It is the electrifying presence of Rajinikanth in the screen after a three year long hiatus, that makes Chandramukhi a certain hit considering many ?shocking? facts such as Rajinikanth not being the central point of the story and a Super Star movie devoid of his usual ?ishtyle?. I am sure everyone would have read the story already, but let me sum it up in a line.
Rajinikanth, a psychiatrist comes to the rescue of his friend Prabhu?s wife Jyothika who suffers from Schizophrenia due to the presence of the spirit of a dancer Chandramukhi in a palace they have newly moved into.
As usual Rajinikanth, is the USP of the movie. The void created by the absence of punch dialogues, flying cigarettes, political puns is filled by the true performer in Rajinikanth, the fabulous actor we all knew in the old Black?n?white Balachander movies. The scenes where he enacts the evil king ?Vettaiyyan?, reminds us of his amazing negative roles in ?Moondru Mudichu? and ?16 Vayadhiniley? , which eventually skyrocketed him into a super star. The punch dialogue that truly stays in everyone?s mind is ?Laka, Laka, Laka, Laka, Laka?. If you can?t figure out what it is, I suggest you watch Chandramukhi as soon as possible.
The performer who gets a lion?s share of credit in Chandramukhi is Jyothika who has enacted the role of a Schizophrenic to perfection. Right from the scenes where stares at Rajini/Prabhu duo with anger to the climax, where she literally becomes the dance Chandramukhi, deserves certain applause. I honestly wonder why Chandramukhi was made into a Telugu ?ammayi? when her dialogues could have simply been filled with some ?Sanga? Tamil words. Anyway the choice was that of P.Vasu and everything has come out perfectly.
Vadivelu?s comedy deserves a mention and he has done a good job. There are a few scenes where Rajinikanth and Vadivelu involve themselves in double-entendre dialogues which might not entirely liked by family audience.
Prabhu, Nasser, Vijayakumar, Nayanthara and all others support Rajinikanth very well. The film is a wholesome entertainer and everyone has done their part well. Unlike other Rajini movies in which the story revolves around him, here the story revolves around the character Chandramukhi, who remains a mystery for a long time. In fact Rajinikanth is not present in the screenplay for almost ten minutes, something which was never expected. But all the more it is only the presence of Rajini that brings this entire movie a magical charm.
Songs have been picturized in the typical Rajini ?ishtyle? and all of them have come out really well. The question of having a Telugu song in a Tamil movie is justified by the fact that Chandramukhi speaks in Telugu throughout the movie. This can be questioned by the aforesaid paragraph.
One thing that deserves a note is the fact that ultimately this Chandramukhi factor is finally branded as ?just? a mental disorder and not some ghost/mantra/tantra stuff like ?Baba?. There are two people who have done a guest role in the movie a 35 feet long ?Anaconda?ish snake (No one knows why it is being shown several times) and also Dada Ganguly?s Tata Indicom posters all over the screenplay.
On the whole, Chandramukhi is a wholesome movie and an amazing entertainer. It is not Rajini?s style or dialogues that matter but his electrifying presence in the screen that is enough to bring smiles to all his fans.
The verdict ? Chandramukhi, a certain hit! ?Repeat!!????..? - S.N.Sudharsan.