Love stories never become clichéd. A feel good romance drama is always a delight to watch. But not often we get a breezy love story in Tamil cinema that offers us an amazing experience. Director Hemambar Jasti has used that advantageous space quite well to his favor with his melting love drama, Care Of Kaadhal. The entertainer is not just about a regular love story that blossoms between two young people. It is about love at different stages of life and how humans seek for warmth and love throughout their life. Care Of Kaadhal is the official Tamil remake of critically acclaimed Telugu flick Care of Kancharapalem which enjoyed a good reception among the audience. So how has the Tamil version of the flick come out? To know that let us get in to the movie review.
Care Of Kaadhal
Set at the backdrop of Meenakshipuram a village in Madurai, Care Of Kaadhal opens with Palani (Deepan), a 49 year old man who works as a peon in a government office. Palani is a man who minds his own business but does the society let him be about his business? No. He is trolled by the villagers for begin a bachelor at his age. In fact the entire village of Meenakshipuram puts out the same question whenever they come across Palani, ‘when are you getting married?’ But Palani just brushes it off with a smile. His life takes a turn when a 42 year old widow Radha (Sonia Giri) gets transferred as his superior officer. In no time they both become good friends. Slowly their friendship evolves in to an affectionate bond which metamorphosis to love.
Then there is a sub plot which follows the life of Velu (Nishesh), the son of a poor father Rasaiyya who has a reputation for making idols. Velu is doing his 8th standard in a government school. He has an innocent crush on his classmate Sunitha (Shwetha) but is too shy to initiate a conversation with her. On one instance he encourages her to sing. Soon he develops a good friendship with her.
In another sub plot we have a young bold college student Bhargavi (Ayra) hailing from an orthodox family falling for a thug, Joseph (Karthik Rathnam). She meets Joseph for the first time when he and his friends assault a man. She confronts Joseph and his friends. But later she learns the truth and eventually they get in to a romantic relationship.
In the last sub plot, we have a love story that conveys love is beyond boundaries. Dhaadi (Vetri) is a young man working in a liquor shop. He has a regular woman customer. He has not even seen her face. But only her eyes were enough for him to fall in love with her. Up on enquiring about her he comes to know that she is Saleema (Mumtaz Sorcar) a local sex worker. But that does not stop Dhaadi from going after his love. What will happen of all of them, will every pair end up being together, is what makes the rest of the drama.
What are the elements that make watching a love story exciting? relatability and the blissful emotions that it evokes in us. Director Hemambar Jasti has got that right. Care Of Kaadhal is a love story that is beautifully built on the popular thread that love has no boundaries and it can hit someone at any stage of life. There is also a social message passed just on the flow of the flick. Unlike many other films the message is not thrust in Care Of Kaadhal and is delivered subtly. With placing everything in the right place, story teller Hemambar Jasti finishes off the entertainer with a surprise in the climax. On the down side, there are times when the film slows down and gets a little dramatic, but those factors could be overlooked considering the wholesome experience that Care Of Kaadhal offers.
Completely four different stories at different situations of life is bound by a common thread, it is the magical thread called love. All the stories have its own challenges and usually when these sorts of story lines are picked up there would be much violence involved. In Care Of Kaadhal story teller Hemambar Jasti has changed that. He has taken up challenging story lines and has dealt with it neatly to make them light hearted. But life is made of hope and despair and so is Care Of Kaadhal. Though there is tenderness in air, not all stories have a happy ending. There is nothing in all these stories that we might not have seen already in Tamil cinema. But it is the way in which the same old clichéd scenes are presented and its dialogues along with the beautiful expressions of the artists that makes the experience of watching Care Of Kaadhal a pleasant one.
The casting of the flick is fitting and adds to the strength of the entertainer. Actor Deepan shines as an aged bachelor along with Sonia Giri bringing in cuteness to their love story. Actor Vetri scores yet again with his performance. It is hard to buy actress Mumtaz Sorcar as a call girl. Actors Karthik Rathnam and Arya have delivered a decent performance. Actors Nishesh, and Shwetha adds sweetness and innocence perfectly to their role. The rest of the cast has delivered a good supporting performance.
On the technical front, music director Sweekar Agasthi’s background scores supplements the emotional scenes quite well. Cinematographer Gunasekaran has covered the rawness of the village atmosphere well. Editor Sreekar Prasad’s cuts emphasize the work of his colleague.
On the whole, Care Of Kaadhal’s slow pace might not make it everybody’s cup of tea but for the fans of romance drama it certainly is.
