Amaran review: Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi shine in Rajkumar ...

Amaran review: Working on a biopic is tough, but working on the biopic of an Indian army major who died in action to save his own is much tougher. Director Rajkumar Periasamy took on the challenge of bringing to the big screen the life of Ashoka Chakra recipient Major Mukund Varadarajan, who died in an encounter with terrorists in Shopian, Kashmir. The filmmaker read about him in ‘India’s Most Fearless: True Stories of Modern Military’ (Shiv Aroor and Rahul Singh). Any film that features the Indian army and is centred around an army person always brings patriotism to the fore and plenty of goosebumps. Amaran is no different. Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi lead splendidly as Major Mukund and his wife Indhu Rebecca Varghese, respectively, in this charged emotional action drama. (Also read: Amaran Twitter review: Fans in love with Sivakarthikeyan's transformation, Sai Pallavi's performance)

Amaran review: Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi bring to life Major Mukund Varadarajan's story

Mukund Varadarajan was named after Lord Krishna by his father when he was born, but little did his parents know that their son would actually go to the battlefield with his men. While Mukund’s mother is paranoid about him joining the army, his father tells him to pursue his passion. While he’s doing his bachelor's in Chennai and preparing for the SSC, he meets collegemate Indhu Rebecca Varghese, and romance ensues. Her Malayali parents are against her marrying someone from the army and shun all talk of it, while Mukund’s parents treat her like a daughter and look after her when Mukund receives his first posting.

After four years of courtship, Indhu’s parents agree to their marriage, and the couple happily embarks on a life together. However, it is not all hunky dory, given that Mukund’s postings take him around India and the world to highly-sensitive locations. It is when Mukund joins as head of the Rashtriya Rifles in Kashmir that his purpose in life becomes more defined, and we see numerous tense encounters and missions that he and his team engage in.

In the first half, the director takes us through Mukund and Indhu’s initial romantic days, and him joining the army, while the second half gets extremely emotional given what eventually happens.

When director Rajkumar roped in Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi for the lead roles, half the battle was won as these two fine performers truly bring to life Mukund and Indhu on screen. The wonderful chemistry between them comes to the fore in highly nuanced scenes, whether playful and romantic or serious and emotional. The acting is very natural for both Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi. However, one can also see the efforts Sivakarthikeyan has put into his physical transformation to look like the part of any armyman.

Rajkumar's screenplay highlights the extensive emotional dilemmas and sacrifices that those serving in the army and their families go through. Though the director has included several missions and encounters in the film, one often feels that he could have perhaps focused more on the eight years of Major Mukund’s army life and woven the emotional thread into this. This is probably because the film's pacing is slow, and the director takes his own time to set up the story. The point is when Major Mukund assumes the role of a fearless army leader but also as a hero, arriving a bit late. At no point does Rajkumar get jingoistic, and that’s a plus – he has kept the story grounded, and the free-flowing emotions hit you throughout the film.

The other cast members like Rahul Bose, Bhuvan Arora, Geetha Kailasam, Lallu, Shreekumar and others make a mark in their small but important roles. Technically, the movie is top-notch – the BGM and songs by GV Prakash add a lot of depth to this emotional film. At the same time, the cinematography by Ch Sai (be it the scenes in Chennai or Kashmir) and editing by R Kalaivanan seem flawless. The action sequences by AnbAriv and Stefan Ritcher are well crafted, and one can feel the realism in these scenes.

Amaran is a wonderful tribute to those serving in the army and their families and is a stark reminder that our freedom exists because of their sacrifices. One walks away from Amaran with a heavy heart for those who lost loved ones on the battlefield and yet, happy that their legacy will never go unknown and be immortalized on the silver screen thanks to directors like Rajkumar.

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