I watch films of all genres. I watch films in many languages, with the aid of subtitles for those in tongues that I am not fluent in. And so it's really not easy for a film to satisfy me. Though I can thoroughly enjoy a mindless commercial potboiler, when it comes to serious/art house films, they should be of really good quality to satisfy me. Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom (NKPK) is one such film that had me hooked till the end and I had no major complaints at the end of it. It has been a long time since I have enjoyed a Tamil film to this extent.
The movie has a thin premise, but a thrilling one. The film has a time line of 2-3 days and hence the locales and costumes are few. The story revolves around a certain 'Incident' and its aftermath that affects the lives of a group of friends. How the friends manage to manage through the crisis is the crux of the film. This could have been made as a serious film or a full length comedy, but the film makers tread the middle path with excellent results. There are no mindless jokes and forced situations to evoke laughter. The characters are genuine and the comedy too is subtle and stays with the film. I do not want to divulge more and spoil the experience for the readers who are yet to watch this film.
The whole crew of Actors, Director, and Writers has done a commendable job. The film is said to be inspired by the incident that occurred in the life of the film's Cinematographer (Premkumar) and one of the friend's depicted on screen is actually the film's Director (Balaji Tharaneetharan). One of the real-life friends, Bhagavathi, plays himself on the screen and is a treat to watch. There are no conventional songs in the film and the background music is sufficient and apt. I felt the film could have done better with some crisp editing in the last 30 minutes. Though the production values appeared to be not so high, I think it was in line with the films context and atmosphere.
I would urge all those who like to watch good cinema to watch Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom. It's a comedy thriller and will leave you with the satisfaction of having watched a good film
