Sathya
Director: Pradeep Krishnamoorthy
Cast: Sibiraj, Remya Nambeesan, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar
After dabbling with a villain role and that of a comedian, Sibiraj is back in a serious thriller after his Naaigal Jaakirathai days with Sathya, a remake of the Telugu hit Kshanam. What works for Sathya is the fact that they haven’t reworked the script in order to ‘suit local sensibilities’, something a lot of remakes do which usually leads to the original essence getting lost in translation. Sibi’s debut film Student Number 1, incidentally, is a classic example of this.
Sathya is about an NRI techie who gets a call from Swetha (Remya Nambeesan), his ex-girlfriend, informing him that her daughter Riya has been kidnapped. This forces Sathya (Sibi) to return to India, only to be confused by all the uncertainty that clouds the case. As the story is told from Sathya’s perspective, the audience too is mired in doubt as each sequence unfolds. There is no dearth of twists and turns in this thriller.
Sibi perhaps looks his best in this film, as he pulls off the swag of an NRI who wears cool clothes including jackets and a dog tag. There is enough scope in the film to show his acting ability, and the actor gleefully accepts it. Remya is efficient as the helpless vulnerable mother and her romance portions with Sibi in the flashback sequences are really well-conceived too.
The supporting cast adds value too; especially Yogi Babu, who shines with his witty one-liners. In one scene, he looks at Sibi and says, “Nadikathey da.” Sibi replies, “Ennaku athu varathu.” Yogi retorts, “Adhan oorukey theriyume”. The film is laced with many such one-liners, courtesy Anandraj and Satish, which provide for much humorous relief in an otherwise serious film. It’s also refreshing to see Sathish used as an actor, for once, instead of just as a comedian.
Director Pradeep Krishnamoorthy of Saithan fame has done the film a big favour by being loyal to the original script to a fault. Though he has made some minor changes to suit Sibi — in the romance portions and the flashback sequences — they don’t end up disrupting the flow of the story. The risky move of going with a not-so-familiar composer, Simon K King, has paid off well too. Yavvana turned out to be a chart-buster, but my pick is the fast-paced Sangu, which also serves to speed up the screenplay towards the end. It also brings in just the right touch of heroism, which is thankfully, kept to a bare minimum. He has also done a great job with the background score.
Pradeep has also chosen his cast wisely. A popular character, for instances, keeps you guessing, and ultimately, it turns out to be a red herring. If there should be said to be a negative at all, it’s the final reveal. It seems like one twist too many, and isn’t entirely convincing. Nevertheless, Sathya is an intelligent thriller that should prove to be a much-needed break for Sibi. For me, it’s one of his best, if not, the best film of his fairly nascent career.