Milaga Movie Review

Two types of Madurai based movies are currently being made in Tamil cinema. One is the bunch that attempts to portray the life lived in the temple town and other set is loaded with commercial elements adding more masala to the place which already has many flavours.

While the likes of 'Subramaniapuram' and 'Mayandi Kudumbathar', add value to the former, films like 'Ghilli' and 'Thimiru' stand testimony to the latter. 'Milaga', a film by Ravi Maria with popular Bollywood cinematographer Natraj as hero, is a mixture of both variants.

However, Ravi Maria is only partially successful in striking a perfect balance. Despite being racy, the film somehow fails to work big time, thanks to predictable scenes, especially in the second half. Attempts to establish Nataraj as a mass hero too mars the flow.

Coming to the story part, it is the one we have already seen in umpteen number of movies- How a one-man army hero defeats all the evil elements and joins hands with his ladylove for a happily every after life.

Azhagar (Nataraj) is a happy go lucky youngster, who looks after his family's red chilly business (justifying the title 'milaga'), in Madurai. But his main job is to be with his friends- roaming, singing and fighting for them all the time (justifying the sub title- 'Maduraikaara payaluga natupukkaga usuraiyum kuduppaiynga...').

When things are going cool, trouble starts to enter Azhagar's life in the form of three powerful brothers in the temple town, when he tries to save a girl Thenmozhi (Poongodi of 'Mayandi Kudumbathar' fame) at one point of time.

The rest is all about how our hero teaches a lesson to the baddies with his own brainy and brawny ways, which is told in a clichéd way, and with Nataraj going the whole hog to establish himself as a macho man who can do anything and everything.

Nataraj is okay as a Madurai youth and his hard work is visible on screen. But for his super hero attempts, the cinematographer passes muster as the protagonist too. Poongodi repeats her ‘Mayandi Kudumbathar’ act while Singam Puli & Co reminds us ‘Naadodigal’ and ‘Subramaniapuram’. Suja, the other heroine, scores well.

Music by Sabesh-Murali is average with hardly any tune sticking to our heart while coming out of the theatre. On the whole, ‘Milaga’ would have been spicier, had Ravi Maria ensured that the latter half coped up with the first half.