Once again, Kollywood uses sexual assault against women as a driving force for the hero to take revenge. In this case too, it is unnecessary and pervert-ish. Not only is the girl getting raped used as a leverage to dig more emotions, the disturbing visuals are repeatedly shown throughout the film. TJ Gnanavel fails to be consistent in being politically right when a woman in the film gives a ‘fake’ harassment complaint to her HOD over a classmate but when the police smell it, they remark on it by saying she deserved the verbal abuse she received after, because she should’ve spoken up against the harasser in person, or denied his advances.
The women of Vettaiyan, on the other hand, are ample and well-written. Manju Warrier has a notable role as a successful YouTuber and her apex scene of confrontation is a delight. Abirami plays a starter-pack ‘Corporate Criminal’ who is essential to the story but overplayed. Saranya (Dushara Vijayan) is a determined teacher who is strong-willed and focused but what takes you off guard is the role of Ritika Singh as a police officer. She’s badass, fierce and appears in as many scenes as Athiyan – she also fights alongside Athiyan and quiet frankly, steals the thunder of that stunt sequence.
Fahadh’s character was rather off-putting and out of context though he offers a tinge of relief through comedy, it dilutes the drama. Amitabh Bachchan and Rajini in a face-off was probably the most anticipated part of the film and as always, Bachchan is brilliant and he is perfect as a mentor to Athiyan but the dynamics they share is quite similar to that of Prakash Raj and Suriya in Jai Bhim where the two delegates are ideologically polar opposites and eventually come to an objective point of justice. But Vettaiyan never dives deep into their rivalry or their truce. That’s a huge drawback in the film – police officers do not feel guilty enough about their murders and their dialogues are too preachy and straight from a civics textbook which ensures a gap between the audience and the film.
SR Kathir’s cinematography complimented the film’s narrative really well. The frames, the composition and the locations are beautifully carved. Music on the other hand, does the opposite of what the film tries to convey – if TJ Gnanvel says encounters are wrong, Anirudh says “Hunter Vantaar Choodu Da”.The discourse of Vettaiyan, no matter how flawed is important – the cops of our cinema industry have always been emotion driven: the angry, young men who love to take out their pistols and encounter the criminals and the public have received the immediate but short-lived reaction with happier hearts. Vettaiyan would make you question these extrajudicial deaths but it is quite confused and contradictory by itself.
It’s quite astonishing that Rajini, being THE superstar, is ready to experiment with scripts that have him be vulnerable, play the role of a morally wrong person and apologize for the same but saddening that nobody is feeding it properly.
Rating – 2/ 5
