In Kana Kandein, Anand has weaved childhood friendship blossoming into a beautiful relationship against the backdrop of a chilling thriller. The on-screen chemistry between Srikanth and Gopika is a treat to watch especially in the first half. And Pritviraj the tall, handsome bad guy is a revelation. Other highlights are Vivek and his comedy track that brings the house down plus the outstanding music and background score of Vidyasagar.

Bhaskar(Srikanth) is a research student who goes to his village to attend the wedding of his childhood friend Archana (Gopika). But the marriage does not take place and Bhaskar is forced to bring her to Chennai where they live together. But slowly both of them reveal their deep love for each other which they were never able to express for years.

Bhaskar becomes successful in his research to make saline sea water into drinking water and he gets a doctorate for it. However, he is not willing to sell the patentcy for the invention to big players for an astronomical amount. Bhaskar wants the ordinary man to enjoy the benefit of it as hence tries to give a proposal to the government which does not materialize due to corruption in our system.

Archana however is not willing to give up and motivates her husband to start a plant on their own and prove to the world but lack of finance is their main problem. It is at this time that Archana meets Madan (Pritviraj) a sophisticated, businessman and smooth talker who was her senior in college. Soon Madan promises to help the couple who trusts him blindly. But Madan is not what you see as he is a cold blooded money lender who turns out to be ruthless and mean. All this leads to a dark and potent twist in the tale and a chilling climax.

Srikanth as Bhaskar pitches in with his best-ever performance as a research student and Gopika is natural and has been photographed well. Her large eyes are her biggest asset and she knows how to use them to her advantage. Be it her romantic scenes with her husband or her outburst at Madan’s office, she is superb. Pritiviraj as Madan is riveting, mean, diabolic and malevolent he plays the fiend to perfection. Vivek’s comedy is superb and Vidyasagar’s songs and Anand’s picturisation along with Sounderajan’s camera is simply amazing.

On the downside the film is a bit lengthy in the second half and some loopholes in the story. Still Kana Kandein is a riveting thriller that is worth your time and money.

Verdict: Good