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Kalkandu plays like a medley of poorly made scenes cobbled together from various other movies. The hero gifts his girlfriend a miniature of the Titanic; he scales walls to woo her and even agrees to have a medicine tested on him. All in the name of love.
Karthik (debutant Gajesh), the hero, stalks Karthika (Dimple Chopade), an MBBS student. But he backs off when he finds out she is not interested. Because he is not one to “throw acid at her.” And, digging himself in deeper, he adds, “Vibachaaariya irunthaalum viruppam illana thoda maaten,” before throwing in “pengaloda sirappu avanga karppu” for kicks.
This from a guy that tells his friends his girlfriend is a “super figure.”
Go figure.
*****
Kalkandu features comedians Ganja Karuppu, Gajendran, and Swaminathan,who seem to have had access to all the Whatsapp jokes out there. As the comedians try hard to evoke laughter, some of the serious dialogues do it with ease. Not that Kalkandu is a light-hearted movie. It gets preachy at times.
Karthik’s brother (Kalloori Akhil), who plays an ‘America maapillai’, chides his parents for forcing Karthik into studying medicine. He urges them to understand that each child’s “brain capacity” is different.
Which is all well, except that it happens two and a half hours into the movie. Just before the climax; as we wait to find out what happens to Karthik and Karthika. Kalkandu is also excruciatingly long.
*****
Recommended
Gajesh, the grandson of Nagesh and son of actor Anand Babu, makes his debut with Kalkandu. The young actor’s body language in several scenes reminds us of Lollu Sabha Manohar, and his overeager performance has the feel of a schoolboy going out of his way to impress his teachers at a school drama. The actor struggles in the dance sequences, drawing inevitable comparisons to his dad, who was an excellent dancer.
Gajesh looks like a splitting image of his dad minus the skills. The movie too is sort of film that belongs to his father’s era.
The Kalkandu review is a Silverscreen original article. It was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the movie. Silverscreen.in and its writers do not have an advertising relationship with movies that are reviewed on the site.