GLITTERS FOR A WHILE, EVEN IF IT ISN'T GOLD

ADDICTION. Who doesn't want to be enamoured by the world of cinema? Even if the 'industry' isn't the biggest draw, can one truly say they don't like the fame, the name, the money, the adulation, the respect, the following, or... the high? Of course, there is also the flip side of undue attention, overwhelming criticism, a lack of personal space, and never ending trolling, etc. But still, how many members of the cinema fraternity who complain about the negatives of being in the industry ever quit it? You still need the same name and fame to create a life that is seemingly untouched by the same name and fame.

- AVINASH RAMACHANDRAN

It is a game that has been played for over a century, and it will continue to be played till time and cinema exist. And director Selvamani Selvaraj decides to tell the story of a handful of players of this game, who were prolific in the 40s and 50s, in Kaantha the pieces of the puzzle. We have mercurial filmmaker Ayya (Samuthirakani), who is set to restart his dream project, which was stalled a few years back. There is the doe-eyed Kumari (Bhagyashri Borse), who is set to play the titular role in Ayya's dream film. And then there is the Superstar of the times, TK Mahadevan (Dulquer Salmaan), who returns to star in his mentor's film after having a rather public fallout due to an ego clash. While these pieces prance around the sets of the film inside the film, and indulge in a tale of one-upmanship, blossoming adultery, unbridled ego, heights of dizRATING 3/5 Kaantha begins on a rainy day, in a dimly-lit corridor, with haunting music, an ominous figure entering the famous Modern Studios, a door creaking open, and two gunshots. It is a personal favourite cold open, which was used wonderfully in Sr iram Raghavan's rockstar debut, Johnny Gaddar. However, before delving into the whodunnit and whodied-in-it, Kaantha decides to bring together all zying fame, the short memory of the public, and misplaced anger, the film soars and suffers in not-so-equal measure.