Chiyaan Vikram calls himself an actor and not a star in a recent interview to a Telugu channel and he wills all his scripts to let him stay that way. “Inkokkadu” is one more script in that direction where the uber cool actor can be seen in two different shades which underline his versatility and range of acting. One, is a character called Akhilan, an ex-R&AW agent who has “lost” his wife Nayanataara while fighting a deadly gang of chemical-using terrorist called “Love”. The second one, of course, is the character of that dreaded terrorist whose pictures are not available in police records - the evasive “Love” - a transvestite businessman-cum-silent-terrorist.
In both shades, Vikram excels himself. As R&AW agent, he sports a dapper beard that is in sync with a mop of a hermit-like hairdo who regularly visits the barber something similar to what Jr.NTR looks like in “Naannaku Prematho” but leaner and fitter. He moves with piercing eyes and wears a punishing look of a man on mission who can activate a sleeping volcano whenever villainy presents itself. But it is the second role which makes its dramatic appearance at the 60th minute, literally a few scenes away from Interval bang which makes the film watchable - as “Love” the sweet-talking cross-dresser who makes a billion-dollar drug called “Speed” (known by the generic name of Pervatin) which makes ordinary mortals fight like Marvel-comic superheroes - denting metals and pulverizing armies of armed men. Vikram as “love” steals the show with a unique body-language and ibby-jibbies typical of sophisticated hermaphrodites who view the world as perverse with a sadistry unknown to men and women; he mints a new screen presence with a role that will get him as much fame as what he did in “Anyan”.
Supporting cast of Thambi Ramaiah as a comedian adds some relief to the film but the role of Nitya Menen as a cop makes no impact. Nayanatara as Vikram’s wife sizzles in a few melodious songs but having played herself many female-centric characters, she appears uncomfortable with the charms of Vikram in many scenes even if she looks a million-buck in each frame with a toned body at her ravishing best. Since Vikram plays both the hero and the villain, there isn’t much scope for performance by anybody else - most of the best scenes are those of conflict between “Love” and Akhil. These are well-picturised and dramatically shot which remind you conflict between an antangonist and protagonist is what can fire up the sceen - and it is not necessary that the hero should steal the thunder from the villain in every scene of confrontation; it is okay if the villain wins many hands against the hero before caving in finally.
Technically, the film is a visual feast with good musical and cinematographical inputs. Harris Jayaraj has given a good album and a BGM; atleast two songs score high on melody after a long time. The first half is brighter than the second half even if the film is long at over 160 minutes. Editing would not have mattered much as the problem lies with screenplay more than the scenes; director Anand Shankar has chosen a simple story of a seasoned Spy who brings a gang of villains to book and destroys his evil empire of malefic drugs that can devastate swathes of population. But what is not clear and logical is that the drug which activates and works for five minutes as a chemical tranfixed on human body doesn’t appear to kill the user. Or did it kill? We are confused because in the prologue to the film before the titles begin, an elderly Malaysian uses the Speed drug and wreaks havoc on an army of people at the Indian Embassy but he drops dead after 5 minutes of the drug’s tenure. We are never shown whether he is dead or autopsied. But throughout the film, we see about half-a-dozen instances when the drug is self-administered at will by the villain or the hero or even the heroine and they spring back to life after the inflammation of body and mind ends which makes them seem invincible during the duration of the drug. This is a fatal flaw which takes the credit away from the director. It is not a science-fiction film because there is some truth about the usage of this drug during the second world war when Hitler used this drug on a mass-scale on the Nazi Army - a fact documented in the film’s narration. But if it is a fact as one believes it is, the effects have to be made abundantly clear - which we didn’t get to see.
Among Vikram’s recent films which ended as disasters, this film is a better-made film which makes it half-watchable and if you condone the logical fallacies, you may still find it bearable for the performances of Chiyaan Vikram as the villain and the hero. It is now clear Vikram may perhaps never act in a normal film with a vanilla commercial flavor - he is caught in the web of delusions of grandeur and histrionics by use of different prosthetic makeups and variations of character. We have to see how long this can go on - before Vikram delivers an unadulterated entertainer which reconnects with the masses like a “Gemini” or an “Aparachitudu” (“Anyan” in Tamil). For director Anand Shankar, the film is a neat attempt but he has a task cut out in fleshing more twists and drama in the second half which turns out to be a dull show. For fans of Chiyaan Vikram, the movie cannot be missed. For the rest of us, it is watchable once. Don’t go by the rating as the presentation is slick and different with a better visual sense of Malaysia than recent Tamil movies.
My rating: 2.5/5
