Settling scores in a bloody fashion can get you nowhere says Udhayan (U/A). It has been said several times before but director Chaplin, a Pandiraj associate, who takes off on his own for the first time tries to impart the same with a storyline that juxtaposes sickle culture of the small town with the values of an average city household, thus keeping viewer interest alive.
Udhayan is Arulnidhi's second film, and compared to Vamsam , the hero appears more sincere in his attempt to be convincing. The actual truth behind henchmen chasing the soft-spoken bank employee Vasanth (Arulnidhi) and going for his jugular, and his entry as the swaggering scythe-sporting son of a don in the latter part of the film enhances the appeal of Udhayan . Arulnidhi fares better as the ruthless young man. The quiet romantic Vasanth, who is introduced to us at the beginning, is a bit slow in dialogue delivery and lethargic in expressions.
It's surprising that the actor who is agile in stunts falters in footwork to a noticeable extent. Arul needs to go in for a crash course in dance!
When Vasanth, a manager with a bank, falls in love in a flash of a second, proposes the next moment and pursues the girl until she gives the nod, you don't guess that he is running away from his family that understands only the language of vendetta and crime. An interesting premise, though not entirely new.
Pranitha is a right choice for the part of the typical software employee from a middleclass home. Sriranjani and Pranitha make a plausible mother-daughter duo. Can't our filmmakers ever create suave villains? Loud and brash, you've seen one, you've seen them all! So much so, you actually feel sad for actors of the calibre of Ashish Vidyarti, whose immense potential goes waste playing clichés.
Though the track doesn't have to do much with the main line, comedy in Udhayan is intelligent — Santhanam stands out.
While S. D. Vijay Milton's camerawork in the cramped home of the heroine, where the lead pair plays hide and seek, is impressive, composer Manikanth Kadri's music (!) is ear-shattering.
A commercial attempt in the oft-seen genre, you groan in agony when the film opens with SUVs, knives, thugs, killer camps and crass ‘bosses.' Can't put Chaplin in the dock for it, because he also throws in a gentle romance and some suspense to bolster matters!
Udhayan
Genre: Action
Director: Chaplin
Cast: Arulnidhi, Pranitha, Santhanam, Ashish Vidyarti
Storyline: A young man tries to run away from a crime-soaked background and a past that haunts him.
Bottomline: Would have worked much better with less of the song and dance routine
