A talented actor Jiiva who has given memorable flicks has not been successful in his recent flicks like Yaan (2014) and Pokkiri Raja (2016). His latest Thirunaal (2016) which has him pairing with Nayanthara is unfortunately not going to be the hit he was looking for.
Blade (Jiiva) is the right hand hitman to a local outlaw Nagu, as an orphan Blade has deep respect and has gone to jail murdering a person to protect Nagu. Vidya (Nayanthara) is the daughter of a local businessman who is partner of Nagu. As it happens in these stories, Vidya falls in love with Blade after he rescues her from another gang. Nagu doesn’t like his underling Blade to become his partner by marrying Vidya, so they both fall out with deadly consequences. You are correct in asking where is the honest police officer in between this mix, Yes there is one in the form of Assistant Superintendent of Police played by Neeya Naana Gopinath. That’s all there is to Thirunaal, no twists, a story that travels in a straight line.
Though Jiiva has given a good performance due to the unimpressive script it all goes waste. The character Blade is a typecast thug loyal to his boss, surviving countless murder attempts, while he is a terror to his enemies he is gentle as a rose when he romances with Vidya. The introduction scene for Nayanthara is enjoyable, where she creates a chaos while getting ready to go to a school where she works as a kindergarden teacher. Normally gorgeous Nayanthara looks skinny and pale in the film adding to my disappointment. The main villain Nagu has been been played well by Kannada actor Sharath Lohitashwa. Nagu behaves and does everything you would expect of a villain – threatens and kills the wealthy to grab their properties; exploiting Blade’s loyalty for his benefit but tries to kill him; murders his wife and kid to be with his mistress; the mistress gives food and is sympathetic to Blade. There are many other actors like Karunas, V. I. S. Jayapalan (Madras film Wall portrait fame), Joe Malloori, Ramachandran Durairaj (Jigarthanda film fame) who all get fleeting roles. Music by Srikanth Deva is noticeable in the background and in one song – Pazhaya Soru.
Overall Thirunaal is a film you can give a miss.
