Vel (surya)

Movie:  Vel

Director:

Hari

Cast:

Surya, Asin, Vadivelu, Lakshmi

Music:

Yuvan Shankar Raja

Producer:

Mogan Natarajan

Avg user rating: If you thought you’d seen the last of Hari’s Aruvaal films set in southern Tamilnadu, you’re wrong. There is still a lot more to be seen. His latest Vel has Surya playing a double role so that the director can have a city background along with his favourite milieu. There is no original bone in the film, as it is a rehash of Hari’s last releaseTamarabharani, an earlier film Ayya mixed with large doses of Telugu Murari, which established Mahesh Babu as a superstar. It has a feel and look of the 70’s and 80’s popular film fantasy of twins separated at birth, reuniting after 27 years to take on the villain! Hari has mixed the lost and found theme with large dosages of action, crass comedy, a love story, large family controlled by an old lady, a comic villain who is hell bent on vengeance, along with the set props- old feudal landlord’s bungalow (seen in all Hari movies), petrol bunk, paddy fields, police station, lorry laden with food grain, old style ambassador cars, white Sumos, characters wearing RMKV dhoties and starched white shirt, heroine in half sari etc, etc. The story- Charanraj and Saranya who have twins lose one of them while traveling between Tirunelveli and Chennai. The child stolen by a beggar for its gold chain is abandoned at the door of a rich feudal landlord. He is brought up in the family as Vel (Surya) and becomes the darling of everybody including Amudda (Lakshmi), the family head. Meanwhile the other twin grows up and becomes a private detective Vasu (Surya), who falls in love with a television hostess ‘7 Up’ Swati (Asin). At the same time Vel is given a tough time by Sankarapandi (Kalabhavan Mani), a former minister and local strongman who has his own axe to grind. The twins meet, swap their roles and unite to fight the villain, forms the rest of this predictable yarn. Surya in a dual role as an angry young man and a cool dude with a comic sense has pitched in with yet another fantastic performance. It is the cool dude sort of role which suits him more than being an action hero fighting a dozen guys at the same time! Asin looks pretty and does what she is expected with grace. Kalabhavan Mani is the typical villain you have seen in many similar films with his trade mark grunting and loud act. Vadivel is enjoyable in his crass buffoonery act, especially the ‘tea kada’ episode. The biggest letdown is Yuvan’s music, which to put it mildly is bad. There is not even one hummable number or a catch song in the film. The Switzerland dream song has a Suttrum Vizhi… from Ghajani hangover! All said and seen, it is the brisk pace of the film which makes it a racy entertainer. Hari does not like his audiences to think, he wants to give them an entertainment feast, which he has succeeded to a large extent. The film will appeal to a broad spectrum of audiences and work big time in B & C centers, making it profitable for producer Mogan Natarajan. And as far as Hari is concerned he is a safe bet for any producer, he has already started work on his next film set once again in Tirunelveli!