Director S R Prabhakaran’s 3rd film, after Sundarapandian and Idhu Kathirvelan Kaadhal, is Sathriyan which was earlier titled as Mudi Sooda Mannan. Kshatriyan was also the name of the Vijaykanth starrer of 1990, directed by the late Subhash.
Kshatriyan or Sathriyan denotes one of the four classes of the Hindu society that is valorous and protective in nature. Vikram Prabhu’s character is etched on those lines which kind of justifies the title with the content of the film.
That said, Sathriyan tells that once you take to wayward ways of life, your end is bound to come in through the same course and there is no escape from it. Vikram Prabhu says that the desire to make everyone fear us is more addictive and dangerous than alcohol or women which should be taken seriously and handled. Quite a pertinent thought indeed, but haven’t we seen such a premise or heard such a dialogue in many movies earlier? Yes. And hence, there is nothing new in terms of the theme in Sathriyan and you get to see the clichéd treatment for this knot which makes it predictable right from the word go.
The highlight of the film could be the scene where Manjima gives her two cents to Vikram Prabhu or the altercation between Manjima’s mom and Vikram Prabhu. The scenes are well written and exude practical wisdom.
The first half is spent in setting up the characters and the story which keeps the engagement factor at a decent level. But in the second half, the film trembles trying to establish the course it wants to travel and takes leave off the audience’s attention.
There are a few things which you wonder about their purpose in the film like the love track of Kavin or the inclusion of Yogi Babu. Humor is scant in Sathriyan but the film has a few good action scenes.
Vikram Prabhu’s Guna in Sathriyan is such that he is stoic, ruthless and deep which helps the actor in a big way. There is no way you can say that he could have emoted well because his character has all these restrained shades. Manjima has a solid role and the girl loses no opportunity to express herself. With a side parting and a confident demeanor, the girl aces her character.
There is an ensemble supporting cast in the form of Kavin, art director Vijaimurugan, Lohitaswa, Aadukalam Naren, Arul Das and others. Of them, Vijaimurugan has a substantial screen time. Although his appearance is convincing as a dada, his soft voice lets him down.
Yuvan Shankar Raja reveals that his music could up a film’s feel and the songs Maina Rendu and Parai Mele have his stamp. Other technical departments have worked in a ‘no-complaint’ mode.