Miss You Movie Review: Director N Rajashekhar’s third film Miss U has two important encounters. One is when aspiring filmmaker Vasu (an influential SiddharthShe watches Subbulakshmi (a terrific Aashika Ranganath) protest against the right to wear the hijab. One is when aspiring filmmaker Vasu watches Subbulakshmi perform beautifully at a mutual friend’s wedding. Both are template scenes that we are used to seeing in countless Tamil films. A commentary on how our heroes only fall in love if the heroines are bold and confident or bubbly and cute. What about women who are neither bold, confident, bubbly nor cute? This is what Miss Yu wants to talk about, but there is a big problem with it. Unlike the film’s protagonist, who wants to tell a love story from a woman’s perspective, Miss You is firmly from a man’s POV.
But in many ways, the man at the center of things is an honest man, who is incredibly clear about what he wants, but is forced to go with the flow. In theory, he is the male version of our commercial cinema heroines, with only the illusion of choice. Imagine Divya from Mouna Ragam, but name her Vasu, with Siddharth playing the character, and setting the film in 2024. It’s a stretch, but you get the gist, right? And the reason he goes with the flow isn’t just because of pressure from parents and friends, but because he’s had an accident, and has forgotten the past two years of his life. With such a strong base, Rajasekar could have done a lot of different things, but sticks to the core of his previous two films – a great romcom with a generous dose of masala cinema.
Vasu, who suffers from memory loss, falls in love with Subbulakshmi, who does not give him the time of day. But there is a reason for this. Vasu, who is shunned by his friends and family, is not entirely grounded in reality. But since he is a hero, it doesn’t matter. However, Vasu is a good guy because he addresses domestic violence. He addresses the need to stand for the greater good. He understands consent. He understands the need for space in a relationship. He may not be a walking and talking green forest, but he is definitely a yellow green flag who strives hard to be better. While so much care has been taken to establish Vasu’s plot and his universe, it is disappointing that Subbulakshmi is not expanded upon as well.
This proves to be a problem because taking Subbulakshmi’s character superficially keeps the film away from us. A romcom is only as good as its characters. However, Aashika more than makes up for what she misses in her writing with hits in her acting. While her role is loaded with features, Aashika presents a convincing portrayal of a woman who is forced to make decisions that are alien to her world. In contrast, Miss U is a Siddharth star vehicle and the actor makes the most of a character that offers him the best of both worlds.
Siddharth has to dial up the charm as often as he has to dial up the required OTT-ness in masala films. He gets to fight big villains. He can dance. He drinks alcohol. He dances when drunk. He gets to walk in slo-mo. He gets to fight in slo-mo. He kicks people through glass windows. He will be the savior. He also gets to be surrounded by friends who seem to have nothing better to do but be around him. However it does give us some hilarious scenes featuring the likes of the ever reliable Karunakaran and Bala Saravanan.
Moreover, he also happens to be a soft-spoken man who understands Subbulakshmi’s plight. He can also become that person who knows when to hold back, and when to give his all in a relationship. In a very cute moment, he gets his own ‘Enakke Shutter-a’ kind of moment, albeit in a completely different setting.
Listening to the songs playing, it reminded me of the work of Thirumanam Eenum Nikkah, a next-level romcom that was enhanced by Ghibran’s music. Here too, Ghibran plays to his strengths, and ensures that we may be distracted by the placement of the songs, but are never distracted from the story. Another aspect of the film that really stood out is the small writing flourishes that are peppered throughout the film. For example, take the scene where Vasu and Subbulakshmi receive a blessing from a random woman, something we were not previously familiar with in the story. She soon plays an important role, but her connection to the story is only suggested and not pronounced. So is the cyclical nature of the story, and how Rajasekar connects the film’s opening tone with the post-climactic stretch.
Rajasekar’s previous works – Mapla Singam and Kalathil Sandhippam – did not make a big splash at the box office or become the crowning glory of Tamil cinema. But that was not the purpose of these films either. To his credit, Rajasekar’s growth as a writer and filmmaker points to his penchant for listening to criticism and learning from mistakes. Despite the excellent premise, Miss You is firmly grounded, by design. But it definitely saves by keeping the smiles even if the emotional connection is lost for a long time. It makes us wonder if we care about characters because they are well-written or well-acted. But make no mistake, the care is there.
Also Read: Siddharth dismisses Pushpa 2’s Patna event participation as marketing: ‘Crowds don’t reflect quality’
This need for care is basically a matter of Miss YuWhich in its bare bones only relationship asks people three questions. Do we listen enough? Do we do enough monitoring? Do we understand enough? If we try to listen, observe and understand Miss You, the answer is loud and clear. It’s all about effort, and on that front, Miss You doesn’t miss much.
Miss You movie star: Siddharth, Ashika Ranganath, Karunakaran, Bala Saravanan
Miss You Movie Director: N Rajasekar
Miss You Movie Rating: 3 stars
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