S.Saraswathi Review: Varalaxmi Sarathkumar's directorial debut has good intent but dull execution

S.Saraswathi Story

Lakshmi(Varalaxmi Sarathkumar) lives with her young daughter Saraswathi. After dropping her daughter off at school, Lakshmi returns to pick her up in the evening. The school management later revealed to Lakshmi that no girl with the name Saraswathi is even studying at their school. Upset with this, Lakshmi finds her way to locate her daughter, only to know that she has been brutally raped. How she comes to terms with the ghastly incident and how she takes revenge on the culprits is the basic story of the film.

S.Saraswathi Review

Saraswathi marks the directorial debut of Varalaxmi Sarathkumar in Telugu cinema. She has acted, produced, and directed this emotional crime drama that also has Priyamani, Prakash Raj, and Murali Sharma in key roles. 

Varalaxmi establishes the plot in a very intriguing manner. The first few minutes and the manner in which the girl goes missing are established by Varalakshmi in a very gripping manner. 

But once this is done, things get bogged down as the drama in the proceedings becomes quite dull. The so-called thrills do not impress, and the story is the same one that has been seen in many films earlier.

Saraswathi is about rape culture and how offenders are getting special treatment in the court of law. What happens when a helpless mother turns things in her favor and fights such cases is the basic story of the film. 

Though the premise is very routine, Varalakshmi Sarathkumar decided to narrate the film with a unique screenplay. The film goes back and forth with different scenes being interlaced, but that does not create much of an effect on the drama that was supposed to be created.

When such emotional moments are created in the film, they should have been more impactful, but that is not the case. Prakash Raj plays one of the key roles, and one gets a feeling that Varalakshmi did not make proper use of such a big actor like him. The court scenes do not create much drama, and the needed impact is missing.

The first half has decent moments, and the suspense is built quite well. The interval bang is also handled well. But it is the second half that goes for a toss, as Varalakshmi does not have enough drama or many scenes to elevate the thrills. 

She adds several padded scenes that drag the narrative. The film revolves around these mundane scenes and does not throw anything new at the audience. One also gets a feeling that there are many repeated scenes in the film. 

The emotional trauma that a mother goes through is completely missing. If this aspect had been elevated even more, things would have been better. The characters of Naseer, Radhika Sarathkumar, and Jeeva appear just for the sake of it and do not bring much to the table.

Prakash Raj could have done a lot better, but the way his role has been written is not that great. There are also a few logical issues in the film. A lawyer who is himself accused in a rape case is shown arguing his own case in court. Such issues create doubt in the minds of the viewers.

The film also has a few flashback portions that have not been handled well. The production values of the film are good, but the screenplay should have been much better. There was so much scope for drama to be elevated, but that did not happen. What could have been a solid thriller ends up as just another emotional drama with nothing new to showcase.

Coming to the performances, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar has done a solid job as a mother who goes through several issues in life after her daughter is raped. The way she shows pain in her character is good, though her dialogue delivery could have been better in a few scenes. As Varalakshmi dubbed for herself, a few dialogues do not come through properly.

The cinematography by AM Edwin is very good and showcases the film in a good light. The dark and gloomy theme of the film is handled well. The edit pattern in the second half is not that great. 

Prakash Raj is a good actor, but one gets a feeling that he is not at his best. Maybe as the makers decided to wrap up the film within a month, things have been rushed, and this is clearly evident in the film.

The twists showcased in the second half are also not that great. One gets a feeling that we have seen them in many films before. Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, as an actress, has done well, but when it comes to her direction, she had a lot of scope to do better. Her inexperience spoils the fun midway.

Saraswathi is just another routine thriller that is handled in a different way. If there had been more drama narrated in a gripping manner, things would have been better, but that does not happen. 

Thaman has composed the background score of this film, and his work is decent as his score elevates the scenes well. The rest of the cast and technical aspects are just about okay.

S. Saraswathi Verdict:

On the whole, Saraswathi is a routine emotional drama that has a few strong moments going its way. Though Varalaxmi passes as an actor, her directorial debut does not keep you hooked to your seats. The presence of routine and repeated scenes and a diverted screenplay brings things down and makes this film just an okay watch. Those who love crime dramas can give this film a shot, but there is nothing special about it.

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