Thamizh Padam 2 movie review: Shiva is spot on with his sarcastic remarks on stalwarts of Tamil cinema

The posters and promos of Thamizh Padam 2 had gone viral before the film’s release, creating huge anticipation on social media. Not even one single scene from the film was there in the posters which spoofed some recent Tamil hit films. The adman-turned-director CS Amudhan’s style of spoofing Kollywood and its larger-than-life superstars work once again in Thamizh Padam 2, with Shiva at the epicentre of this laughathon. [caption id=“attachment_4724881” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Shiva in a still from Thamizh Paadam 2. YouTube[/caption] The film has basically no story; it is a spoof on Tamil cinema’s pantheon of superstars and their style of acting. It has also recreated the eternal “loose ponnu” heroines and the way they fall in love and so-called “goosebumps-inducing scenes” created by directors in the name of heroism. Every hit superstar film has been mercilessly trolled by Amudhan who is ably assisted by Shiva, with his terrific comic timing and ability to mock and lampoon conventional, commercial film stereotypes. The plot revolves around a good cop Shiva (Shiva), seen in hundreds of Tamil films, who is a one-man army and is also romantic, a good dancer, and is sentimental about his family. In the introductory scene, a caste war is going on between two villages and the police. Para-military organisations have been called in to quell the riot. Enter our hero Shiva. Over just an idli and a long monologue, he puts the villages to sleep and solves the issue amicably. However, there is a bad guy, an international gangster and a terrorist called ‘P’ (Satish) who is hell-bent after his life. Shiva swears to avenge the death of his first wife killed in a parcel bomb by P. Soon, Shiva meets and falls madly in love with a typical “loose Ponnu” type heroine (Ishwarya Menon), who loves to help the blind cross streets, run after her Pomeranian dog, and has ice creams during heavy rains. His friends, who are college students played by veterans like Manobala, Santhana Bharathi and Soundarrajan, egg him on to fall in love with her. The film breaks all the age-old stereotypes in Tamil cinema and takes pot shots mercilessly at superstars like Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ajith, Vijay, Suriya, Vikram and Sivakarthikeyan, and their memorable hits. In the second half,  Baahubali is spoofed big time. Another scene has a photo in the background of Shiva being honoured by former US President Barrack Obama. There are also pop culture references and digs at Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) state party leaders and the ruling ADMK, and references to certain political happenings seen on news channels. Shiva is magical and does the satirical scenes with consummate ease. Satish, as the bad guy P, has done a good job and appears in a dozen get-ups. He is the perfect foil for the hero. Ishwarya Menon is also convincing as the ‘loose ponnu’ heroine, seen in many Tamil films. On the downside, the film is too long at two hours and 25 minutes. The second half is tiring, especially the “historical scenes”. Anyway, just chill and enjoy the zany ride.