Kanda Naazhal Muthalai....

...Kathal perguthadi!!

There are pleasures derived out of simple things in life - walking on the beach sand with water lapping on your feat, talking to a close friend on nothing great, listening to a favorite melody in the silence of the night, taking in the scent of 'paarijatham' (pavazhamalli) on an early morning.... (Now, before someone thinks that I'm plagiarizing Vikatan's reviews, I'll stop!)

Watching KNM was one such affair, yeah, and as advertised, sipping a hot cup of filter coffee soon after you have woken up - mind you, no cappuccino, no coffee latte; no hypes, no unnecessary sophistication, just a 100% home-made filter coffee!!

The movie is light - of course, its prone to be light with such a thin storyline - I can hear critics say; but come on, how good is a different story that doesn't give you this pleasure?! Anyway, there aren't many stories that are unheard, so let's forget 'different story'…OK?

Right from the titles till the end credits, the movie just smoothly rolls on. No major twists & turns, and yet at no one point, that one is made to stifle a yawn. The screenplay is quite entertaining!

And its Laila & Prasanna, who quite adeptly take the movie thru'! Not that their characters demand extraordinary performances, but again if they had pushed their roles any further, it would have been too dramatic.

Laila looks a little puffed up, but retains her vivacity - that chirpy, bubbly girl always pulls strings on your heart! And Prasanna has been silently doing some good movies. I guess we also need 'normal', 'very human' heroes who don't deliver a 'punch' dialogue on the drop of the hat. (And hey, who’s that girl who acts as Laila’s sister?! Interesting!)

The movie has some light, good-humored scenes, like those where Laila tries to behave like that coy, 'good' girl in Kartik's presence and Prasanna getting exasperated over it! Otherwise, the scenes towards the climax are too dramatic with Laila tuning out verses of dialogues - 'Nee en ethiri.. nee en nandban; nee en vezhicham..'.. Oh guys, give us a break!

Even though there are only 6 songs, it feels as if the movie has too many songs. Songs keep popping up at regular intervals. Though the concept of some songs are good, the overall picturization isn't that great, given that its P C Sriram behind the camera!! And 'Pani Thuzhi..' song has too many uncomfortable close-ups of the leads - prob. its a new technique that was attempted!!

Overall, Priya has done a good job. And why not, the entire Mani Ratnam's team is backing the movie! Still, one can really botch up a dish, even with the best of ingredients, so kudos to the director!

I'd say this movie is a must-watch, just for the sheer reason that it can put you in a good mood! No heavy hearts, no streaming eyes, no hang-ups, but just a nice smile on your lips!