Movie Review : Suzhal Season 2 ( webseries)
Suzhal S1 was highly successful on Amazon Prime Video OTT platform few years ago.
Now, ace creators Pushkar- Gayathri are back with Season 2 which drops pn Feb 28.
The 8 episodes are directed by Bramma and Sarjun KM with Sam CS music.
Kathir plays a cop, Sakkarai, who is investigating the death or what he fears is a murder, of his beloved mentor and father like figure, Chellappa, played by Lal. Saravanan plays the officer helping him with the case.
The case gets further complicated when several young women surrender at police stations implicating themselves of the crime.
A series of clues lead the cops to a link in Lal's past which forces them to question his past actions and puts them in a quandary.
Meanwhile Aishwarya Rajesh, who plays Nandini, the lead character, arrested for killing her abuser, is still in prison. Now, the cops seek her help to resolve the case.
What is the reason behind the strange happenings? Who are these young women? What secrets are left to be uncovered by the murder? How does it all impact their lives?
The making is on a grand scale, this time the story being set by the sea with the backdrop of the village Kali festival. The vast landscape of the ocean adds its own mystery to the proceedings and later plays an important role in the story.
Though the series starts off at its own pace a tad slowly, establishing the story and characters, it soon picks up pace, as, more clues are found, more characters enter the fray and more timelines come into play, soon turning into an edge of the seat thriller.
Fine actors Kathir and Aishwarya give measured performances which add gravitas and depth to every scene they appear in. But a bit more depth could perhaps have been given to Sakkarai's unidimensional role, giving him more space to perform.
The young women ( Gouri Kishan,Shrisha, Samyuktha, Rini, Monisha Blessy, Abhirami Bose, Nikhila Sankar) all give powerful and impactful performances. The powerful climax scene with Aishwarya Rajesh also entering the fray, is a fantastic collage of action, emotion and rage interspered with references to the local festival being celebrated. The layers of the mystery peel off very interestingly as the festival picks up pace towards the end, with Sam CS giving it his best
Saravanan ( of Parithiverran fame) gives a nuanced performance while Lal is his usual impactful self, towering over the story with his presence. Others to watch out for are Amit Bhargav, Chandini Tamilarasan, Kayal Chandran ( nails it in a key role) and Manjima Mohan ( with a lengthy, moving, strong and powerful portrayal in a crucial segment of the story).
The camerawork with its color tones and superbly captured night scenes, village life and the ocean, add to the story.
Overall, Suzhal 2 is yet another engaging, suspense filled, edge-of-the-seat webseries, (dealing with an important social issue) which will keep you guessing right till the end.
Rating 3.75/ 5
