Sardar is an action thriller film written and directed by PS Mithran and produced by S Lakshman Kumar under the banner Prince Pictures. The film has Karthi, Raashi Khanna, Rajisha Vijayan in the lead roles while Laila, Chunky Pandey, Munishkanth, Rithvik and others play supporting characters. The film has music by GV Prakash Kumar and cinematography by George C Williams.
Karthi plays the role of Vijay Prakash who is fond of being the centre of attention, and falls in love with Shalini (Raashi Khanna). To redeem himself from a personal issue that he's facing, he decides to take up the challenge of retrieving a few important files related to RAW. On the other hand we have ex-RAW agent Sardar who is held captive in Bangladesh for certain reasons. How did Sardar end up there? What is the connection between Sardar and Vijay Prakash? Watch the film to know.
Director PS Mithran's movies always have a strong social cause behind it. It was the issue of privacy and data theft in Irumbu Thirai, in Hero it was the education system and in Sardar, he takes up the issue of how water being sold to the common people is one of the unhealthiest practices. He cleverly blends this with the story of an espionage and gives us a film that is gripping for most parts.
The film is self aware right from the start. It wants to have the elements of a commercial film, but at the same time, is aware of when things start lagging. Which is why Karthi's introduction song is cut short. The romance angle is present but the film never invests or commits to it. It knows that there's something bigger on which the attention should be.
Karthi is fantastic in both the roles and exhibits variety to differentiate the characters. While he's aggressive and brash as Vijay Prakash, he's slow and the acting is more nuanced when he is Sardar. While his chemistry with Raashi Khanna is less interesting, it's the complete opposite with Rajisha Vijayan who scores well in whatever little screen time she gets. Her eyes are earnest and emote so beautifully. Munishkanth and Rithvik's performances too leave an impact on us.
GV Prakash's music amps up the film at the right places and keeps us on the edge of our seats. George C Williams' cinematography is stylish in terms of the colours and framing, while the editing is also fantastic. There's a scene in the second half where Sardar is revealed to the audience... The way the scene has been staged is a sample for the quality of visuals.
Overall, Sardar ends up as a technically brilliant film that has goosebumps moments at regular intervals. The writing by PS Mithran's team is neat and reflects the clarity of thought. And more than anything the film's noble message must also be appreciated.