Director Meera Kathiravan, who gave us Aval Peyar Tamizharasi, is back with Vizhithiru, starring Vidhaarth, Kreshna, Sai Dhansika, Venkat Prabhu and others. The film finally released today crossing many hurdles. The promising trailer piqued the curiosity of the audience. Does the film live up to the hype? Let’s find out.
Vizhithiru is a hyperlink cinema, on the lines of Simbu's Vaanam, where four different stories converge due to their situations. There is Kreshna, who loses his wallet, thereby not being able to travel to his native to meet his sister and ill mother. There is Venkat Prabhu and his daughter baby Sarah, who are in search of their pet dog. There is Vidhaarth and Dhansika, who escape with jewels and money from a wicked old man. Finally, there is Rahul Bhaskaran, a rich spoilt brat, who roams around with Erica Fernandes. All these stories are set on the outdoors of Chennai. What happens when these people, who are in no way connected to each other, meet? How do they meet, and how do they solve each other's problems is what Vizhithiru is all about.
Coming to the cast, Vidhaarth and Dhansika, are evident performers, who've proved their meticulousness in their previous outings. But, unfortunately, it looks like they haven't been used to their fullest best in Vizhithiru. Venkat Prabhu has given a neat performance, in a subtle manner, as a blind dubbing artist. Kreshna has a meaty role to perform, with a lot of scope for emotions, and the Pandigai actor is convincing to an extent.
Rahul Bhaskaran and Erica's story is a major worry, as the performances could've been much more effective. Though beautiful, Erica fails to make an impact as a performer, while Rahul fits the bill. Thambi Ramaiah’s monotonous body language might test the patience of a section of the audience, and his comedies don’t work for the major part. Baby Sarah is cute and expresses well, as always.
Meera Kathiravan's intention to give a strong content driven film is appreciable, and it is very much seen, through his writing. But, sadly, the film doesn't have any high points to engage the audience. The execution part is where the film falters, with a few commercial compromises and screenplay lags. The screenplay doesn’t flow as a sequence and it isn’t convincing when all the four stories come together. There’s no big tension for the viewer, when the stories converge, which should’ve ideally happened in the case of hyperlink cinema. Comparatively, Vidhaarth - Dhansika’s portion is better engaging than the others.
It is very disappointing to see an item number in a content-driven film like Vizhithiru. The song is definitely out of place. The less said about the lyrics, the better. The film lacks the much-needed emotion and the connect with the audience, possibly due to gripping scenes being on the lower side and artificially staged performances. However, a special mention needs to be accorded to the title credits sequence, which looks very creative and interesting.
The limited budget and resources are evident when we see the film. A few night shots look disturbing with pixelations and grains. The editing could have been smooth, and confined, as a few blunt jump cuts at places makes it difficult for the viewers to shift focus from one story to another.