Billa Pandi

 When director Raj Sethupathi introduces us to Billa Pandi (RK Suresh) as a hard-core Ajith fan who lives by the principle his Thala follows, it isn’t just to give the hero an identity. For, Ajith is part and parcel of this film, and travels in spirit till the climax – as cut-outs, a locket that Billa Pandi wears, as cellphone ringtones and even in the form of a theevira Ajith rasigan who helps Pandi at a crucial time in his life. No wonder he has dedicated this film to the fans of Ultimate Star!

The film traces the life of construction contractor Pandi, for whom life revolves around his grandmother and the Ajith rasigar mandram, through which he tries to help the needy. When his grandmom passes away, his relatives advice him to move on by marrying his aunt’s daughter, Valli (Chandini Tamilarasan). But then, there’s a twist in the tale when Jayalakshmi (Indhuja) enters his life, and becomes a part of it in the most complex way.

After being part of the industry as a producer, distributor and an actor, this is an impressive debut for Suresh as the hero. He seems comfortable playing the role of an Ajith fan and is quite convincing in action and emotional sequences. Indhuja shines in the role of a woman who has lost her everything, including her memory, and Chandini impresses despite the limited screen time.

The film has a strong supporting cast (Thmbi Ramiah, Marimuthu, Amudhavaanan, Sangili Murugan, among others) and crew (the camera work by Jeevan and a few tunes by Ilayavan are mention-worthy), but it falters when it comes to screenplay. Raj takes a long time to establish the plot, and several scenes, including crass, often sexism-loaded comedy sequences, test our patience. If only the makers had concentrated on getting to the context of the story soon enough and not ODed on Ajith, this could have made for an entertaining watch.