Actor Guru Somasundaram, who played the lead in ‘Joker’, is back with a spirited and a strong performance in Vanjagar Ulagam. He plays a terror gangster in the crime thriller directed by Manoj Beedha. The film revolves around the murder of a young woman.

A strikingly different film, Vanjagar Ulagam has everything to make sure it is an engrossing watch. The performance by the artistes makes it count.

Shanmugam (Ciby Bhuvanachandran)is picked up by police for murdering his neighbor, Mythili (Chandini Tamilarasan). The youngster’s colleague, Vishagan (Vishagan Sulur Vanangamudi), a journalist, feels that the murder could be used to lure the elusive gangster Durairaj. And he tries to woo Durairaj’s former right-hand man, Sampath (Guru Somasundaram), who has quit the business, to help him get the man.

Manoj Beedha deserves credit for a wonderful writing laced with interesting sub-plots. The justification of why the movie is titled Vanjagar Ulagam is given only in the end. Clearly a wonderful show by Guru Somasundaramn.

He gets inside the skin of the character to come up trumps. The highlight is his performance towards the climax. He is right there delivering a riveting show. Chandini is not far behind. She pours out right emotions and steals the show.

Azhagam Perumal given the limited options does chip in with his best. Manoj Beedha has managed to come up with a gripping thriller that needs a serious watch, but the length is the problem.

Verdict : Vanjagar Ulagam – Dark is bright

Rating: 2.5/5