V.O.Chidambaram Pillai(Sivaji) is a lawyer and also the owner of a large salt factory. He is a true patriot, leading the movement to burn all foreign goods. Noticing that there was no Indian ship plying in the Indian waters, he collects the money needed to buy a ship and launches the ship. He, along with Subramaniam Siva, is arrested for leading a strike of workers at a mill run by the English and suffers untold hardship in prison.

Sivaji brings Chidambaram Pillai before our eyes with his portrayal of the freedom fighter. He is majestic during the initial portions, as he strides with confidence, collecting money for buying the ship and sure of its success in propagating the freedom movement. He delivers his dialogs forcefully and with passion and the accompanying expressions and gestures complement the effect(the single shot when the collector imagines Sivaji as Veera Pandiya Katta Bomman is quite exhilarating). The makeup is flawless in his old age and his slow, uncertain walk and sad face leave us with little doubt that we are actually seeing an old man on screen. It is an underplayed performance but grandiose nevertheless.

The movie effectively shows us the hardships undergone by the people in order to gain independence and makes us admire the patriotic fervor in the few characters it focusses on. Chidambaram Pillai's selfless acts are ofcourse the highlight and the way he sells his business or his wife's jewels without a moment's thought speaks of his greatness. There is passion in his voice as he dreams of an Indian ship. His wealthy lifestyle makes the hardships he undergoes in jail even more tragic. The scenes in jail have been picturised well with even one of the convicts making an impression with his respect for V.O.C.

But the movie does not focus on him solely with the effect of making the other characters insignificant. Bharatiyar's eccentricity and Subramaniam Siva's forcefulness are well brought out during their segments. Ofcourse these characters have their best scenes when seen with VOC. Subramaniam Siva has his best lines during his visit to the Collector's office with VOC while Bharatiyar shines when asked about his association with VOC in court. Individuals like Gemini Ganesan's Madasami get substantial screen time and Vanchinathan manages to impress us in the little time he is on screen.

Maybe because VOC could not accomplish much after her came out of jail or because there are no records of that segment of his life, the portions of the movie dealing with that part seem rather rushed. His transformation to an aged man seems abrupt with only newspaper reports about the death of his fellow freedom fighters being used to indicate the passing of time. The last scene is suitably touching with Bharatiyar's Endru Thaniyum....

S.V.Subbaiya is perfect as Bharatiyar and his expressions, gestures and dialog delivery are superb. Among all the actors who have portrayed the poet in cinema, no one comes as close as S.V.Subbaiya. Gemini Ganesan and Savitri have a few cute lines as the lovebirds. S.V.Rangarao, who usually plays a benevolent old man, appears as the British collector here. Asokan too has a role as the assistant collector. Songs like Velli Paniyin... and Vande Maataram... are very memorable.