Director Balaji Sakthivel has had a mixed record at the box office till now with his own share of ups and downs. He initially made a mark with 'Kaadhal' where he narrated a realistic love story set in a rural milieu which had the box office rolling in his favor a few years back. This time around he has come up with yet another gripping and realistic flick in the form of Vazhakku Enn 18/9, which surely made an impact on the viewers that by the time one leaves the auditorium, it would take sometime to come to terms with the theme of the movie.

The beauty of the script was purely in its narration and a flawless screenplay that helped it to a large extent in achieving the same. Well done Balaji! He has managed to blend two different streams of story with ease and without an iota of confusion.

The film opens up in a hospital where Jyoti (Urmila Mahanta), working as a domestic help is fighting for her life, while police inspector Kumaravel (Muthuraman) is trying to interrogate her. Finally on a tip off from Jyoti's mother, they catch hold of Velu (Sri) who is an assistant in a roadside eatery joint and start the interrogation with him. Velu narrates his story and his one-sided effort to woo Jyoti which forms the first half. Then Arthi (Manisha Yadav) comes to the police station and narrates her experience and the precarious relationship that she had with Dinesh (Mithun Murali), who is a spoilt brat who lives in her apartment. At the end of it we get to know the other side of the story and the real reason behind Jyoti's woes, thereby leading to a twist followed by a chilling climax.

The performances from the lead actors who happen to make their debut was top notch to say the least. Neat and precise work in the screen play and dialog departments had  earned very many brownie points to the film's credit - be it the way the humble aspirations of the downtrodden in Chennai were portrayed or the way in which the splashy lifestyle of the upmarket Chennai school kids were demonstrated, all were carrying the director's stamp in terms of authenticity. Overall it was well observed and researched and augured well for the smooth flow of the movie.

Another actor who made a mark in his debut was Muthuraman who had essayed the role of inspector Kumaravel. His body language and dialog delivery pitched in to his favor and one cannot find out that it was his debut as he has delivered a natural act. The actors who portrayed the role of Manisha Yadav's parents were also apt and represented the typical upper middle class stalk of working class parents. The others in the cast including Jyoti's mother and the little guy who joins the eatery shop as the assistant rendered some brilliant performances.

Editing by debutant Gopi Krishna needs a special mention. Firstly the narration had to be without much confusion as it involved blending and intertwining of two different stories and hence some of the scenes had to be repeated, but from different angles - he has done a fabulous job at it. In terms of length, it was perfect as it limited the film under 2 hours and made it a racy edge of the seat thriller from the start to finish.

BGM by debutant music director R.Prasanna was engrossing. The two songs which appeared without any instruments carried an earthy charm and worked largely to the movie's favor.

Cinematography by Vijay Milton was natural and portrayed the mean gullies of Chennai 'as is'. However, the close angles which must have been shot by attaching the cam onto the artists in order to bring out the emotions effectively, does just that but at times seems unconformable for the eyes.

It was a team effort which has delivered big time and they have managed to strike gold this time around which was largely indicated by the audience's applause every now and then for the dialogs during the movie's course and above all a standing ovation with applause that followed after the climax.

Overall, this is a captivating story which reiterates the fact that the loop holes in our flawed judicial system which has been time and again exploited with money and political clout cannot be done away with and serves as a benchmark for the bureaucracy  which exists perennially throughout the system. These sort of movies should wash the shores every now and then in the otherwise placid sea of Tamil movies.

Verdict: Flawless, Realistic and Gripping

Rating: 4/5