Andhagan story

An aspiring musician and pianist Krish (Prashanth), who is blind to the outside world, in a bizarre turn of events, becomes the primary eye witness of actor Karthik’s (Karthik) murder committed by his affluent wife Simi (Simran). It so happens that Krish gets to know Simi’s affair with inspector Mano (Samuthirakani), who leaves no stone unturned to trap Krish, in what spirals to be a series of events that not only gets darker and twisty, but also unexpected.

Andhagan review

Remaking a successful film is no new phenomena and what works as a no-brainer while doing so, is to retain the charm of the original. Unfortunately, many who remake the already successfully brewed recipes use the term “adapting to local sensibilities” to wash away the essence of the original. But Andhagan, based on the Hindi film Andhadhun, is an exception, which intelligently retains the clean and smart screenplay, to elevate the Tamil version with its brilliant casting and production.

Prashanth easily fits into the role of the blind pianist, originally played by Ayushmann Khurrana, and you can see how much the actor holds the screen with his presence. In remakes, especially of the hit films, there aren’t many surprises the new version can create to boost its creativity. But Andhagan cleverly dodges this bullet, when the makers know just the right actors to be cast in the roles. Simran, who takes up the role played by Tabu, as a cunning woman who can be manipulative and vulnerable at the same time, is one of the greatest additions, which eventually makes her and Prashanth as pillars holding the audiences’ attention on the film.

Now that you know it’s a remake, the first half, which introduces the majority of characters, does pack in quite a few surprises. Karthik who plays himself in the film, a celebrated actor, watches his iconic restaurant scene from Mouna Ragam, and there is also a small tribute to Jeans (Prashanth’s 1998 film) and a still of Aishwarya from the film, sprinkled throughout the film, which indeed banks on nostalgic values, and feels like the Tamil version simply does not want to rely on its original for the success. Instead, these breadcrumbs, and yesteryear song references really add up to Andhagan standing up to have an identity of its own, rather than banking on its parent film. Somewhere all these connect, when Krish says, “Artists are addicted to applause” and the film does know how to use it for its benefit.

The casting choices in Andhagan prove to be just apt, given how much the right actors can justify an already-created formula. Simran, who takes the reins from Tabu, is a charming fit, while Priya Anand, Samuthirakani, Karthik, Urvashi, KS Ravikumar, Yogi Babu, and Vanitha Vijayakumar, get cast for roles that almost feel tailor-made for them. The comic portions do work in parts, and probably a few name-calling of woman equating with her romantic endeavours could have been avoided. But Andhagan becomes a solid winner when it knows how to capitalise the dark humour and where to put a full stop.

Thiagarajan, who has directed and produced the film, delivers a solid film visually, primarily not only because Andhagan comes off as a visually pleasing film, but also smartly done technically. Having seen the original, the surprise shots still work, and we know the reason is the cinematography and where to keep these shots. The angles work brilliantly, and given the film plays with a multi-character arc, Andhagan surely knows its assignment and makes a balance between sticking to its source and putting efforts in its making.

Andhagan verdict

At a point in Andhagan, KS Ravikumar who plays doctor Samy says, “deivam kudukunum nenacha, kudukum (if God decides to give, it will happen). Well, for most it does reflect on Prashanth’s belief in the supreme power, when his comeback film does give him an ample of opportunities to perform and play around onscreen. Andhagan may have its shortcomings and dull moments, given what we know and anticipate after seeing the original, but for most parts, is a very honest, dedicated, and brilliantly executed film, which shines with its exceptional casting.

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