Veeramae Vaagai Soodum HD Released

 

Veeramae Vaagai Soodum (VVS) begins with a prologue that intercuts between three events. A gang is on its way to mete out punishment to a man they have kidnapped. The other two involve a group of youngsters and a few small-time criminals lying in wait for someone. The film's highlight is how director Thu Pa Saravanan lets these three tracks unfold simultaneously and brings them together eventually.

But before that, we are introduced to Porus (Vishal, adequate), who is waiting to join the police force, and his family — his father (Marimuthu, playing a softer character for a change), a lowly constable, who merely follows his superior's orders; his mother (Thulasi, in a routine role), a typical middle-class housewife; and his college-going sister Dwaraka (Raveena Ravi, poignant). Then, there is his friend (Yogi Babu) and girlfriend Mythili (Dimple Hayathi, okayish), a bank employee. Dwaraka is being harassed by Guna, the brother of a local rowdy, and this conflict reaches a point in which the girl attempts suicide.

Meanwhile, we get two subplots. One involves Parisutham (Elango Kumaravel, affecting), who is waging a lone battle against a factory owned by Nedunchezhian (Baburaj, underwhelming), a rich gangster-type who is hoping to enter politics, that is contaminating his village. Then, there is Divya, who has to fend off four boys in college with powerful links, who have shot an obscene video of her.

All three tracks escalate to a point where the villains in each end up humiliated and are eager to hit back. But then, there is a mix-up and Dwaraka becomes an unfortunate victim. With hardly any clue as to who might have harmed her, can Porus track down the ones responsible for her death, especially when the killer is tying up loose ends fast?

Plot-wise, VVS is very much in the zone of recent Vishal films like Irumbu Thirai and Chakra — an ordinary man who has to find out the identity of a criminal who is as clever as him. In place of cyber crime and robbery from the previous films, here, we have a corrupt industrialist and gangsters. And as in those films, the protagonist goes after them for a personal reason. It is not as effective as Irumbu Thirai but is certainly an improvement over Chakra. The manner in which Saravanan escalates the tension in all the three tracks keeps us hooked. And in the second half, the film becomes a cat-and-mouse game with both the protagonist and the antagonist trying to outwit the other.

VVS is definitely engaging as long as it sticks to this core plot. There is suspense and thrills and we are also emotionally invested because Saravanan has managed to set-up the family of Porus in convincing fashion. This is why we feel like we are watching a robust action drama.