Dhwaja

Dhwaja and Janardhan are twins, both poles apart in their ambitions and approach towards life. The tough Dhwaja wants to be a politician and he lands a chance to find his aspirations fulfilled. He finds his biggest hurdle in the person closest to him. What happens then?

This is the official remake of the Tamil hit Kodi, so much so that they have retained the title, the background score and most of the narrative. Of course, there are a few improvisations, like ensuring one of the female lead's onscreen character is named Ramya, because of her political dreams, and also a climax that is different from the original.

The film is a drama set against a political backdrop. It also has two love stories, one of them involving Janardhan, the younger twin, and an egg seller named Mahalakshmi. The other is between two aspiring politicians, Dhwaja and Ramya. The film has a lot of emotions, action and drama that makes the political world seem rather murky to be a part of. Amid all this is a tale of love, heartbreak and revenge in Dhwaja and his family's life.

The film has a decent mix of commercial elements and is mounted on a large scale. Although one cannot help compare it to the original at most times. The film is colourful and is technically strong, but one misses the magnetic charisma that an actor like Dhanush brings to the big screen. While newbie Ravi tries his earnest best and has tried to ape Dhanush's mannerisms, one can't help recalling Dhanush and his performance in the original. His two female leads, though, are extremely competent and Priya Mani is one of the reasons one remains engrossed to the screen, even though the second half seems to lag a little.

This film has good visuals, an interesting tale of love and betrayal against a political backdrop, and a lot of commercial elements. If you're someone looking for that, this might just interest you.