PUGAZH

[MysteRy]

Pugazh review: Engaging

Director: Manimaran
Cast: Jai,  RJ Balaji,  Surabhi,  Karunas

Jai’s Pugazh is an engaging political action drama, where director Manimaran (Udhayam NH4) has tried his best to register the topical land grabbing issue as the core plot.
Although the film moves at a leisure pace, well-etched out characters and a solid message make this one an engaging watch.

Pugazh (Jai) is a responsible young man in the small town Walajapet,  a darling of the masses, as he is a do-gooder who is always there to help everyone in the neighbourhood. But Pugazh’s brother (Karunas) is not very happy that he keeps fighting with local bigwigs and gets into trouble. During one such small fights, Pugazh earns the wrath of a politician, Das (Marimuthu).

However the local Municipality election bridges the gap between Pugazh and Das that they even work together for the victory for of the former’s close friend Venkat. After elections, Das starts showing his real colour by illegally grabbing the local playground for a minister and an Andhra based businessman.

As the playground is an integral part of the neighborhood, Pugazh raises against the powerful politicians and the rest of the film tells us whether he succeeds in his mission or not.

Director Manimaran must be definitely appreciated for his effort in portraying the relevant illegal land grabbing issue in a realistic manner without any commercial compromises. But the screenplay is not compelling, may be a little more effort on the writing department would have made this one a classic.

Nevertheless, the film is an engaging watch for its message and the way the director has refreshingly registered the lifestyle of normal middle class people in a small town.

Jai is convincing as Pugazh but the climax could have been a bit more believable as he takes on a dozen thugs single-handedly, something too cinematic. Surbhi is cute and she delivers a good performance.

Among the rest of the actors, Karunas steals the show as the caring brother while RJ Balaji and Ananth tickles our funny bone with his comic one liner.  Marimuthu as the main villain passes muster.

Velraj’s cinematography is a big asset for the movie as he captures the small town and repeated locations with great élan while Vivek-Mervin’s music is just okay.

Overall, Pugazh is a watchable political action drama mainly for its core message. Enjoy it for the brisk action thriller that it is, and try not to think about how much better it could have been.