Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi review: An interesting plot that goes haywire

Dhanabalan Govindaraj’s directorial could have been a gripping thriller had he developed the storyline and executed it more convincingly.

ByManigandan KR

Published:Mar 24, 2023

Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi working still
Performances are a major highlight!
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Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi (Tamil)

  • Cast: Nishant Russo, Vivek Prasanna, Gayathri Iyer, 'Ratsasan' Vinodh, Kodangi Vadivel, Gowtham, Rajesh, Anand, and Athik
  • Director: Dhanabalan Govindaraj
  • Producers: EAV Suresh, Sundhara Krishna P, and Venki Chandrasekhar
  • Music: Renjith Unni
  • Runtime: 2 hours 10 minutes

Director Dhanabalan Govindaraj’s Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi (The Village Sparrow Turns into an Eagle) is an action thriller that fails to impress, primarily because of the questions it leaves unanswered.

The core plot of the film revolves around three characters: Aadhi (Nishanth Russo), a petty thief living in a sparsely populated place on the periphery of a forest.

His strength is his thorough understanding of the dense forest adjoining his place.

The second character is Maran (Vivek Prasanna), the head of a firm that is into talent management.

He is also the husband of a popular actress named Yamini (Gayathri Iyer) who again is the third significant character in the plot.

Synopsis

Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi movie

Vivek Prasanna and Gayathri Iyer in a still from ‘Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi’. (Supplied)

The story starts with a scandal erupting in the media about Maran’s firm.

Yamini comes to his aid. She advises him to go underground and lie low while she firefights the scandal and resolves the issue.

Maran, who dearly loves his wife, has no clue about the scandal. But he trusts his wife and therefore, he does what she tells him.

While Yamini lies to the media that her husband is abroad, Maaran is escorted by a guide arranged by his wife to an estate located in a forest.

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However, within minutes of entering the forest, both Maaran and his guide are attacked by a gang of four assassins.

Maaran suffers serious injuries and falls unconscious. His assassins mistake him to be dead and head back to their handler.

Bleeding profusely and with no way to navigate through the forest, Maaran is all but dead. However, in a twist of events, Aadhi comes to Maaran’s rescue.

It is not long before the assassins get to know that Maaran is still alive and they return to complete the half-finished job.

Who is after Maaran’s life and why? Does Aadhi manage to stop the assassins and save Maaran? Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi answers these questions.

Too many loose ends

The film is interesting in parts but its biggest problem lies in the fact that it does not tie all the loose ends.

Several questions, including at least two crucial ones that arise in your mind, are left unanswered.

I am refraining from raising those questions here at this point as it could ruin the suspense element for those interested in watching the flick.

The way the story ends leaves you feeling cheated and greatly dissatisfied.

The plot, without a doubt, is refreshingly new. But it is the process of developing it that seems to have gone haywire.

Had the plot been properly developed and utilised, we may have had a gripping ad thrilling movie.

Commendable performances and stunts

It is not that Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi does not have its share of positives. It has quite several pluses.

For instance, Vivek Prasanna as Maaran and Nishanth Russo as Aadhi deliver commendable performances.

Nishanth, in particular, deserves a round of applause for his stellar effort in portraying a physically demanding role.

Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi still

Nishant Russo and Vivek Prasanna in a still from ‘Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi’ . (Supplied)

During a considerable portion of the flick, Nishanth is seen carrying Vivek Prasanna — who is much heavier than him — on his back.

Carrying a person who is heavier than you while walking on a sloped terrain with damp soil can be quite a demanding job and Nishanth seems to have done a fantastic job.

Another department that needs to be congratulated is the stunt unit.

The first fight sequence in Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi where an attempt is made on Maaran’s life is just realistic and outstanding.

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Full marks to the four stuntmen who participated in the fight and the stunt master for choreographing such a fight sequence.

On the technical front, Ashwin Noel’s visuals are just fantastic and leave you spellbound.

Verdict

In all, Parundhaaguthu Oor Kuruvi is only a shade of what it could have been — a gripping thriller!

(Views expressed are personal.)