An emotional triumph, but some questions linger

The situation isn't entirely new for a Tamil film: a Tamil man, Mukund (Sivakarthikeyan), enters a Malayali household to seek the hand of their daughter, Indhu (Sai Pallavi).

- SUDHIR SRINIVASAN

The situation isn't entirely new for a Tamil film: a Tamil man, Mukund (Sivakarthikeyan), enters a Malayali household to seek the hand of their daughter, Indhu (Sai Pallavi). In Tamil cinema lore, such scenes often signal trouble. In Autograph, Cheran's character faces a quick rejection, a violent ejection. In Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa, Simbu's character meets a similar fate. But in Amaran, the hero cannot be quickly insulted or rejected, for Mukund arrives cloaked in the authority of an army uniform, a symbol that tempers resistance with respect. Where once Indhu's father opposed the relationship, now he's disarmed by the unspoken reverence for a man in uniform. This scene is restrained, absent of cinematic exaggeration; instead, director Rajkumar Periasamy allows these moments to revel in soft, unspoken gestures, where relationships get organically forged.

Amaran, inspired by the life of Major Mukund Varadarajan, revels in these realistic spaces. We see evidence of this emotional richness repeatedly. Initially, for instance, Mukund's mother resists, even trying to sabotage the romantic union by hinting at the dangers of her son's army life.

But soon enough, Indhu and his mother become thick as thieves, bound by love and the shared ache of separation from Mukund. It's all so beautifully, understatedly done. In another film, Mukund's mother and Indhu's father might be reduced to mere caricatures, stepping in and out as needed by the film. But here, they stay, part of the film's fabric, making the universe of Amaran fuller, more real, more detailed.