Thozhar Venkatesan

STORY: The life of a youngster, who runs a small-scale soda factory, turns topsy-turvy after he meets with a horrific accident. Little does he realise that more troubles are awaiting him.

REVIEW: It’s quite rarely that we get films which make us empathise with its protagonist entirely. Thozhar Venkatesan easily fits into this category, thanks to the genuine portrayal of people who suffer because of the flaws in our system. The movie starts with Venkatesan (Harishankar), a physically challenged person, requesting cops to find his missing vehicle. The cop in the police station is puzzled when Venkatesan says that his lost vehicle is a government bus. He starts narrating his poignant story – on how he became a handicapped person, how Kamali (Monica) entered his life, how he possessed a government bus based on a court verdict, and so on.

Venkatesan supplies soda to different shops, considers himself a self-sufficient mudhalali and takes pride in it as he, unlike his friends, doesn’t need to wait for any superior’s instructions. After inviting Kamali into his life in an unexpected situation, when everything seems to be fine, he becomes dejected after meeting with an accident which was caused by a government bus. After years of hearings and postponements, the court orders the government to provide him a bus as compensation. Will he be able to find the bus which went missing?

Set against the backdrop of Kanchipuram, Deva Selvam’s cinematography aids in setting the ambience right. Sagishna Xavier’s songs are decent and aren’t speed breakers despite the film handling a serious subject. The commendable thing is the way the subject has been handled without resorting to overdose of melodrama. The subtle humour, too, gels well. The performance of the artistes, especially Harishankar, as the helpless accident victim, and a few dialogues about life and the unfortunate depiction of our defective system deserve mention. The tragic end leaves us in pain and raises several questions with regard to humane treatment of people in today's times.