Boomerang movie review: Atharvaa, RJ Balaji hold this uneven tale of mistaken identity together

The premise of R Kannan’s Boomerang is interesting but due to a screenplay that travels all around, it falters. It is a message-oriented film with loads of commercial entertainment elements, but the final mix leaves you with a sour taste. Atharvaa plays two different characters, has two heroines - Megha Akash and Induja and two comedians friends - Satish and RJ Balaji. [caption id=“attachment_6223431” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Boomerang . Image via Twitter/@galattadotcom[/caption] The story is an age-old popular concept in Tamil cinema, where double roles result in mistaken identity. One guy is mistaken for another guy by the villains who have a score to settle. Siva (Atharva) is caught in a fire accident which results in 90 percent burns. When he is in the hospital, a brain-dead patient is brought in. The doctors and the patient’s mother (Suhasini) agree to do a face transplant to reconstruct Siva’s disfigured face. Soon after the surgery, his appearance changes drastically and a short filmmaker (Megha Akash) falls for him. Suddenly, out of nowhere, there are a series of attempts made on Siva’s life. The assassins mistake him for somebody else which makes Siva investigate the past of the person who gave him a new face. Siva goes to Trichy and meets Maya (Induja), who mistakes him for her boyfriend Sakthi (Atharvaa), who went missing sometime back. Sakthi was an IT professional in Chennai who got fired by his company. He comes to Trichy with his friend (RJ Balaji) and sees the plight of the farming community. He envisages a master plan to solve the water crisis in the agrarian community by linking rivers. But several powerful forces, including the local councillor, bureaucrats and police are against him, which leads to a flashpoint. The problem with the film is that it tries to take up too many issues at the same time and sugarcoat them with commercial ingredients. First, the film talks about farmers’ issues and how the farming community is treated as a mere vote bank (a recurring subject in Tamil cinema). Then, the narrative moves towards other subjects, which become popular during elections: water issues and linking of rivers in India. Later, the focus shifts to capitalism and its ramifications. The privatisation of industries is presented as the root cause of all misery, in the film. Atharva holds this uneven film together to a large extent along with RJ Balaji, who appears as the hero’s best friend ( probably his last appearance in such a role as he has now become a leading man). RJ Balaji’s one-liners on the IT industry and farming issues are sure to bring the house down. Upen Patel as the villain has a poorly written role and his potential is wasted. The ladies have nothing much to do. The film has shades of Mani Ratnam’s Ayitha Ezhuthu (2004), on how the youth should take things in their own hands and sort out issues. Director R Kannan was once an associate of Ratnam, so it’s natural for him to be influenced by Ratnam’s school of filmmaking. Somehow, the film lacks an emotional connect and rushes into an abrupt ending.