Kadhalikka Neramillai

"Kadhalikka Neramillai" (2025) is a Tamil romantic comedy that attempts to offer a fresh and contemporary take on love and relationships. While the film's first half is engaging and promising, with its charming leads and relatable situations, the second half falters with a predictable plot and a lack of narrative momentum.

Jayam Ravi and Nithya Menen deliver charming performances as Siddharth and Shriya, two individuals navigating the complexities of modern relationships. Their chemistry is undeniable, and the initial interactions between their characters are both humorous and heartwarming.

The film's exploration of themes such as single parenthood, societal expectations, and the challenges of balancing personal aspirations with romantic relationships is commendable. The first half effectively establishes the characters' motivations and sets the stage for a potentially engaging romantic journey.

However, the film's narrative loses its grip in the second half. The plot becomes predictable and relies on familiar tropes, with misunderstandings and miscommunications driving the conflict. The pacing slows down considerably, and the film struggles to maintain the same level of engagement as the first half.

The supporting characters, while adequately portrayed, lack depth and their storylines feel underdeveloped. The film's attempts at humor often fall flat, and the emotional moments lack the impact they deserve.

Despite its flaws, "Kadhalikka Neramillai" offers a refreshing take on modern relationships and showcases charming performances from its lead actors. However, its uneven pacing and predictable second half prevent it from being a truly memorable or impactful romantic comedy.

Kadhalikka Neramillai - visually cool with AR Rahman's music, where the "heartbroken" Nithya Menen choses to become a single mother through IVF process bypassing the marriage, later finds love in Ravi Mohan. The film tries to be romcom, "progressive" with today's girls prioritising career, "shock" the audience with Nitya saying that she is not a virgin and "bold" by having a gay friend. But towards the end you realise that it is all facade with Nitya falling for the man who had unknowingly lent his sperm. So technically she marries the biological father of her child and the movie is "culturally" correct. Hypocitic.. Remember "Rhythm (2000)" where widower Arjun marries another widow Meena with a child? She says that her husband died on the day of marriage and the child is adopted on as per her husband's wish. Rhythm celebrated for "remarrying a widow", is actually remarriage of a "technical" virgin. Even after 25 years the creators' hypocrisy hadn't changed.

**Kadhalikka Neramillai** (2025) is a contemporary romantic comedy directed by Kiruthiga Udhayanidhi and produced by Udhayanidhi Stalin under Red Giant Movies. The film stars Nithya Menen and Ravi Mohan in lead roles, with a supporting cast that includes Yogi Babu, TJ Bhanu, and John Kokken. The main characters are Siddharth (Ravi Mohan) and Shriya (Nithya Menen) - who with her fresh, young face and talent keeps us rooted but would do well to reduce her weight, else she runs the risk to losing fine roles and might end up playing Ravi's mother in the next movie.

The story revolves around Shriya, an architect - who at a whim after a breakup - decides to become a single mother through IVF, and Siddharth, a structural engineer who freezes his sperm for future use. A mix-up at the clinic leads to Shriya being inseminated with Siddharth's sperm, and their lives intertwine years later, exploring the complexities of modern relationships, parenthood, and societal norms.

The film's sole strength lie is its **thought-provoking theme** and **stellar performances** by the lead actors. Nithya Menen delivers a compelling performance as Shriya, portraying her character's journey with depth and sensitivity. Ravi Mohan's portrayal of Siddharth is equally impressive, capturing the character's emotional struggles and growth. But despite their best efforts, the movie fails to take off due to the weak story line, and poor screenplay - and the Story Writer and Director fail in their endeavour to present the multiple facets of Single Motherhood. Many viewers might find the plot predictable and certain portions, particularly in the second half, less engaging. The film's pacing is slow at times, and some of the comedy elements feel forced.

Overall, **Kadhalikka Neramillai** is a half-charming film that attempts to balance entertainment with meaningful themes, making it a not-so-worthwhile addition to contemporary Tamil cinema.

My rating: 4/10.

Notes:

• Nithya Menen brings her natural charm to the role, making Shriya both adorable and memorable.

• Ravi Mohan, for a change, feels like he's at ease playing Siddharth. The scene with the two "oh"s is a good example.

• Vinay Rai (just being a chill gay dude) and Yogi Babu bring in the laughs. Missed them in the (rather cliched) second half.

• Seeing Lal play poker was kinda meta (for Malayalis.. hihihi, cue *Junglee Rummy* gibberish noises).

• ARR's soundtrack (especially Yennai Izhukkuthadi, Lavender Neramae) works big time here. The song placements are also neat.

• I think the work / professional "friction" angle is poorly integrated into the plot. How it brings Shriya and Siddharth back together is refreshing, however.

• I see a large chunk of the audience unnecessarily throwing shade at Kiruthiga Udhayanithi for tackling a very urban, contemporary, millennial romance. We need these too, and not just violent gangsters and (realistic) misery overload in Tamil cinema. Props to her tbh.

• I think the film's length could've been reduced a bit, especially in the second half. A 2h 10m runtime would've done the job without hurting the essence. That said, most of the supporting performances are on point. Special shoutouts to TJ Bhanu and Vinodhini Vaidyanathan.

After a long time, I watched a movie that plays with a lot of emotions, accompanied by excellent background music. Unlike the usual films with heroes fighting with 1,000 gundas , 40,000 bullet shots but no single hit on hero body, and cars flying and touches airplanes, this one felt refreshing. However, the story plot might make it uncomfortable to watch with family. It's better suited for watching alone or as a couple but the comedy scenes are definitely enjoyable and bold. The music and songs are fantastic and have already made their way into my playlist.

Not sure if this marks Ravi's comeback, but his acting has been elevated to the next level. Hats off to the director for this incredible story. Nithya Menon - applause!