Some films have an engaging first half, while in the second, the screenplay goes on a downslide, negating the positive impact of the first half. Gnana Kirukkan is one such film. The journey of a youngster from a poor rural background and his fight against various odds to make his own place in the world, begins well enough. But as the narration progresses, the natural tone of the film gets lost somewhere in the heavy dose of melodrama packed in.
With a mentally-imbalanced father, and a mother, who is the sole breadwinner of the family, Perumal (Jaga) leaves the village as a child to try his fortune in Tiruchy. Through honesty and hardwork, he graduates from being a cleaner to a lodge boy. The whole ambience in the village, and the relationship among the various members of the family are etched in minute details. The director should be lauded for the sensitivity with which he has crafted these episodes and the realism he has brought to these moments. The costumes and the makeup are apt and suitable. Daniel Balaji is convincing as Perumal’s father and Senthi as the distressed mother.
But unfortunately, the director is not able to sustain the same momentum and interest in the second half. Circumstances force Perumal to leave Tiruchy and try his fortune in Chennai. The director piles a load of miseries on his hero, when he tries to help out Sumati (Archana Kavi), a damsel in distress. The screenplay takes a nosedive here, sinking into heavy melodrama. The actors too seem to lose their sense of perspective. Debutant Jaga, a natural actor in the early part, goes overboard with his histrionics here. The hero’s Chennai trip is like a wasted effort. Had the post-Chennai scenario been re-worked, the film would have been an appreciable product from a debutant.