First things first: Full credit to Ajith – mass hero – for gathering the guts to play the lead in a movie that steers clear of a commercial, masala entertainer from reel one.It is film that speaks about the feudal mindset of the male-dominated Indian society. It raises its voice against misogyny and injustice being meted out to women.
A remake of Hindi blockbuster Pink, it boldly discusses a few things that have been brushed under the carpet for ages.
When a woman says ‘no’, it is ‘no’. This forms the crux of the movie. Never judge a woman by what she wears. Interestingly, Nerkonda Paarvai courageously discusses them but doesn’t get preachy.
The movie revolves around three women that includes Shraddha Srinath and Bigg Boss-fame Abirami.
They are on the run after they attack the son of an influential man who made sexual advances against one of them.
The influential man uses his clout and files a case of soliciting men. Seeing their plight, enters advocate Bharath (Ajith) to rescue them from trouble. What follows is a court room drama that ends with a punch.
The parochial mindset of everyone in society is explained well. The men in general carry pre-conceived notions about women, which makes things worse.
Ajith is the flesh and blood of the movie. His emotion, anger and determination to ensure justice for the affected women deserves special mention. It is not the usual Ajith that you see in cinema.
He has a stunt sequence and an emotional flashback portion. The star in Ajith has taken a back step to give the actor in him the stage. With his intense looks, he pulls it off in style.
Vidya Balan makes a cameo as his wife.
Abirami and Shraddha get enough screen space and utilise the opportunity well. Filled with fear, shame, anger and shock, their characters are the pivot around which the whole movie revolves.
And there is journalist Rangaraj Pandey who makes a praiseworthy debut.
Veteran Jayaprakash and filmmaker Aadhik Ravichandran are also in the cast.
More than the songs, Yuvan Shankar Raja imprints his signature style in BGMs.
For filmmaker H Vinoth, it is walking the tight rope. A fraction more, it could have turned preachy. We should give him credit for a wonderful screenplay that sustains the required emotion in the drama.
Nerkonda Paarvai is serious watch that may leave you shocked.