Though old-fashioned, Thirumurugan’s story telling and the manner in which he has been able to bring out the emotions from his lead actors deserves to be applauded.

Tirumalai (Nassar) alias Emttan is a self made, hardworking provision store owner. He is a sort of a tyrant who does not believe in expressing his love or affection to his family. His son Krishna (Bharath) is a victim of his anger and frustrations in life as he does not hesitate to humiliate the boy in his college or beat him up in front of others.

Krishna on the other hand is a nice guy who does not speak his mind nor react to his father’s barbarian acts. Krishna’s friend at college (Gazala) tries to help him out, but he prefers to stay with the family consisting of his loving mother (Saranya), sister (Remya) and uncle (Vadivelu). In fact it is his uncle, who is his biggest supporter and pillar of strength during his difficult times.

The single ray of hope in Krishna’s life is his deep love for cousin Janani (Gopika) in his village whom he has not seen for10 years after a family fight. But when his grandfather dies, Krishna goes with the family and meets Janani his childhood sweetheart.

In a weak moment, the lovers are caught unaware by the entire family as they hug and kiss each other. This creates a furore and Emttan throws Krishna out of the house.

But Krishna against all odds marries Janani, starts fresh by acquiring a job and comes up in life through his hard work and determination. Rest of the film is how Krishna is finally able to speak up and bring about a change in his morose father.

There are many scenes in the film which stays in your mind. The one when Emttan goes on work to Madurai, the mother and son let their hair down and goes on a visit to their family home or the death scene of the grandfather. The romantic scenes between Krishna and Janani have also been well-worked out.

Thirumurugan has extracted spell-binding performance from his lead actors and supporting cast. Every single actor in the film is life-like and you automatically become a part of their large family. Nassar is top class while Saranya is so lovable.

Bharath is maturing with each film. He inhabits Krishna with consummate ease, you can feel the yearning for love and respect from his father. The dignified manner in which he confronts Emttan in the end is truly amazing.

Vadivelu is extraordinary and he is there in almost every frame. He excels not only in light hearted comedy scenes but is great in emotional scenes. His confrontation scenes with Emttan are a super treat. Gopika once again proves that she is a natural in front of the camera.

The biggest strength of the film is the background score and songs by Vidyasagar with “Goli Gundu…” and “Unnodu Than…” being the pick of the lot. Sevilo Raja’s camera also needs special mention.

If Thirumurugan had avoided the intense mush and melodrama in the last few reels, the film would have been far racier. At a time where many movies seem to speak from their wallets, here is one that speaks from the heart.

Verdict: Good