Irudhi Suttru Tamil Movie
The mentor-mentee angle in sports films always follows the same template, especially in Tamil films. It is always the mentee who literally begs the mentor to train him in most of the films. And rest of the story is usually on the lines of how the mentee accomplishes the world championship in the particular sport. Though the intentions of Irudhi Suttru are also the same as far as the outcome is concerned, the film sternly differs from all other sports dramas in its unabashed treatment and fine making.
Madhi (played by Ritika Singh) is a raw, impulsive and innocent fisherwoman; a slum dweller living somewhere on the shores of Chennai outskirts. When Prabhu (Madhavan) gets transferred to Chennai, where avenues for boxing and boxing players are next to none, we can actually foresee what is coming. The rise of the underdog is indeed on the anvil and it is just in time to know how it unfolds. That's precisely where director Sudha Kongara surprises us with a smart take on women boxing in India with an interesting plot. Madhi has an innate potential boxing and Prabhu, after identifying her talent, decides to train her and pit her against heavyweights in the ring.
Prabhu's chemistry with Madhi is one of the lovely male-female relationships ever portrayed in Tamil cinema. There is no cliched romance. Just infatuation and this certain part are surely handled deftly by Sudha giving no room for non-sense dialogues or manipulation. Even, the rise of Madhi is told realistically and that's why the story looks ultimately believable. Sudha makes us easily invest in the characters of Madhi and Prabhu and we wholeheartedly root for her success when she gets into the ring. That's the real magic of a good writing.
The first half is complete fun. Interspersed with uninhibited dialogues, poignant emotions and superbly shot montages courtesy of cinematographer Sivakumar Vijayan, who perfectly creates the milieu for the film with his picture-perfect, piercing visuals. Santhosh Narayanan proves his mettle with the re-recording which accelerates the film's momentum whenever needed.
Debutant Ritika Singh delivers a flawless performance on par with seasoned portrayals of Madhavan and Naasar. Maddy is evidently overshadowed by Ritika's lovely act but you cannot definitely write him off. It is Maddy who shoulders the film with his delicate acting skills. He effectively puts to use his body language and affable dialogue delivery.
Overall, Irudhi Suttru is a well-made film with topnotch performances from Madhavan and Ritika Singh. A highly recommended watch for film lovers.
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