By Bharath Vijayakumar
Is Venky Atluri’s Vaathi (Sir in Telugu) alleged to be a bilingual? Or is it a Telugu film dubbed in Tamil or vice versa? From no matter I might make of it, it seemed like a movie that was shot with most actors mouthing Telugu dialogues with few exceptions. This is often a flip off for me. Going in with the expectation of watching a dubbed movie is one factor however this pattern of catering to 2 languages and never being sincere to both is totally completely different. This wasn’t the case with Prince and Varisu. They might need been made with the intention to cater to each languages, however not less than it was evident that they had been fully shot in Tamil. But in Vaathi, in the identical scene it appears as if one actor is talking in Tamil and the opposite in Telugu. Watch the scenes involving Dhanush’s colleagues performed by Hyper Aadi (Telugu) and Sha Ra (Tamil) and this turns into apparent. The movie conveniently or cleverly units the premise within the border of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. To be sincere, after some time it didn’t hassle me a lot or relatively Thambi Ramaiah’s well-known ‘Adhuve Pazhagidum’ line from Kumki got here true.
Coming to the plot, Vaathi is sort of much like the Samuthirakani starrer Saattai and the Jyothika starrer Ratchasi albeit with a hero who can beat up the dangerous guys and stroll in gradual movement. It talks towards the privatization of schooling. We have fairly some construct up earlier than we get to see Bala sir (Dhanush) and to be sincere, the hero glorification works in Vaathi. GVP amps up the rating and movie embraces its excessive meter and melodrama wholeheartedly. It was really stunning that scenes that may so simply be laughed at (it nonetheless might be) and scenes that I in all probability would have laughed at in one other movie weren’t bothering me a lot right here. It labored at locations, and I didn’t thoughts it at different instances. The melodrama which stays beneath examine within the preliminary half hits the roof within the second half and one way or the other it nonetheless remained efficient at locations. The scene the place Ken Karunas makes use of a water pump to assuage the soles of Dhanush as an example. Just a little slip and it might virtually be spoof like, however it works. Perhaps the truth that the movie is ready within the 90s is what ensures that we purchase into all this or perhaps that’s the precise cause they determined to set this within the 90s. Even then, that Bharathiyar scene in the direction of the climax shouldn’t have existed or not less than achieved higher. But that scene can be a reminder about what this movie might have simply been, and I noticed that Venky Atluri was doing an affordable job all this whereas.
Dhanush comes throughout as easy and he stays comparatively refined in a movie the place everybody else is sort of loud. I’m not moving into the message of Vaathi as I genuinely don’t purchase into the intentions when a movie is utilizing a hero to unravel all the issues. All it takes for the hero is one scene to eradicate casteism. It works within the movie, sure. But nothing extra. I generally really feel that this oversimplification of complicated and necessary points can do extra hurt than good. Also, to be actually invested with the message that the movie is speaking about, you want plausible characters throughout. Will somebody as crafty and shrewd because the villain performed by Samuthirakanni go round spewing venom and maintain disclosing his plans to everybody?
Vaathi is predictable, melodramatic and too simplistic. But it has moments all through that work and stays satisfactory as an entire.