CHENNAI: Finally, Chief Minister Vijay's Jana Nayagan, directed by H Vinoth, has released after several roadblocks. One of the most-anticipated Tamil films of the year is expected to have a huge opening at the box-office since it’s the CM’s final on screen appearance. However, with the Tamil audience choosing smart content over formulaic films will Vijay’s Jana Nayagan strike gold at the box-office?
The movie is a partial remake of the Telugu film Bhagavanth Kesari, headlined by Nandamuri Balakrishna. While the essence remains the same in Jana Nayagan, the makers seem to have predominantly tweaked the screenplay to cater it to Vijay’s fans as well as political ambitions.
The film opens with Thalapathy Vetri Kondan (Vijay) , a prisoner with a bloodied past, is released on Independence day of 2003. He ends up fostering Viji (Mamitha Baiju), who aspires to become an army officer, taking inspiration from her late mother. Viji’s anxiety’s and phobias stop her from becoming one and makes her lean towards marrying her boyfriend. Meanwhile, a gang called MM, led by John Himler (Bobby Deol), is trading weapons to India illegally stuffed inside toys. Their agenda is also to create a communal clash within Tamil Nadu, leading to a civil war.
H Vinoth here does a brilliant job by connecting these characters and creating a strong subplot. This takes the first 45 minutes of the three hour and three minute film and offers a pleasant viewing experience. It is when the movie begins to unfold, the story travels all over the place and gets tangled between the real intentions of what the team set out for and Vijay’s political ambitions. Jana Nayagan becomes an extension of Vijay’s political campaigns with innuendos on his political opponents.
The film that is mostly shot on green mat and studios isn’t visually enchanting either. Anirudh’s songs provide dance-worthy moments in theatres while we wish that the background music did the same too. The second half of the film though has a couple of emotional elements, we are disconnected from the main plot by then.
Cast: Vijay, Mamitha Baiju, Bobby Deol, Prakash Raj, Pooja Hegde, Priyamani Sunil, Gautham Vasudev Menon, and Srinath
Director: H Vinoth
Music director: Anirudh
Rating- 2/5
Synopsis: A convict is released from the prison. He has a past which even dreaded gangsters shudder to think of. However, an event that poses threat to Tamil Nadu's integrity forces him to go all guns blazing
Mamitha Baiju is Jana Nayagan’s major high point. It is not that her portions have been written well, she has played her part well as Viji and will be her career-best in years to come. The film, despite being its final outing, is not just an out-and-out Vijay show. It speaks of women empowerment, democratic rights, secularism and stands strong in what Vijay as a Chief Minister envisioned for Tamil Nadu in his tenure.
High on political dialogues and low on execution, makes Jana Nayagan a watch only to bid adieu to Vijay's final on screen appearance. The sad part is that we have lost the best dancer in Tamil cinema to politics.