Kollywood webseries Pettaikaali which was released last year in Tamil is now streaming on Aha OTT as Jallikattu from 28 April 2023. The series is generating interest among movie lovers as Vetri Maaran is the showrunner for the webseries. Let us find out what Jallikattu offered to movie lovers.
Jallikattu story is all about the fight for prestige and honor between two villages, one dominated by the landlords and one by the shepherds. The people of Tamarakulam and Mullavudu villages bordering Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh nudge a grudge against each other for decades. Selvasekharam (Vela Ramamurthy) of Tamarakulam has a bull and his bull is the most dreaded and he takes pride as no one can tame her. Similarly, Pandu (Kalaiyaran), nephew of Muthaiah (Kishore), is renowned across the villages for his bravery in taming bulls.
Muthaiah asks Pandu to use his bravery by getting a police job but his dream is to win the Jalli Kattu at the national level. His aspirations however result in shocking twists. To find out more about it and what is the connection between Thenmozli (Sheela Rajkumar), Veerasekhar (Bala Haasan), and Parthiban (Antony) from the rest of the story.
All the actors came up with natural and realistic performances. They resembled the villagers in their makeup and the dialogue delivery looked extremely original. Kishore lived in the role of Muthaiah and he impressed with his dialogue delivery and presence on the screen. Kalaiyarasan took viewers with his expressions and emotions, and screen presence into the story. He showed variations when it came to showing bravery, and courage while taming a bull and then showed the other side while talking with his lady love or his uncle.
Sheela Rajkumar, Bala Haasan, and standup comedian Paathiban made their presence felt on the screen with their performances. The performances of the entire cast added value to the webseries.
The story of Jalli Kattu penned by Rajkumar and presided by Vetri Maaran has the shades of Vetri Maaran genre. The story spoke about the villagers or people going to any extent for their honor and prestige and the differences between haves and have-nots, rich and poor, oppressors and the oppressed.
Rajkumar added the Jallikattu backdrop to the village and rural story and it generated interest among movie lovers. The webseries is narrated in 8 episodes and Rajkumar took his own sweet time keeping in view Vetri Maaran's style. The pace is slow and tests the patience of the viewers. The story, Screenplay, and direction follow Vetri Maaran's format and there is nothing new.
Those who are familiar with Vetri Maaran's style of taking find it nothing new and even for others, the slow pace doesn't excite them. There are a few twists and turns here and there but one needs patience to enjoy them. The Jalli Kattu culture is highlighted and the entire series is loaded with Tamil nativity and flavor. Those who come from TN-AP border districts will enjoy the series.
The cinematography captured the village atmosphere quite naturally in an appealing and beautiful manner. The bullfights and Jalli Kattu atmosphere is recreated on the screen giving an original feel giving a delightful treat to movie lovers. Background music elevated the scenes and made a good impact in increasing the intensity levels. Dialogues of Vetri Maaran and Rajkumar are thought-provoking and powerful. Dialogues talking about courage, taming the leader, and haves and have not, etc made an impact. Editing left a lot to be desired. There are many lags and this slowed the pace of the film. Production values are decent.
Altogether, Jallikattu's story is a typical Vetri Maaran product and offers nothing new. People will be reminded of his earlier films like Asuran, Karnan and others. Those who love realistic stories and narration will love it and others will find it tedious. Considering all these aspects, Cinejosh goes with a 1.5 rating for Jallikattu Web Series.