Meiyazhagan review: Arulmozhi (Arvind Swamy) returns to Needamangalam (near Thanjavur) after 22 years to attend his cousin sister Bhuvana’s wedding. He ends up meeting an unknown man (Karthi) at the wedding who sticks to him like a magnet, as he tells his wife Hema (Devadarshini). When Hema asks Arul who this man - let’s call him A - was, he has no answer because he himself doesn’t know. But A knows everything about Arul and showers him with love and treats him with utmost respect. 

Arul leaves his village in 1996 and returns only in 2018 after 22 years. He has beautiful memories as well as very painful ones and he wants to make a quick entry and exit from Bhuvana’s wedding reception, so he doesn’t have to deal with his memories nor with any relatives. But meeting Bhuvana and giving her the wedding gift, makes her as well as Arul tear up (watch the film to know why).

There are hardly words spoken at one point and yet you can feel the emotion between the brother and sister. And this is not the only instance in the film where silence speaks more than words and conveys emotions beautifully. As a baffled Arul breaks his head trying to figure out who A is, the two unknowingly embark on a friendship that is narrated through the film which examines relationships, memories and stories.

Meiyazhagan explores human relationships

Director C Premkumar, who gave us the beautiful 96 which spoke about unrequited love, has now given us Meiyazhagan, which explores human relationships and the relationship with nature. He has uncannily connected this film to his debut directorial as well – the film takes off in 1996 and there are even posted of 96 the film in the background in one of the scenes in the village. 

Meiyazhagan is like an extension of 96 but where two men – who are diametric opposites – bond over memories and a way of life that is missed. Arul is very private, urban-bred man who is trying to find his roots, while A is a simple, innocent, country bumpkin kind of character that is happy in his little world. A is too good to be true in that he respects Arul to the point that nothing Arul can do is wrong in his eyes. While Arul can’t forgive and forget what happened in the past, A believes that the past has taught him so much that he is thankful for.

Not your regular fare

At the outset, Meiyazhagan is not your regular commercial fare and is a well-crafted emotional life story that slowly unfolds over 178 minutes. Karthi and Arvind Swamy share fantastic chemistry on screen and have delivered excellent performances as have the other cast members like Devadarshni, Rajkiran, Sri Divya, Karunakaran and Jayaprakash. 

Karthi truly lives the role of the innocent and highly extroverted village guy and we have seen him in similar roles in earlier films as well. Arvind Swamy has matured more as an actor and this is reflected on screen as we see how he effectively he exercises the extreme restraint and composure which are required for his role as Arul. Karthi is the perfect support to Arvind Swamy in his journey of self-discovery.

The director has taken extensive liberty with the running time of nearly three hours and one does feel that certain aspects could have been edited out to prevent the lag and the meandering storyline. For instance, the song while they are eating Bhuvana’s wedding reception feast, the jallikattu scenes or the history sermon.

One must talk about Govind Vasantha’s music here. Director Premukmar has worked with the music director once again after 96 and he has delivered yet again. The music director’s haunting melodies especially, the song sung by Kamal Haasan, Yaaro Ivan Yaaro, and the BGM stand out. Cinematographer Mahendiran Jayaraju has captured the nuances of village life aptly and some of the scenes, especially the quiet night scenes, are captivating.

Meiyazhagan is a film that stands out thanks to Karthi and Arvind Swamy as they have engagingly and magnificently brought Premkumar’s highly-nuanced story alive on screen.

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