Director:Saran
Cast:Prashanth, Simran, Laila, Fathima Babu, Dhamu, Vaiyapuri, Charlie, Vinu Chakravarthy.

After two successive hits in Kaadhal Mannan and Amarkkalam, Saran is one of the few new filmmakers with an acceptable hit ratio and is a director to be reckoned with in Kodambakkam. He keeps his reputation intact with Paarthen Rasithen, his third feature. The movie has a good story that keeps us guessing regarding the path it is going to take, a genuinely surprising twist, some nice characterizations and good comedy.

Shankar(Prashanth) is a graduate of nautical science, waiting for a job in the shipping industry. He is a tenant in the house of Banu(Simran), who is his good friend and confidante. They spend almost all their time together and she seeks him out as a refuge from her step brother Panneer(Raghuvaran), whom she dislikes but is forced to live together with. Shankar falls in love with Sarika(Laila). She reciprocates but problems and misunderstandings plague their romance.

After the electric trains in Alaipayuthey, its the omnipresent, green-colored PTC buses(one in particular) that serve as the carriers of love for Prashanth and Laila here. Right from their first meeting to their expression of love to their misunderstandings, the buses play an important part in their love story. These sequences are nicely done with supporting characters like Dhamu, Vaiyapuri and Fathima Babu providing nice support. Making Laila move from a ladies special to the crowded, regular bus when she wants to meet Prashanth and making her take the ladies special to express her displeasure later are clever ways Saran has used the backdrop of the buses.

Just when the movie seems to be falling into the familiar rut of lovers being separated because of silly misunderstandings, the twist rejuvenates it. It is unexpected, perfectly timed and makes us sit up. Though the remainder of the movie doesn't do full justice to the avenues opened up by this twist, the twist itself is strong enough to bring us back into the movie.

Apart from the characters of Simran and Laila, who are polar opposites of each other, Vinu Chakravarthy's foul-mouthed, hot-headed character is another interesting one. His sequences raise laughs, especially his rant at the doctor in the hospital. But the care that has gone into making these characters interesting doesn't seem to have been applied to any of the other roles. Raghuvaran's character seems rather poorly defined and Raghavendra Lawrence's villainous role loses its shine because of his exaggerated mannerisms. They should have been limited to his dance.

After a seemingly long time, the comedy here is funny without being crude, loud or vulgar. Though the initial, disconnected scenes seem like a result of bad editing, Dhamu and Vaiyapuri have several funny punchlines scattered throughout. Their schemes to trap Charlie and the ways the tables are turned on them each time are both witty and clever. But their last scheme is a straight lift from Maanaseega Kaadhal where it was Vaiyapuri who was the target of the same trick.

Simran is the star of the show here. She proved in Vaali that she was not all glamour but also had the goods when it came to acting and she cements that reputation here. Her expressive eyes speak volumes whether radiating happiness or showing fiery anger and her dialog delivery enhances her performance in the second half. Quite possibly the best performance of her career so far. She also looks beautiful, especially in the dream sequence. Prashanth has ways to go in the histrionics department but makes up for it somewhat with his stunts. Laila looks cute but is completely sidelined by Simran. I don't think she speaks more than a dozen lines in the entire movie. Bharadwaj's soundtrack is rather disappointing considering his earlier work. Only the title song stands out.