|
|
Director: Selva
Cast: Partibhan, Meena, Rambha, Vadivelu, Manorama, Anandraj, Anju Arvind, Vivek, Vyapuri.
It is a film that starts on a different note, is fairly interesting till it is half-way through & then gets distracted by unwanted additions to the narration. And finally peters down to predictable situations, leading to the desired happy ending.
The
court case turns against them, and the family that had seen
better days soon finds itself reduced to a life of penury. The
father dies of shock and the daughter Mahalakshmi, sole inheritor
of not only the palatial bungalow that can only boast of a past
glory, but also of the massive debt her father had left behind,
finds herself with no money, abandoned and alone. As she wonders
how she would transport her father’s body to their native
village, a taxi driver comes to her rescue. But the man turns out
to be insensitive and a mercenary, even making a mockery of her
mourning.
They reach the village and the man stays put in her house vowing not to budge an inch, till she had cleared his dues. Added to it all, he seemed to be suffering from verbal diarrhoea (a common characteristic of many of the Partibhan-acted roles). The poor girl would have buckled down under all that pressure, but the inevitable happens. She gets drawn to him and he to her, much later, after all his dalliance with Rambha is over.
Meanwhile avaricious relatives step in to take advantage of her helpless situation, and the driver turns her saviour. Even pledging his taxi, his first love, to save her honour. The track diverts to accommodate Rambha, who plays herself in the film. A film unit comes to the village for shooting. The taxi driver, excited on seeing his favourite actress in person, runs around doing her every bidding. To the irritation of Mahalakshmi, who had developed a soft corner for the rugged driver with the golden heart. The ‘golden heart’ part of the man comes through only much later in the narration.
Rambha’s role, which should have remained a cameo, rather, should not have been there at all, gets extended to occupy quite a major chunk of the footage. One doesn’t blame the director, for he probably had the good intention of trying to bring in a little oomph and glamour to the proceedings. What with Meena dressed in simple attires and adopting a homely look! At one stage the driver sneaks out in his taxi and scoots away. A disheartened Mahalakshmi agrees to marry an admirer who suddenly turns up. The driver has a change of heart and returns, sees the scenario, and decides to back out. Nothing to worry, for the intended bridegroom turns out to be a charlatan, with a skeleton in his cupboard. He is exposed, she gets back her lost inheritance, and also the driver as an added bonus. It couldn’t have turned out any better for her!
The softness and the vulnerability of the character are brought out splendidly by Meena. Partibhan should be commended for trying to be different. If only his characters spoke a little less!