Amaran is effective as an intimate, well researched piece of storytelling, but does not break any new ground, observes Arjun Menon.
Amaran, based on the real life story of Major Mukund Varadarajan and his wife Indu Rebecca Varghese, and their one-of-a-kind journey, treads familiar ground and still manages to elevate certain anchor points in the life of an army officer with an air of subdued dignity.
Director Rajkumar Periasamy is interested in the impact of the details that are often bygone in films revolving around the military and armed forces. The constant need for sensationalism and chest thumping patriotism has hindered the narrative possibilities of army movies.
But there is an intimate swerve in the way the film treats this subject.
The film is framed through the viewpoint of Indhu Rebecca Varghese (Sai Pallavi), the dutiful wife of Major Varadarajan (Siva Karthikeyan), who introduces us to their story through a voiceover that underlines the nature of their relationship.
Amaran does not break any new ground in terms of the routine construction or formal qualities associated with the 'biopic'.
But there is a keen attention to the way the makers have pledged loyalty to the real life story and we can see the reverence for the subject sweeps through the film's predictable story.
Having said that, the film does merely gleam through the major events in the life of Major Mukund, whose real life valorous personal journey is limited by the mundane, self congratulatory film-making.
There are details like an army man's wife forced to listen to an ongoing ambush with no way to know whether her husband is alive or not as their phone call gets interrupted with the action playing out in the background.
Or the confused soldier and his wife discussing the segregation of his meagre savings on a video call and aspiring to buy a flat for themselves.
Or additions like the 'half widow' gate, where missing men's wives are forced to wait in hope of news about their husbands who have crossed over the Jammu and Kashmir border.
Or the way the hero and team are punished for an intuitive action through an outreach programme where they are asked to help the villagers out in their day-to-day affairs, a mission that they accept wholeheartedly.
All these glorious details are often left behind by our action-centric film culture where plot progression is mistaken for momentum.
But there is a dearth of conviction in the way the film relies on the well established cliches of military films. You see the rough dialogues and awkwardly conceived high points that are not registered due to the film's tonal imbalance.
Rajkumar comes up with scenes to establish the camaraderie and jovial relationships amongst the Rashtriya Rifles, the group led by the hero that vary in effectiveness.
There is a sequence which begins with the team en route a covert mission, only to be lost in a random two minute discussion about cinema between the tensed group and titles like Enthiran and Thuppakki are thrown about and a brief line about the hero's adamant insistence to watch a film back home, only in Tamil, when only an Hindi language version was available.
These sort of introspective moments are scarce and the poor writing and staging of the sequence deprives the effect the makers are trying to establish.
For instance, such a revelation in between the harsh realities of an impending terror attack is the most vulnerable space to situate your hero, in a place of seeming openness that the film never explores any further.
You get a glimpse into what kind of man lies beneath the crusty yet amiable exterior of the hero. But every other conflict is solved with a generic alternative.
Sai Pallavi gives an earnest yet slightly misjudged performance. She is clearly relishing the part and finding new ways to connect the void left by the writing, in setting up the awkward energy of the romance conceived by the makers.
Siva Karthikeyan is effective as Major Mukund and is asked to go to places where he has been rarely allowed to by directors in the past, thanks to the nature of films he has attached himself to till now.
The actor seems up to the task but the film sees him as cipher to reflect the inspiring life of the real Major Mukund and is left with some fiery speeches and impressive physical prowess.
You tear up towards the end for the foregone conclusion owing to the inherent strength of real life 'major' Mukund and his wife's ultimate sacrifice alone, and not entirely due to the film's dramatic rigour.
Cardboard villains and one note representation of geo-political conflicts in and around J&K does not help either.
But the decision to underplay the patriotic fervour associated with this sub-genre of films is a welcome sign.
The film rarely makes noise around the notion of nationhood and overt-preachy patriotism as the makers understand that this is ultimately the story of a brave soldier, who laid down his life for his country above anything else.
The romance takes the central stage and we get a couple navigating the contours of a bumpy yet one-of-a-kind romance that sees no barriers, even post the ultimate goodbye.
The name of Major Mukund will shine on forever, but it has to be seen whether this on screen iteration of the braveheart will shine through with the same intensity over the years.
