Nenjukku Needhi movie review: Udhayanidhi's towering presence rules in this solid remake of Anubhav Sinha's Article 15

Language: Tamil Nenjukku Needhi is a remake of the Hindi film Article 15 . Anubhav Sinha’s film, starring Ayushmann Khurrana, is important in mainstream Bollywood conversation around caste. In an industry where caste is often overlooked, the film was celebrated for its nuanced, hard-hitting representation of our flawed, punctured social fabric. But it’s a tricky film to remake, purely because the discourse around caste in Tamil Nadu, and Tamil cinema, is very different from its Northern counterparts. In Article 15 , there’s a scene where every officer in the police station introduces themselves with their full name, which includes their caste. This scene cannot be the same in Tamil. Tamilians have eschewed caste markers from their names, thanks to the self-respect movement and a man we fondly call Periyar. Tamil films have also been more vocal about social justice. Does this mean Tamil Nadu is free from casteism? Not even close. Our names (and road names) may not have caste markers. But it has only made the ‘process of discovery’ more sophisticated. This means there is a definite need to restructure the conversation to suit the Dravidian social and political landscape. This becomes Nenjukku Needhi’s objective, one that it mostly achieves: with caged Ambedkar and Periyar statues, manual scavenging deaths, caste threads on the wrist, and the discourse around reservation.

Nenjukku Needhi finds windows of opportunity to touch upon other raging socio-political issues of Tamil Nadu. It is not a coincidence that the doctor who performs the post-mortem on the victims is named Anitha. Ever since her unfortunate death, the young student’s name has become the refrain against NEET. A confrontation with a Hindi CBI officer becomes an opportunity to discuss Hindi imposition, another recurring (and also sensitive) issue for Tamil Nadu. The dialogues in Nenjukku Needhi are sharp, precise, and quote-worthy. This acts as a double-edged sword for the film. In most places, the punches land beautifully, but on a few occasions, they do seem contrived. (Dialogues are written by Tamizharasan Pachamuthu). Udhayanidhi’s presence makes these additions more significant – the actor’s political lineage and career are no secret. But there’s also no denying that they are well-done. Udhayanidhi’s involvement means we have a few shots of him against the rising sun. But thankfully, the film doesn’t indulge in them too much. Udhayanidhi gives an earnest performance and is well-aided by the ensemble of excellent supporting actors. (Suresh Chakravarthi, in specific, is fantastic) However, the film does slip in staging a few of its scenes more organically. For example, take the sequence where an ‘encounter’ happens. (Shivani Rajashekar’s makeup stands out, and not in a good way.)

One of Article 15’s major criticisms was that, despite everything, the film still projected its protagonist as a saviour. But in Nenjuku Needhi, you find small moments that show us otherwise.

Unlike Article 15, folded hands here are not a gesture of gratitude from the victim’s family, but one of repentance from Vijayaraghavan (Udhayanidhi Stalin). Snakes play an important role in Nenjukku Needhi. When Vijayaraghavan arrives at his new police station, he discovers his team battling a snake infestation. He later comes to know that it was an attack, but the snakes were harmless. When Sathya is found later, fighting for her life, snakes slither out of the way. They had caused her no harm, the same can’t be said of her fellow human beings. It’s the small moments like these that make Nenjukku Needhi a solid remake. Rating: * * * Nenjukku Needhi is playing in cinemas.

Ashameera Aiyappan is a film journalist who writes about Indian cinema with a focus on South Indian films. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram .