Seedan - Movie Review

Remakes and Tamil cinema always go hand in hand. The latest to join the list is Dhanush's Seedan, Tamil remake of the Malayalam blockbuster Nandanam starring Prithviraj and Navya Nair. Ananya of Nadodigal fame is the female lead and debutant Jai Krishnan is the male lead. Suhasini, Ponvannan, Ilavarasu, Meera Krishnan, Uma Padmanabhan and Chemmeen Sheela play supporting roles. Dhanush appears in an extended special appearance for just 40 minutes after the interval. Seedan is a simple love story that narrates the story of a a teenage maid servant who is in love with the young master of the house.
THE STORY
The film revolves around young Mahalakshmi (Ananya) an orphan who comes to Pazhani to work as a servant maid in a big zamindar's house near Pazhani temple. All she yearns for is a 'darshan' of lord Murugan, but somehow she never makes it to the temple. The young girl shares her sorrows and worries with a picture of the idol kept in her room. Her employer is an old lady Amritavalli Amma (Chemmeen Sheela) and besides her, a battalion of servants and aides live in the house. One day, Mahalakshmi dreams of marrying a handsome man of high stature and later feels this is what her lord has in store for her.
One rainy night, her Prince Charming Mano (Jai Krishna), Amritavalli's grandson, turns up at her home. It's love at first sight for both despite Mahalakshmi's reservations about their difference in status. But their happiness does not last long as Thankam (Suhasini Mani Ratnam), Mano's widowed mother, fixes his wedding with her friend's daughter. Mano and Mahalakshmi decide to part ways not to hurt his mother's feelings. Mahalakshmi finds it really difficult to forget her dream and strives hard to hide her grief. But then a new player arrives: Saravanna (Dhanush), a cook who constantly assures her miracles do happen and dreams are achievable... Can Saravanna turn things upside down? Watch out in Seedan!
THE PERFORMANCES
Though Dhanush appears for 40 minutes after the interval, he scores. His comedy track with Gummidi (Vivek) is top notch. Ananya is outstanding as Mahalakshmi, the innocent and chirpy maid, while Jai Krishnan has given a neat performance in his debut flick. In fact, Seedan has a simple story which has been deftly handled. The director takes us on an emotional journey through the mind of the young orphan girl who is in love... her insecurities, hurt, rejection, faith and happiness that anybody can relate to. The rest of the star cast have done their parts well. Music by Dhina is average while camera work by Srinivasan and Ram Sudharsan's editing works are credible. Though Seedan is a frame to frame remake of Renjith's Nandanam, it nowhere matches the original version. Seedan is all together a different experience!
THE VERDICT
Overall, an average family entertainer!