JOIN USNavarasa
Tamil anthology (Netflix)
Rating: 3/5
Navarasa, the nine-part anthology on Netflix, has been a much-anticipated one.
The first story, Bijoy Nambiar’s 'Enemy', which speaks about empathy, presents the journey of Dheena (Sethupathi) who commits murder to avenge his brother's suicide. The feelings that harden a man to seek revenge and how the person ends up becoming the very thing he hates are beautifully woven into the script.
A mystic song by P B Srinivas from Kavignar Kannadasan playing in the background lifts the story to the next level. Loaded with heavy dialogues, the movie has powerful performances from Vijay Sethupathi, Revathi, and Prakash Raj.
Priyadarshan's 'Summer of '92' is another gem. Actor Veluswamy (Yogi Babu) visits the school where he studies and comes face to face with his teacher Lakshmi. They have an important past.
Set in the backdrop of the feudal caste system, the story drowns you in a fit of laughter and but also leaves a void in your heart. The film is based on veteran Malayalam comedian Innocent.
Karthick Naren’s ambitious 'Project Agni' tries to pay a tribute to Christopher Nolan. Starring Arvind Swami and Prasanna, the story shows the protagonist time-travelling to explore the universe's secrets. Its climax resembles that of 'Behind her eyes'. It's unfair to compare but against Nolan's works, this film has nothing unique.
Karthik Subbaraj’s 'Once upon a time in Eelam', starring Gautam Menon, is a layered story, set in the background of LTTE struggle in Srilanka. A 12-minutes-long single shot of LTTE fighter Nilava's mission to rescue a trapped dog is the highlight of this story. In the process, Nilava finds that people who own guns also have compassion. Or do they?
Seasoned actor Arvind Swami makes a solid directorial debut with 'Anger'. A brother and sister are angered when they find out how their widowed mother earns her livelihood. How they react to the situation forms the core of the movie.
Shifting between timelines, the story is an engaging drama that shows the myriad ways people react to the emotion of anger. Santosh Sivan’s cinematography is tight and A R Rahman’s music is a treat.
Set in Puducherry and directed by Rathindran R Prasad, 'Fear' explores betrayal, fear, and guilt. Wahida (Parvathy), a rich woman living in a palatial bungalow, is visited by Farooq (Siddharth), who poses like a calligraphy expert. He brings back the demons from Wahida's past.
'Beyond Courage' and 'Paayasam' (Pudding) fail to impress. But 'Navarasa' ends well. Gautam's 'Tugging At My Guitar Strings' is an absolute delight. In the musical, singer Kamal (Suriya) narrates a lost love from his life.
A failed love story is depicted as an everlasting inspiration in life. It leaves you with bitter-sweet feelings. Some of the compositions are lovely earworms. Some dialogues feel out of sink while some pretty visual frames will stay in your mind long after the movie is over.