Nirangal Moondru Movie Review: Sarath Kumar, Rahman, Atharvaa anchor a trippy tale about fatherhood with middling results

In many ways, Nirangal Moondru is the cinematic equivalent of an all-you-can-eat barbeque restaurant. Enamoured by the first course, we tend to stuff ourselves with one starter after another, and we are hardly left with any space for the main course, and cannot gorge on the desserts as much as we’d have liked to. Similarly, the hyperlinked narrative allows us to get invested in the ‘how’ of the worlds colliding, and it all happens right in the first half. Director Karthick Naren plays his cards right in the first hour, and we are left with a rather bloated feeling as he takes his time to untie all the seemingly complicated knots. 

The three colours as mentioned in the title refers to the human mind and its capacity to be good, bad, and ugly at different points of our lives. The voiceover by Atharvaa points to something very poignant, but at the end of the day, it is much ado about nothing because the weight of those lines don’t really reflect in the narrative. Nirangal Moondru is essentially about fathers, failures, and films. 

Sri (Dushyanth) is a 12th standard student who hates his father, and instead sees his teacher Vasanth (Rahman) as a father figure. Incidentally, Vasanth is the doting father of Parvathy (Ammu Abhirami), who is the object of Sri’s affection and attraction. Then, there is corrupt cop Selvam (Sarath Kumar) and his nonchalance towards his son Vetri (Atharvaa), an aspiring filmmaker. Then, at the periphery there is a corrupt politician (Santhana Bharathi), who is out to avenge his son’s humiliation. The idea of four fathers, three colours, two hours, one film is pregnant with opportunities, and the hyperlink narrative primes everything for an explosive second half. But that is where the filmmaker drops the ball.   

Individually, all these characters are fascinating, but it is clear where Karthick’s allegiance lies. Vetri is hooked on drugs, and this is a film that is flippant about the same. Now, no one expects a lesson on morality from Karthick and co. In fact, the strength of the film is the way the Nirangal Moondru team has conceptualised the idea of Vetri living in his trippy world. Jakes Bejoy’s terrific background score is what truly elevates the film, which is wonderfully shot by Tijo Tomy and edited by Sreejith Sarang. The way they build up the pace, and capture those closed spaces is gripping. Also, the colours, the imagery, the pace, the rage, the randomness, and the downward spiral of the drug-addled trips… everything is vividly captured. However, this subplot extends its welcome because the filmmaker is too enamoured with the idea that he lets go off the reins, and allows it to run free. And the result is a film that is all over, and a runtime that feels much longer than 122 minutes. 

Despite the waywardness, what really holds the film together is the versatility of the senior actors Sarath Kumar and Rahman. Both play contrasting fathers with a secret to hide, and manage to elevate portions that aren’t always giving them enough. This is Sarath Kumar at his playful best, and it is a pity that not many filmmakers have explored this facet of his acting. The same thing can be said of Rahman, who brings extreme vulnerability to his character despite the rather dark turn it takes. Atharvaa gets to live his drug-fuelled trip that features guest appearances from Poseidon, and seems to have patented the role of an angry young man who has addiction issues. While he definitely has fun in it, there is a sense of repetition to his performance because there are only so many variations in such a role. Dushyanth is a sobering presence in the film, and he brings in that quiet angst with a lot of finesse, and Ammu Abhirami gives it her all in a role that once again hands her a raw deal. 

Since Atharvaa is the centre of this universe for an extended period of time, the other stories get forgotten for long stretches. In the second half, the other arcs feel like footnotes, and it all culminates in a rather disappointing final stretch. Now, this disappointment is mainly due to Karthick’s decision to suddenly give all the characters a moment to shine, and it dilutes the emotional core of the film. It leaves you with a lot of questions about the motivation of some characters, and the lack of motivation in others. The convoluted way of exploring the different facets of a father also flatters to deceive because the intent isn’t backed by the writing choices.

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We are left scratching our heads about the machinations of certain characters, which, unfortunately, are unintentionally funny, especially that culmination of the meta commentary on cinema and plagiarism. Even the much-needed dressing down of one of the fathers feels so plastic because he receives it from someone who had no stakes in the game. It removes the intensity of the punch, and it is a microcosm of what the film is all about. Nirangal Moondru builds everything to a technicolour explosion of emotions, only to end up as a gentle nudge in black-and-white.

Through Nirangal Moondru, Karthick tries his best to prove that he is not a one-film wonder. He tries his best to do a film that allows him to exorcise his own demons. He tries his best to go back to his ‘zone’ and do a film that is high on style without compromising on substance. He tries his best to tell a story about the impact of a good father in the life of a child. The film talks about the propensity of a human mind to be a lot of things, and its power to restart from scratch. In some ways, Nirangal Moondru is Karthick’s own attempt at holding on to what’s dear, and still moving on to newer pastures through an earnest attempt to start all over again. Basically, if not anything else… Karthick Naren tries.

Nirangal Moondru Movie Cast: Sarath Kumar, Atharvaa, Rahman, Ammu Abhirami 

Nirangal Moondru Movie Director: Karthick Naren

Nirangal Moondru Movie Rating: 2.5 / 5