Why Vikram, Kamal Haasan’s latest Tamil outing, puts him back in the saddle | Eye News,The Indian Express
Known for his numerous experiments with form and character in films, after nearly two decades of numerous disappointments, this blockbuster film proves that Kamal never gives up
Kamal Haasan has been known to make films that pulse and enact roles that peel the skin of pretence and reveal to us our innermost desires. For over six decades, he has been unfailing in his commitment to cinema, making it his very life breath.
His latest action-thriller Vikram has the coffers ringing with an estimated collection of over Rs 172 crore in Tamil Nadu alone, while the global collection has crossed Rs 400 crore since its release a month ago. With Vikram, Kamal makes a comeback in the Tamil film industry. Those in his close circles say it’s also possible that the actor’s huge debt accumulated over the years, due to several disappointments in his film projects and venture into politics, may have been managed. Taking off from his 1986 eponymous film, Vikram has 67-year-old Kamal in the lead and tells the story of black ops who rally to eliminate a gang of masked murderers. It’s bolstered with power-packed performances by Fahadh Faasil and Vijay Sethupathi.
Kamal always had a movie to work for, and most of them have kept the coffers full. However, over the last two decades, he’s had an erratic run at the box office. Though his films were celebrated for content and startling experiments, his peers, Rajinikanth, Vijay and other superstars, won the popular vote in the Tamil film industry. Vikram, therefore, emerges undeniably as Kamal’s biggest hit in six decades, following previous films such as Nayakan (1987), Indian (1996), Dasavatharam (2008) and Vishwaroopam I (2013).
Ramesh Aravind, actor, director and screenwriter from the Kannada film industry, says, “Failure and success are not new to him. As far as the audience is concerned, his last few years have not been smooth, so this massive success of Vikram couldn’t have come at a better time.
One who began his acting career at the age of five, Kamal has appeared in over 250 films across languages, including Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali and Hindi. It’s the late Malayalam director KS Sethumadhavan who noticed the hero in him and cast him in Kanyakumari (1974).
Rating: 5