Since his reemergence as a top hero, Vijayakanth's films casting him as a supercop
have definitely displayed a decrease in quality. While Vallarasu
contained some clever plot devices, both Vanchinathan
and Narasimma relied more on style and flashiness
rather than logic or substance. But Raajjiyam lacks both style and substance and
consequently, even the most rabid Vijayakanth fan would be hardpressed to find something
of merit in his thalaivar's latest outing.
Karthikeyan(Vijayakanth) runs a Central Government authorized secret service agency
under the guise of an organization that helps people arriving in Chennai. He leads
a happy life with his wife(Shamita Shetty), daughter and younger brother Surya(Dilip),
a mute. Surya falls in love with Anuradha(Priyanka Trivedi), a woman that Karthikeyan
brings home from the railway station but her past forces her to reject his romance.
When the Governor's(Murali) daughter-in-law dies, Karthikeyan finds out that it was
a murder and arrests the Governor's son(Anand). Though the Governor outwardly
congratulates Karthikeyan and even appoints him as his personal bodyguard, he is in
fact plotting his revenge on him.
It is debatable if any other film in recent memory, starring a hero of Vijayakanth's
stature, has been mounted in such an amateurish fashion. The scenes where Vijayakanth's
employees help find employment for new arrivals to Madras, the prominent display of his
fan club flag and the abrupt song with him leading a huge procession are all picturised
in a distressingly poor fashion. But atleast such scenes can be condoned since they are
obviously only aimed at eliciting cheers and whistles from his fans. But even regular
scenes, like Shamita's meeting with Vijayakanth's 'admirers' in the train, reek of
silliness.
Any hope that the director would deal with the crime aspects of the movie in a better
fashion are dashed once Vijayakanth appears at the governor's house. His sniffing out of
the clues(he 'discovers' the syringe used in the murder thrown carelessly so that it
is resting on an indoor plant!) looks like it belongs to one of the TV serials where a
bunch of kids figure out the mystery. And the fight scenes go beyond the realms of
reality, even when judged by the stunts in Vijayakanth's recent cop movies. As he defies
all laws of physics to fly through the air(the 'spinning jump', where he spins so fast
he whizzes through the air like a top, is a classic!), the sequences turn into cartoons
generating no interest whatsoever.
The way the governor, alongwith Mansur Ali Khan, extracts his revenge
on Vijayakanth is what saves the movie from being a complete waste of time. The
plan itself is quite diabolical, in the way it involves Vijayakanth, and shows some
good planning. Showing uncharacteristic restraint, the director too picturises these
scenes in a manner that heightens suspense by revealing the actual plan slowly. But
the climactic scenes - replete with the 'talking villain' who unnecessarily spills
the beans about his actions, unnecessary deaths and a long fight - once again
remind us that it is the same movie we are watching.
Vijayakanth, looking quite beefed-up, does his part with some risks in the stunt
sequences and colorful dresses in the song sequences. Dilip, a Malayalam actor, is
probably the only one who comes off positively from the movie. He does well, both in
making us laugh initially and earning our sympathy in the later portions. Shamita
Shetty has little to do while Priyanka Trivedi, as the woman with a secret, is
adequate. Vadivelu tickles us a little with some of his routines. Bharadwaj's
tunes make this his least impressive effort among the three movies where he is the
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