Banner: Photos of the sun
Cast: Rajinikanth, Kushbu, Meena, Nayanthara, Keerthi Suresh, Soori, Prakash Raj, Jagapathi Babu, Abimanyu Singh and others
Music: D Imman
Editor: Reuben
Director of Photography: Vetri Palaniswamy
Producers: Kalanithi Marani
Directed by: siva
Date of publication: Nov 4, 2021
“Peddhnna” is the first Rajinikanth movie in a long time to be released without any publicity or hype. The Telugu dubbed version of “Annaatthe” has the lowest pre-release buzz for several reasons.
Let’s analyze.
Story:
Veeranna (Rajinikanth) is a village president. He is also a devoted brother. Veeranna says he would give his life for his sister Kanakam (Keerthy Suresh) if need be.
Her brother arranges a match for her, and she agrees to see the happiness on her brother’s face, even though she has a boyfriend in Kolkata, where she completed her studies.
On her wedding day, she receives a call that her boyfriend attempted suicide when she learned about her marriage. So she runs away.
Six months later, Veeranna discovers her whereabouts in Kolkata. But she’s in deep trouble. Who is behind her current situation? How does he protect her without appearing before her?
Performances by artists:
Rajinikanth cannot be faulted for his acting or his energy. The aging superstar does his best, despite the script getting in the way. In the first half of the film, we get a glimpse of the energetic Rajinikanth doing comedy. In the second half, however, he looks too old to play massive action stunts on a regular basis.
Keerthy Suresh looks clueless for the most part. She either puts on a happy expression or a crying face.
Nayanthara’s character adds no value to the main story. Jagapathi Babu looks menacing, but his role is poorly written. Meena and Khushbu play minor roles.
Technical excellence:
The film has rich production values and solid camera work. No song composed by D Imman is recorded.
Highlights:
Rajinikanth
Disadvantage:
Outdated story
Writing formulas
boring comedy
Unbearable Sentiment Trail
Analysis
Other than “Kabali”, none of Rajinikanth’s recent films have generated pre-release hype. “Petta”, “Kaala” and “Darbar”, are the last three movies boxed in at the box office. Until five or six years ago, the release of the Rajinikanth movie was celebrated as a festival. But such a craze is now gone. Its directors also fail miserably to present vintage Rajinikanth in a contemporary style to the gen-next audience.
The latest “Peddhanna” (“Annaatthe” in Tamil) also fails miserably. Director Siva, whose recent film “Viswasam” starring Ajith and Nayanthara set the box office on fire, has attempted to tell aging sibling sentiment drama with action elements. We’ve seen a lot of action movies. Hence, “Peddhanna” itself looks dull from the start.
For the first hour and a half, Rajinikanth does some crazy stuff for comic effect with comedian Soori, and then he’s involved in long ‘Pelli choopulu’ scenes with Khusbhu and Meena. They come into view as ancient flames of Veeranna (Rajinikanth). This whole piece is a disgrace to watch. To bring back the memories of Rajinikanth-Meena, Rajinikanth-Khushbu movies of the 90s, director Siva resorts to the screenplay of the 90s. Can such outdated comedic scenes laugh?
Plus, after the break, the movie switches completely and becomes an outright mass-action drama. Rajinikanth brandishing weapons and taking down beasts is a tiresome watch as the drama unfolds without any twists and turns. The predictability and old-fashioned story make us doze.
Rajinikanth listens to the trials of his sister Keerthy Suresh standing next to a wall and protecting her without revealing his presence to her tried and true tricks. Even when Nayanthara offers her shelter, Keerthy Suresh doesn’t ask questions about who she is and why she got a place in her house. In another scene, Keerthy Suresh goes to a bar at night to pay back the loan to a wanton. And soon the stage for a big fight is set. Such clichéd and formulaic scenes come one by one, making us feel like we are watching a sentimental drama from a bygone era rather than today’s cinema.
Rajinikanth does his best to brighten up the boring process, but the drawn-out drama turns into a yawn.
In a nutshell, “Peddhanna” isn’t just a huge disappointment; it is also a test of our patience. Even the mighty Rajinikanth can’t save this movie from the bad villain – pathetic writing. In a word: great boredom.
Bottom line: Vaddhana!
