''Sangathalaivan'' () is a 2021 Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

-language

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

written and directed by

Manimaran Manimaran is an Indian film director, working in the Tamil film industry. Career He made his directorial debut in Tamil, '' Udhayam NH4'' (2013) featuring Siddharth and a newcomer Ashrita Shetty in lead roles. It was simultaneously dubbed ...

. Based on the novel ''Thariyudan'' by Bharathinathan, the film stars

Samuthirakani Samuthirakani (born 26 April 1973) is an Indian actor and film director who predominantly works in Tamil films and Telugu films besides appearing in a number of Malayalam films Malayalam cinema is an Indian film industry of Malayalam-la ...

Karunas Karunas (born 21 February 1970 as Karunanidhi Sethu) is an Indian actor, politician and comedian in the Tamil film industry. Appearing mostly in supporting roles, he has also played lead roles in films including ''Dindigul Sarathy'' (2008) an ...

and

Ramya Subramanian Ramya Subramanian, also known as VJ Ramya, is an Indian actress and television host, who has worked in the Tamil film industry. Career Ramya participated in the Miss Chennai competition in 2004. She subsequently went on to host television ...

in the lead roles. Produced by

Vetrimaaran Vetrimaaran is an Indian film director, screenwriter and film producer, who works in the Tamil film industry. As of 2021, he has won five National Film Awards, eight Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards, two Filmfare South Awards and the Amnesty Inte ...

via

Grass Root Film Company Grass Root Film Company is an Indian film production and distribution company. Established by Indian director Vetrimaaran Vetrimaaran is an Indian film director, screenwriter and film producer, who works in the Tamil film industry. As of 2 ...

, it was released on 26 February 2021.

Plot

The story follows the life of Rangan, a powerloom worker. A tragic incident leads to Rangan's first brush with Communism, and its representative, Sivalingam. Rangan is unsure of Communism at first; he doesn't even want to be seen aligning with Communists for fear of repercussion from his capitalist employer Current office Govindaraj.

Cast

as Sivalingam *

as Ranganathan *

as Lakshmi * Sunu Lakshmi *

Sampath Ram Sampath Ram is an Indian actor who works primarily in Tamil-language films. He is known for his villainous roles. Career Ram started his acting career with the television series '' Ethanai Manithargal'' that aired on Doordarshan as a thug. He ...

as Police Officer *

Cheenu Mohan Cheenu Mohan (17 May 1956 – 27 December 2018) was an Indian actor who appeared in Tamil language films. He acted in films including ''Thalapathi'' (1991) and '' Iraivi'' (2016). Career Mohan began his career as a stage actor in the late 1970 ...

as Capitalist *

G. Marimuthu G. Marimuthu is an Indian film director and actor, who has worked in the Tamil film industry. After making his debut as a director with '' Kannum Kannum'' (2008), he has gone on to make other ventures including '' Pulivaal'' (2014) and feature ...

as Govindarajan * E.Ramdoss as Rangan's father *

Bala Singh Bala Singh (7 May 195227 November 2019) was an Indian actor who appeared in Tamil language films. After making his debut in Nassar's '' Avatharam'' (1995), he appeared as the antagonist in over a hundred films. Early life and career Bala Sin ...

as communist (Special appearance)

Production

The film was announced in October 2017, with director

and producer

announcing that they would make a film starring

. Based on the novel ''Thariyudan'', the story was to be set in the areas of Salem, Erode and Tirupur, and was said to focus on the lives of handloom weavers and the struggles they face.

was cast in the film after being recommended by

Velraj Rajamani Velraj, ISC is an Indian cinematographer, director and writer who primarily works in Tamil and Hindi cinema. He is well known for his camera work in films like Asuran, Aadukalam, Vada Chennai, Kadaikutty Singam and Komban, and for di ...

and shot for the film in rural Tamil Nadu.

Soundtrack

Soundtrack was composed by Robert Sargunam. *Sarvesa – Jayamoorthy *Pudhu Vidha – Saindhavi *Porattam Illamal – Teejay, Arunraja Kamaraj

Release

The film was released theatrically across Tamil Nadu on 26 February 2021. A critic from

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

noted "this idealistic take on an ideology lacks verve" and that the film "fails to sell its politics convincingly". A reviewer from the

Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest se ...

stated "despite having a few interestingly-written characters, ''Sangathalaivan'' is another half-baked attempt which relies more on conveying ideologies."

Sify Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology company providing end-to-end ICT solutions including telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation in ...

called the film "average", adding "the problem is that the director fails to pack the content of the novel within a two-hour film. The editing is shoddy and we get the feel that several scenes were chopped off to speed up the proceedings." In contrast, ''News Today'' noted "''Sangathalaivan'' provides a good watch. The characters shown with various emotions engrosses audience. Had it been less preachy, this sure to leave an impact." Likewise, Cinema Express noted it was "a slow-burn drama that give us the pleasant feeling of reading a novel from the 90s."

References

External links

* {{Vetrimaaran 2021 films 2020s Tamil-language films Indian vigilante films Films shot in Chennai Indian drama films Films about social issues in India 2021 drama films Films based on Indian novels