‘Ka Pae Ranasingam’ is a shining example of big films treading the ‘OTT’ way. After Jyothika’s ‘Ponmagal Vandhal’ and Keerthy Suresh’s ‘Penguin’, this is the biggest Kollywood movie till date to be released on OTT. ‘Ka Pae Ranasingam’ which means “Husband’s Name Ranasingam” was released in ‘Pay-per-view’ system on ‘ZEEPLEX’ on October 2nd. ‘Makkal Selvan’ Vijay Sethupathi and Aishwarya Rajesh played the lead roles in it. Let’s see what this political drama has in its kitty.
Plot
Ranasingam (Vijay Sethupathi) belongs to a drought infested village in the Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. He comes from a family of traditional water identifiers and is efficient in locating water in dry lands. Ranasingam embarks on frequent agitations regarding water scarcity in his surrounding villages. Ariyanachi (Aishwarya Rajesh) likes his fighting spirit and falls in love with him. After their marriage, Ranasingam leaves to Dubai for work after his wife’s request. Ariyanachi comes to know that her husband had died due to the riots in Dubai. After a while, she comes to know that Ranasingam died in an accident that happened at his workplace and not during the skirmish with Dubai Police. Rest of the story demonstrates her struggles to bring her husband’s dead body back to India.
Analysis
Director P Virumaandi did a stellar job in sustaining the interest factor in the audiences throughout the film. He has done justice to this political drama by capturing the events in a realistic manner. We should encourage his determination for not deviating to any ‘masala’ moments. ‘Ka Pae Ranasingam’ shows the plight of the family members in bringing the corpses of people who die while working in other countries. Even though it is revealed that the protagonist died in the first half-an-hour, Vijay Sethupathi constantly appears on screen due to the non-linear screenplay style of the movie. M Ghibran’s background score is the major asset of this film as it elevates the emotions portrayed on the screen. Cinematographer NK Ekambaram excelled in painting the canvas with extraordinary visuals.
Performances
‘Makkal Selvan’ Vijay Sethupathi is a versatile actor who does 5 to 6 movies every year in Kollywood. He literally ‘lived’ in the character of ‘Ranasingam’ as a traditional water identifier and a youngster who fights for water problems in the region. Aishwarya Rajesh got a meaty role and she carries the film on her shoulders flawlessly. Her performance as a rural woman who fights to get her husband’s corpse from Dubai is heart-wrenching. Remaining cast such as Bhavani Sre, Rangaraj Pandey, Munishkanth and Vela Ramamoorthy have done justice to their roles.
Highlights
The realistic portrayal of water scarcity in villages of Tamil Nadu and the problems faced by people who go abroad for labour work are shot well. Perhaps for the first time on Indian cinema, the protagonist has been showcased in the role of a traditional water identifier. The scene in which the hero is shown to have a proper idea of the impending rainfall is good. The major drawback of this film is its runtime which amounts to a mammoth 2.57 hours. The director should have trimmed it to make it more appealing for the current generation who have short attention spans.
Cast
Vijay Sethupathi, Aishwarya Rajesh, Rangaraj Pandey, Munishkanth, Vela Ramamoorthy, Bhavani Sre etc.
Director: P Virumaandi
Producer: Kotapadi J Rajesh
Music: M Ghibran
Cinematography: NK Ekambaran
OTT platform: ZEEPLEX
Verdict: A thought-provoking drama
Rating: 3.5/5
