Story
Adithya Karikalan and Nandini (Aishwarya Rai) are in love right from the teenage. Adithya is the crown prince and Nandini is adopted by a Vaishnava priest. When Adithya brings Nandini home and introduces her as the future queen to his mother, Nandini and her family are quietly whisked away to a distant location. It breaks their hearts. At a later point of time, Adithya sees her in the hut of Veerapandiyan (leader of the opponent clan). After getting married to Periya Pazhuvettaraiyar, Nandini finally sends a message to Adithya to meet her. Rest of the story is about what happens to him when he meets her.
Artists Performance
I have already discussed the actors' performance in the review of part 1. This film is also the same, but with varied screen presence. However, both Vikram and Aishwarya Rai have terrific characters written in this part. The way Vikram has portrayed agony and inner turmoil is excellent. The way Aishwarya Rai has shown regret and helplessness is extraordinary. Both have done an outstanding job. Aishwarya Rai as Mandakini is also exceptional.
Story - screenplay - direction: The story of the part 2 starts where the part 1 ends. The writers of the script has a few unanswered questions in the first part
What exactly happened between Aditya and Nandini?
Did both Arunmozhi Varman and Vallavaraiyan die in the ocean?
Who is the old lady on the elephant that resembles Nandini?
Do Vallavaraiyan and Kundavai fall in love?
Who will inherit the throne after Sundala Cholan?
All the above questions are answered.
However, the director Mani Ratnam has chosen the story of Adithya and Nandini as the main plot and woven all other plots around it. Likewise, the movie starts with the love story of Adithya and Nandini as teens. And the movie concludes in 10-15 minutes after the meeting of both Adithya and Nandini.
The first part was shown from the travel perspective of Vallavaraiyan. And the second part is shown from the PoV of Adithya-Nandini.
Mani Ratnam is known for his unique touch in handling romance scenes. The way he handled the ‘feelings’ aspect between Nandini and Adithya is exemplary. Though there is just one playful scene between Kundavai and Vallavaraiyan, it exudes romance. The scene of Sundara Cholan where he gets to see his old flame is also beautifully handled.
There is not much in the film with regards to war sequences and fights. However, the technique used by Arunmozhi in interval is pretty good.
The screenplay of the film is beautifully written. The director revealed the twists in the film at the right time. However, the pace of the film is a little slow.
Other departments: Music by AR Rahman is very classy. Background music adds a lot of strength to the narration. Cinematography by Ravi Varma is a great asset. Visuals in the film are majestic. Production design by Thota Tharani is sterling. VFX is fine. I expect better VFX/DI (color grading) for the final war sequence in the film. Editing by Sreekar Prasad is top class. Dialogues by Tanikella Bharani are good. Production values by Madras Talkies banner are superb.
Analysis: Though faced some negativity for PS-1 Telugu version for having a difficult premise/names for Telugu audiences, director Mani Ratnam has made sure that part 2 doesn’t have any of such problems. Director Mani Ratnam has shown his class in handling the part 2. He has explored the romance part exceedingly well. It’s such a difficult job to tell such a huge story in 2 parts. But, he has devised two narrative styles for both parts. The first part was narrated through the character of Vallavarayan where he keeps roaming from place to place where we get introduced to all important characters. Since we are familiar with all characters and premise, the director has used the thread of Adithya and Nandini to narrate part 2. The highlight of the film is the sequence where both Adithya and Nandini finally meet. Mani Ratnam has wrapped up the film with the coronation of the new king. On the whole, PS-2 is a better film than PS-1. It’s decent and is definitely worth a watch for all Mani Ratnam’s fans.
|
