Kavan

Often times, we get carried away by sensational news headlines and dramatic reporting. Kavan is a movie that shows how unethical some media houses can be. It is also about how the media panders to the whims of influential people such as politicians even to the point of victimising innocent people. It is mostly business without much regard for ethics or social responsibility. Bose Venkat has acted well as the crooked politician who seeks popularity through the media. Vijay Sethupathi as the the investigative journalist excels in his role. T. Rajendar plays an important role as the owner of a television station. Madonna Sebastian does not have a very significant role but complements Sethu as his girlfriend. Jegan provides some laughs. The song 'Oxygen' is worthy of mention,and cinematography is excellent.

First things first. 'Kavan' is the kind of movie that the urban crowd generally passes for 'an entertainer' these days. The screenplay is racy, the narration is lightning-fast (predominantly in the first half) and the performances delightfully over-the-top. KV Anand sticks to his typical screenplay-template..an enjoyable fusion of masala moments coupled with the usual must-haves..well- shot songs, a villain (or two) who's painted completely in dark strokes, a syrupy romance that really doesn't speak volumes about either of the lovers, and also, a decent number of twists.

The initial half of 'Kavan' mostly deals with the rat race between channels and their tendencies to stoop to any level just to boost TRP ratings and take viewers for a toss. Sethupathi (playing Thilak – a newbie journalist) is again at his relaxed best, who at several occasions, gets to unfurl his mass-movie persona. The dialogues written for him also happen to be some of the most astute in the entire film. T Rajendherr (who plays Mayilvaganan, a struggling channel director) does exactly what's required of him..to be himself in the most in-your- face, unapologetic (grizzly) way. Madonna's Malar is more or less a foil to Sethupathi's character and barely gets to record an eventful inning. Akashdeep Saigal (from Anand's earlier venture 'Ayan') gets quite a meaty villain role and he plays it to the galleries when required.

Some of the digs taken at the media industry are packaged interestingly well whereas some are painfully pretentious. Writers Su-Ba add the right measure of sensation and pulpy feel to the screenplay that takes its own sweet time (hundred and sixty minutes) to reach conclusion. T Rajendherr holds much greater screen-time in the second half compared to the first and those who are familiar with his rhyming lines and wacky responses will obviously have a ball watching him bring the house down.

Cinematography by Abhinandan Ramanujam is certainly a major plus (the frames look grandiose almost throughout). Music by Hip Hop Thamizha impresses (especially 'Oxygen' and 'Theeratha Vilayattu Pilla') and thankfully, their ideal placement ensures that they just don't appear to be horrible speed-breakers. The comedy is at times flawed (with chauvinistic overtones) but mostly chuckle-worthy. The viewer is likely to be reminded of Anand's earlier films 'Ko' and 'Anegan' for the similarities in style of presentation (along with Shankar's 'Mudhalvan' mostly during the interview sequences). Cameos from Nasser and Powerstar are executed skilfully. The screenplay does lose some steam at the start of the second half but overall, 'Kavan' is definitely going to please the average viewer who purely expects to be entertained (leaving logic at the door, as and when urged to!).

P.S – That innovative interval block was a bit of pure genius!

This movie comes at you with the subtlety of a train wreck. The villains are comically poor, the plotting ridiculous and the entire story could have been drafted by a group of well trained monkeys. Vijay Sethupathi does himself no favors as he apparently attempts to move from intelligent hero to unintelligible icon. I got tired of groaning, there were so many over the top unbelievable scenes. It is hard to choose what is the worst - the story, the dialogues or the acting. Split three ways, perhaps?

{watched with subtitles}

KAVAN is about media mafia. Vijay Sethupathi is the only character who gets space in movie to perform, and he is up to the mark.

I didn't like music, it is so loud.

Only climax part of the movie is good, all other scenes are not well elevated.

The movie began in a artful manner, which is very different for a KV Anand movies.And later connected to the audience as a Kollywood dish.

The narration of elements and his own dialogue delivery of VJ Sethupathi.

With KV Anand's own recipe of twist the movie is a perfect blend of pure entertainer.

This movie is a perfect tribute to T.Rajender and Pandiraj who were entertainers of the past decades.