Movie:  Paarvai Ondre Pothume

Director: Muralikrishna
Cast: Kunal, Monal, Karan, Fathima Babu, Damu, Vyapuri, Ramji, Balu Anand

With two-hero subjects being the trend, it is not surprising that every second film released these days is centred round a love triangle. Debutant director Muralikrisha (form the ad-world) has also taken for his plot the story of two friends loving the same girl. Not much variation can be brought in this subject, but the director has seen that his narration is neat, the scenes move smoothly and the songs appear at the right places.

The curiosity value is Monal, sister of Simran, who makes her debut with this film. Though the debutant actress lacks the oomph, the sensuality, and the screen presence of her sister, Monal makes up for it to an extent by her performance, which for a debutant actress is quite a promising one. Expressions came hard for Kunal in his first film 'Kadhalar Dinam' and expressions still seem to come hard for him, here too! Dominating the screen, by his sheer size if not by his performance, is tubby Karan. The stocky actor does engage the audience with his varied expressions, by getting into the skin of his role, and keeping the screen alive whenever he appears. He is the saving grace of the film.

Another commendable effort is from first-time music composer Bharani. The songs all have a very lively beat and rhythm. The story is about two friends Vinod and Manoj and Neetha the girl in their lives. Manoj (Karan) is the owner of a hotel, gets things done with his money, and values friendship above everything else. His best friend is Vinod (Kunal), whose family gives him a sense of belonging, since Manoj is an orphan. Manoj helps out the needy family by giving Vinod a job in his hotel. Enter Neetha (Monal) in their lives and both the guys fall for the girl. Manoj mistakes Neetha's easy camaraderie for love and basks in her affectionate concern. But his world comes crashing down when she ties the 'Rakhi' on him, and he realises that it was only sisterly affection she felt for him. Seeing Vinod with Neetha makes matters worse. A sense of being betrayed makes him act harsh towards everyone, particularly Vinod. Vinod who had loved Neetha had withdrawn, once Manoj had confessed about his feelings to him. Matters reach a crisis when the trio meet at a high-rise building and in the scuffle Manoj falls off it. His life is saved, but he comes out of the hospital a vegetable. Vinod, putting friendship above love, decides to stay with Manoj and nurture him back to health. "We'll marry whenever Manoj gets well, and gives his consent to us," he tells a tearful Neetha who is about to leave the city.