'Thirupur' (Tamil, Drama, 2010)
Director- MC Duraisamy
Cast- Prabha, Udhay, Unnimaya, Sarvamati, Padmakumar, 'Kaadhal' Dandapani
'Thirupur' centres on friendship, love and sacrifice.
The film opens with Keshavan (Udhay), who after serving a prison sentence, is on a train back home to Pazhani. As he reminisces about his past, we get to learn about the incidents that had played a crucial role in his life. Depicted in flashback, we see Keshavan’s friendship with Adhi and two others. When Keshavan falls in love with Aparanji (Unnimaya from Mollywood), who is on an educational trip to Pazhani, it’s the friends who urge the hesitant guy to express his love to her.
Antagonism comes in the form of her father, an influential man in, who dares Keshavan to come to Thirupur and claim his daughter’s hand. Accompanied by his friends, Keshavan reaches Thirupur. They have not just to convince her father, but also fight the goons of a thug who had finalised his brother’s marriage with Aparanji. Aparanji’s father’s terse behaviour with Keshavan may have a hidden agenda. But the scenes lack logic and conviction.
There is a sense of déjá vu throughout the film reminding you of many similar ones. The long climax chase where the foursome rescue Aparanji, and run through the lanes of Tirupur with the goons in hot pursuit, seems a straight lift of the 'Nadodigal' chase scene.
What the director has managed to convey is the friendship factor, specially the deep bonding between Adhi and Keshavan. Rising heroes Prabha and Udhay essay their characters with total involvement and conviction, and play a major part in bringing out this friendship factor effectively on screen.