Merku Thodarchi Malai Movie Review

A gentle walk across the scenic landscapes of the beautiful Western Ghats – Perhaps, one of the most quintessential things in the bucket list of everyone… It looks like Vijay Sethupathi is one among them and by the nature of Merku Thodarchi Malai, we can imbibe towards it. Filmmaker Lenin Bharathi takes us through the journey across the foothills of this region. And remember, we cited ‘A gentle walk’ by the very beginning, which would be the experience. A dramatic projection of lifestyle prevailing among the dwellers there, where they have their own aspirations and dreams, their livelihood and so on…

Lenin Bharathi owes a lot to couple of pillars in the film, one being maestro Ilayaraja and cinematographer Theni Eswar.

The initial moments of the film, say around 30 minutes has its own tortoise pace and that doesn’t hamper your engrossment anywhere. This is the major strength of Merku Thodarchi Malai, where we get instantly adhered to each and every new thing we see there. The film opens with the protagonist Rangasamy (Anthony) taking his course of walk through the ups and steeps of the heel, where we find some characters joining him and departing at places. But it takes nearly second half for the actual drama to set in motion. The post-interval sequences having Rangasamy entering wedlock with his cousin girl and having kid, all shown in a song propels us to look up for more. But the dramatic moments lack some emotional punch. But it doesn’t mean that it goes into the mediocre phase. Lenin Bharathi owes a lot to couple of pillars in the film, one being maestro Ilayaraja and cinematographer Theni Eswar. In fact, the latter remains almost like a character throughout the film with his lens work.

Merku Thodarchi Malai is a unique experience and definitely needs a watch

When it comes to performance, the actors offer life to their roles effortlessly, though at times, we might slightly find them missing it. Antony gives in an impeccable performance and others too have their best spell.

Overall, Merku Thodarchi Malai is a unique experience and definitely needs a watch, if you have plans to refrain from loud noisy polluted premises and inhale some freshness.