Veduvan series review: Kanna Ravi-starrer walks tightrope between truth and fiction, but slips and fumbles

Veduvan review: The series blurs the line between reality & fiction with an intriguing premise, but lack of character depth & uneven writing dilute what could’ve been a sharp, thought-provoking drama

Veduvan

Veduvan

Veduvan series plot:

Sooraj, an actor who is seeing a downfall in his career, is approached to star in the biopic of an encounter specialist, Arunmozhi Varman. He takes it up, and through the process of getting to know his character, lives as a cop. But his dedication soon leads him into uncovering the real truth of Arunmozhi, which differs hugely from the narrative that is established.

Veduvan series review:

Veduvan takes up the story-within-story format, and in due course attempts to blur the lines between reality and fiction. It is also the very essence of what cinema is, isn’t it? Taking inspirations and inputs from what real life has to offer, filmmakers are often found dabbling with the concept of reality coupled with cinematic liberty, to give some respite to the audience for a couple of hours. Veduvan too attempts this, that sometimes its simplistic measures become far too simple, and mounting a complex climax becomes far too much weight for the series to handle.

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It is from the first shot we are established that it the story of an actor, Dynamic Star Sooraj (Kanna Ravi), who is facing a lull in his career. He is criticised for getting involved too much with the script, rendering them as failures at the box office. The series gives us a little peek into his starry life, before delving into his dream of playing a cop. And just in time comes a script for him to star in a biopic of an encounter specialist, Arunmozhi. After a successful encounter operation, his next target is Aadhinadhan, someone who began his murder rampage at the age of 16 and has now killed over 40 people. Veduvan now delves into how Arunmozhi disguises himself to get closer to Aadhinadhan, only to find the right time to finish him. But it is not that easy, and the personal conflicts come to the fore.

Also read: Actor Kanna Ravi: Veduvan won’t be just entertaining but also thought provoking

The series, for most of its episodes, takes a nonchalant approach. Everything seems to happen in a single dimension, right from establishing who Aadhinadhan is, to how Arunmozhi is able to finish off his targets, and the ease with which these characters deal with their conflicts. As much as you never understand why and what pushed Aadhinadhan to be the way he is, Arunmozhi also lacks detailing in his characterisation.

Yes, he is a fantastic encounter specialist with a knack for disguising himself as anything, and has a wife and child only he knows about. There are few flashbacks that we get on how Arunmozhi finds a way to near Aadhinadhan. But beyond this, the series’ singular tone never attempts to delve into the understanding of its characters. A good antagonist establishes a strong narrative for the protagonist, and in the case of Veduvan, Aadhinadhan’s weak characterisation is one of the letdowns. The series bends his characterisation, dangling between the good and bad, so that the real grey shades don’t come out, but only leaves the series’ weak writing exposed. Why would a man so good be on the encounter list? Or why a man who has been killing since 16, is hailed as kind by all? How does Arunmozhi quickly overcome his morals and emotions to pursue his assignment? The answers to these are expected to be formed by the audience with little to no fodder given to chew on.

When Veduvan establishes itself as an easy and achievable narrative, it packs a dense concept and stance towards the end, which comes as a stark change in tonality. Once again blurring the lines between reality and fiction, Veduvan doesn’t make it easy for the audience to understand what the series really stood for. Is it talking about the ethics of encounter or questioning the authenticity of history? If so, what is the history it is talking about? These are merely reduced to a few lines and dialogues, that Veduvan leaves more questions unanswered.

Veduvan does get some interesting bits. Like how undercover police are also on a watch, or what happens when an actor gets into the skin of his character too much. But these niches are also one-offs and remain to be fully fleshed out.

Veduvan series verdict:

Veduvan, which dances with concepts of morality and responsibility, ends up dilly dallying with too simplistic choices of writing. Even as the cast puts up a decent show, the efforts that have gone on paper are starkly visible and more disjointed.

FAQs

Q. What is Veduvan web series release date?

A. Veduvan released on October 10 on ZEE5 via OTTplay Premium.

Q. Who is Veduvan web series cast?

A. Kanna Ravi, Sanjeev Venkat, Vinusha Devi and others are part of the Veduvan cast.

Q. What is Veduvan about?

A. Veduvan is about an actor playing an encounter specialist's biopic

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