Quite early in the film, Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru, the audience witnesses the murder of a family by a gang of dacoits. It was as gory as it can be. The audience again witnesses a murder by the same gang, couple of scenes later. These scenes are designed to make the audience flinch. Director Vinoth, who made quite an impact with his debut, Sathuranga Vettai in 2014, doesn’t shy away from the goriness of the murders as those are to be experienced or he aims to make it prominent. It is his pragmatic approach to these scenes that makes this Karthi-starrer a riveting police drama.
This film is not just any cop film. With its tightly paced script and its competent materials, the film shines in almost all the department, especially in the action. There is no doubt that Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru will be hailed as one of the most intensive action film in Karthi’s career, a s they are fantastically shot and executed especially the scene that unfolds in a moving bus and then and then shifts to the top of the vehicle. It was remarkable transition and kudos to the action director and Karthi himself.
It is these breakneck pace and gritty scenes that help to hold the audience’s focus, shifting it from the length of the film, which is massive. The pace will keep you completely hooked, even though the usual flying of cars and vehicles makes it somewhat unbelievable and clichéd for the audience.
However, Vinoth’s detailing also helps to set the film apart from its usual counterpart. The film is based on true events on the operations carried on by the Tamil Nadu Police to catch a criminal gang belonging to the Bawaria tribe a decade ago. The officer who actually led the operation, SR Jangid, acted as a consultant to the filmmakers. It is Vinoth’s ability that he held up every nuances of a police operation, giving a more or less realistic representation of the actual event. It is for this representation that film becomes instantly likable and laudable. Rarely there comes a film that is able to portray the cops, exactly, rather than dramatizing them or underplaying them.
A lot of research has gone into the making often film and it is clearly visible in the screenplay. As a director Vinoth shines, but it is Karthi’s performance that stands out. He imbues the character of the cop in utymost passion and enthusiasm. He moves through the action scenes seamlessly, giving us one of the best cops, on-screen, to grace Indian cinema. Along with Karthi, Abhimanyu Singh’s role as a dacoit is nothing but a steep competition. If Karthi as a cop shines, Abhimanyu as the dacoit shines brighter. He becomes that ruthless character and never overplays the character or reaches a point of caricature.
The romantic scenes drag the film down, which frankly, could have been easily avoided. All in all, Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru is a remarkable crime drama with its edge-of-the-seat storyline and action scenes.