Manithan Review: A Remake That Does Justice to the Original
Film: Manithan
Director: L Ahmad
Cast: Udhayanidhi Stalin, Hansika, Aishwarya Rajesh, Prakashraj, Radharavi, Vivek.
A brilliantly crafted screenplay, deft treatment, well-etched characters and some wonderful performances earned Jolly LLB (2013) both critical and audience acclaim and a couple of awards at the national level. Now, the Hindi film comes to Tamil as Manithan. And it is to director Ahmad’s credit that while adapting the courtroom drama, he not only captured the physicality of the original, but also its soul and essence. In what is basically a David-and-Goliath plot, the script gets a breezy treatment as it explores yet another instance of the eternal struggle between the strong and the weak, the haves and the have-nots.
One wondered how Udhayanidhi would portray the struggling lawyer Shakti whose need of the hour was money and fame — a role that fit Arshad Warsi like a glove. But it is to Udhayanidhi’s credit that he has handled it with panache. He has revealed a rare maturity, holding his own against stalwarts like Prakashraj and Radharavi. Appreciable is his command over dialogue delivery in the final courtroom scene.
Shakti came to the city to make it big as a lawyer. And a high profile hit-and-run case provided him the ideal opportunity to get his share of limelight in the media. It all begins when rich spoilt brat Rahul, driving a fancy car, runs over six daily wage labourers sleeping on the pavement. With money power and high profile lawyer Adhiseshan backing him, Rahul is out of the mess soon enough. But as a spoiler enters Shakti, a young struggling lawyer. Realising the potential of the case, Shakti files a PIL and reopens it.
It’s the game of wits that follows as an enraged Adhiseshan tries all means, physical and psychological, to ward him off. Prakashraj is eminently watchable as Adhisheshan, the flamboyant lawyer who bullies his way through the courtroom, intimidating both judges and rivals. Another brilliantly underplayed performance is by Radharavi as the all-knowing judge. Hansika fits in suitably as Shakti’s fiancee Priya. Priya is the supportive factor in Shakti’s life, who provides moral support when he needs it, and ticks him off when he takes a wrong step. Aishwarya’s Jennifer, a TV journalist on the case, is neatly played. With Vivek here, the comedy element is upped, but blends in well.
The script explores the loopholes in the legal system, the cop-businessmen nexus, unscrupulous lawyers, the anomalies of the judicial system, and of how the privileged take advantage of it. The lines are sparkling. There is no preaching, the treatment humourous and satirical, and at times poignant — like the scenes related to the plight of the pavement dwellers. There is this line where one of them tells a man about to pee on the pavement, ‘Please don’t pee here. We have to sleep in this place.’ The courtroom drama with its twists and turns, is engaging and well crafted. With its solid screenplay and its light-hearted take, Manithan is worth a watch.