Jana Nayagan – there is just a feeling of let-down

 

Blast-u Blast-u… Yes, quite a blast, the Thalapathy Kacheri song. What about the film? Jana Nayagan was such a let-down. This was not the Vijay movie I wished to see and, considering that it may well be his last, was this the way to bid goodbye to fans?  

In the film, almost everybody you get to see on screen gets the chance to wield guns, knives, machetes, swords, even bazookas. Why on earth is there so much of violence and gunplay? Does not Vijay or the director and writer (H. Vinoth) not realise that these are the images that will be going out to millions of the actor’s fans, mostly youngsters, the world over? Are not the emotional core and key messages being reduced to almost nothing with this science-fiction kind of warfare and excessive violence?

To credit the film, there are several key messages – telling women to be brave and independent and stand up against harassment, teaching children to be aware of good and bad touch, and stressing the need for citizens to get rid of the scourge of corruption. Couldn’t such messages – about democracy, people’s rights, social justice, leadership, public responsibility – have been conveyed through a more coherent storyline, with credible characters and meaningful conflicts sans gun and gore?

As the film unfolds, it gets confusing. Vijay as Vetri Kondan, a former police officer and convict, takes care of his late friend’s daughter, Mamitha Baiju as Viji. They share a close bond and he pushes her to join the army to help her overcome her fears. The main villain is someone called John Himmler played by Bobby Deol, supported by Prakash Raj as politician Roja Rangasamy. Why Himmler? Is it a reference to Heinrich Himmler of the Nazi Party and one of architects of the Holocaust? God knows.

Now, Deol’s grand entry is staged in Africa, in the Republic of Swasnia (not Swaziland, but a fictional African nation that is a base for global arms trade). He is a sort of death merchant with the agenda of dominating the world with an empire dealing in arms and remote-controlled robots and monsters. Wow! But most of the time he’s either punching adversaries to pulp or firing or playing games on a console. So, what has Vetri got to do? Same: games console. He has to infiltrate a secure data centre to gather proof of corruption and murder. This leads to mass protests and the arrest of corrupt leaders. Not just during the climax fight, almost all through, you have to hold yourself, lest BP gets the better of you.

Frankly, it is only Vijay’s screen presence and aura that carries the audience till the end. I went as a Vijay fan but came out very disappointed. Doesn’t the ‘people’s hero’ deserve a solid script? This one is weak, disconnected and muddled, with loads of AI footage. Oh! And can’t we have simple, grounded films? Imagine if that was the case here! Vijay, now as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay C. Joseph, would have risen a notch or two up in the public’s eye simply on the basis of the film and its storytelling. What a missed opportunity!

Note: We still relate strongly to cult films like Sholay, Deewar, Zanjeer, Yaadon Ki Baarat, Shaan, Shakti, even though all of them had violence, don't we? After watching Jana Nayagan, we will know why it just does not measure up.

 

Picture: The Thalapathy Kacheri song poster.