Kabali (2016)

“ Unakku ethu thevaiyo , athu mattum thaan Dharmam, niyayam”

One of the dialogue from the movie, but this has got completely into director Ranjith throughout the movie. With Super star surrendering to a two film old director, 99% of the critics would agree why Ranjith is a choice they can’t complain. This is due to the main fact that he is becoming an unique director who is able to demonstrate extraordinary micro politics around a habitat. After Madras which released as a blessing for need of a political movie, Ranjith brings a better platform to sneak on liberal world racisms and Vanquishing the people who built a country. Somehow we have totally lost the directors who have been speaking volumes of micro politics and I am happy that he hasn’t tried to deviate on this part to show a Masala entertainer. And besides that it is very difficult to handle the brand Rajini and at point it becomes a responsibility than direction because Your profitability, ROI and expectation from fans, post production cost  are all staring  at you.

I as a fan who grew with Rajini movies; the past 30 years every Rajini movie was built around the template which made him bigger brand than what exists as human today in India. But as a fan I would definitely long for the Kali or Chakravarty who surrendered to great directors 35 years ago. Because every fan knows he is hungry for roles but just that he is just fed with exotic diet meal time and again.At times I have seen movies getting built around just by his name and getting humongous blockbusters, But Rajini would be repeatedly walking, speaking punches and then moving against Villains. May be I want that badly even now, But human body needs to reciprocate the same on screen. Rajini needs a pause, He needed Kabali to look beyond his brand to introspect his skills again. Definitely he would have thought “Is this crazy for me to walk slowly on screen, is this total crazy to show my bare foot on screen “.  

Kabali is watching Rajni in close counters, you realize you are watching your favorite actor very close in a room but he isn’t doing what you expect him to do. He is breaking the self-organized learning you have about Rajnikanth. Rajini doesn’t dance, he almost doesn’t speak punch dialogues, Rajni doesn’t pardon villains, instead he just squashes them ruthlessly and more importantly Rajini emotes for losses. He is not that uber cool Rajni who always knows answers for everything. But if not a fan too, this performance of Rajni lifts and builds the whole greatness around this experience.  His modulated tones, walks or his power packed negotiations, this is the Super star I longed for.

Kabali shot in Malaysia is about the man who rose as a Don after he stood against the suppression of Tamil people and rising of Chinese in brothels and Drugs. Kabali slowly drifts from gangster movie to a family movie in search of his wife. This man who was in Jail still wants to finish off his rivals but longs for the answers of his wife’s death. His powerful stature prevents him from asking question about his wife and daughter, but at one point he breaks down the array to go in search of both of them. He fights for his family, power and existence.That’s what makes this character very special and demanding for Rajnikanth as an actor.

Movie is woven with multiple characters and you almost feel you have lost some of the names, and there was no need some stories to be told. When was the last time you watched a movie where a normal movie goer doesn’t know any names except for the hero’s name. I could understand the motive but it doesn’t exemplify what it is supposed at some portions and thats where as a director Ranjith has scored less. But major part I felt as if Sachin Tendulkar playing a masterful innings with a bunch of amateur boys. Ranjith is ambitious and I would definitely respect the maturity with which he has demonstrated with guts. Solid work in screen play, with sluggish in many parts but Ranjith has tried to prove multiple things at a single frame. At some portions I felt he was trying to show Rajini differently, he wanted to speak about Gandhi & Ambedkar, He wants to show the matured love and also about discrimination. This one part of Ranjith evaded Kabali to become much above Super star’s best till date. This had the perfect stage and time, but his experience to weave the missing links and to justify the time around his rise has made to watch just Rajini on screen than the script he was trying to position. Kabali is a giant leap interms of business and defining an actor, I wouldn’t justify he has done a great role as a script writer or plotting characters but he has done a greater role in defining what Rajini should do on screen.

10 seconds of tears is sufficient for Radhika Apte to show, why she is the most loved offbeat actress in India today. Mind-blowing factor for Kabali comes with his style quotient and he puts many younger actors to shame on this to show that he has more & more things left to show us.

Kabali starts on a very great note but creeps to become sluggish in the first 45 minutes, but if you are getting the versatility of Rajini then you have a great feast waiting. Trust me you will be witnessing a different actor in the mask of Rajinikanth and he is definitely going to surprise with his body language and his modulations. If you are expecting a blood and Revenge Gangster movie, yes it is! But hold on – Ranjith has his own way of showing the most loved show man of India. Kabali is one such instance, where you may have complaints about the pace of the movie or characters or music but you will never complain about the charisma of the biggest human brand. Because he is smoking hot to break the charts.

I am an ageing fan of Rajnikanth and I want my ageing superstar to age gracefully , Kabali tells me why he is the only Superstar. Magizhchi !!!