Kal Oru Kannada was not a flash in the pan.
Kadhirvelan (Udhayanidhi), an ardent Anjaneya devotee, travels from Madurai to
Kovai to set things right in his sister's (Chaya Singh's) life. There he falls
for Pavithra (Nayanthara), his sister's neighbour. It was love at first sight
for Kadhir and he fore-goes his bachelorhood and follows Pavithra who works in
a TV showroom. However, she tells Kadhir not to pursue her as she has a soft
spot for Goutham (Sundar Ramu) who is her long-time friend. When Kadhir
realises Goutham's real intention of merely having a good time with Pavithra
and drop her after he achieves it, he decides to stay back to win Pavithra's
heart. But he has several hurdles to cross to attain his goal. His
brother-in-law (Bharath Reddy) is at constant logger-heads with Pavithra's
father (Jayaprakash). Also Kadhir's father (Naren) is dead against love
marriages and for this very reason, he disowns his daughter when she marries a
boy of her choice. How our simple hero overcomes his problems with the help of
his loyal 'friend in need is a friend indeed' essayed by Santhanam forms the
rest of the story. Udhayanidhi has improved a lot in his acting and dancing
abilities from his debut venture. His success mainly lies in the fact that he
chooses uncomplicated scripts that
would go well with his demeanor, and keeps 'Comedy King'
Santhanam as his company throughout the screen space. So, here in IRK also, he
makes no mistakes and it works to a large extent. Santhanam is the scene-stealer
and is the strong pillar of the movie, although some of his humour is
repetitive. Despite her de-glam role, Mayan appeals and does a neat job.
Saranya is as usual a doting mother; Naren, Bharath Reddy and Chaya Singh do
what was expected of them. There's hardly any-thing by way of story. The
sub-plots are plain and there are no surprising twists. With an ordinary
screenplay, one wonders if it was the same director who gave us the notable
film Sundarapandiyan. And why would Sundar blurt out his dirty motives towards
Mayan to a friend in a crowded coffee shop which makes every head turn? Although
Harris Jayaraj's tunes give a feeling of (1011 vu, they are still hummable.
Balasubramaniem's visuals are exotic. The movie drags a bit and needs urgent
trimming.
