Tamil film directors seems to have a love for strongman stories, where daggers and sword speak more than the characters. So far in 2016 itself I have seen Thirunaal, Enakku Innoru Per Irukku, Marudhu, Pugazh & Sethupathi, movies which are in the same genre.
Kidaari (2016) follows this tradition. Kombaiah Pandiyan, played by Vela Ramamuthy of Paayum Puli & Komban fame, is the most feared person who has the entire saatur town in his control through use of force. His adapted son is Kidaari (Sasikumar) who blindly follows K.P. and protects him from all his enemies. The film begins with a scene where K.P. is fighting for his life after being stabbed, his lieutenant starts to narrate the path K.P. had traversed in his life to come to this position. He narrates the stories of how K.P. created each of his many enemies in the vicinity. This narration style though not unique is what that makes us enjoy the film.
There is a well-known saying in Tamil “வல்லவனுக்கு புல்லும் ஆயுதம்” (For skilled, even a grass is a weapon), for Tamil film heroes the humble steel bracelet they wear is the shield of choice against swords and spears; Kidaari too uses his bracelet to save K.P. in a fighting sequence.
Sasikumar has given one of his best “action” performances, Nikhila Vimal who had donned a good role as his wife in Vetrivel is his pair in Kidaari too; the scenes were she teases him are done tastefully. After many years Actor Napoleon makes an appearance as Sasikumar’s father.
Director Prasath Murugesan should be appreciated for simply staying focused on telling the story of K.P. and Kidaari and avoiding elaborate police/court scenes and many of the emotional scenes that kollywood is famous for.