Amaran review: Emotional tribute to army men

Films with a military background, most times, evoke strong feelings in one’s heart. Not just that, it’s a constant reminder that the army men are toiling in difficult terrain just to keep everyone safe. And when Amaran, a biopic on the life of Major Mukund Varadarajan, was announced, it piqued everyone’s interest. The expectations rose sky-high when Sivakarthikeyan, who has so far done boy-next-door roles, was roped in to headline the film. For the unversed, Amaran is an adaptation of the book series, India’s Most Fearless: True Stories of Modern Military Heroes by Shiv Aroor and Rahul Singh.
Mukund Varadarajan (Sivakarthikeyan) has his goals set right from fifth standard. A field trip to the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai sowed the seeds of joining the military in him. Years later, while pursuing his graduation at Madras Christian College, he meets his ladylove Indhu Rebecca Varghese (Sai Pallavi). They fall head over heels in love with each other. For Indhu, she has to love Mukund and his passion as well.
Watch the trailer of Amaran here:

When Mukund’s duty takes him across the country, she has no choice but to hold the fort for him at home. While he fights a national war, she fights the war with herself. As Mukund gets promoted as Major, he heads the 44th Rashtriya Rifles. He takes on counterterrorism duties in Kashmir and drafts plans to eliminate the heads of a terrorist organisation in Kashmir.
Director Rajkumar Periasamy is in full control as the writer and director of Amaran. Though the film’s ending is already known to most people, his screenplay holds everyone’s attention. Most credit goes to the solid emotional sequences featuring Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi. With their effortless performance, they make the audience fall in love with them and cry with them.
It is refreshing to see the fresh pairing of Sivakarthikeyan and Sai Pallavi, and they shoulder the film with ease. Amaran’s emotional sequences overpower the war sequences, and it could be because everyone knows how the story ends. Nonetheless, the war sequences are done with precision and keep us on the edge of our seats.
Amaran is also a film that highlights the struggles that the families of our army men go through. They fear the worst news and yet lead their lives with a smile on their faces. The first half of Amaran delves deep into the love story of Mukund and Indhu, and it puts a smile on your face. The slow buildup reaches a crescendo at the interval when Mukund neutralises an important terrorist. This sets the tone for the pulsating second half that focuses on the repercussions of the Rashtriya Rifles’s action.
The film does not glorify heroism and downplays it for the most part. When controversial topics about Kashmir are spoken about, Rajkumar Periasamy treats them with the utmost dignity and clever writing.
Sivakarthikeyan as Major Mukund Varadarajan showcases a never-seen-before side in Amaran. His demeanour and body language suits the role he took up and does full justice to it. Sai Pallavi as Indhu feels like a warm hug on a cold rainy day. Whenever she appears on-screen, you can’t help but feel the emotion as she goes through them. Bhuvan Arora, who plays the role of Sepoy Vikram Singh, is yet another beautiful addition to the cast of Amaran. Rahul Bose, Geetha Kailasam, Lallu, Shreekumar and several others have ably supported the main cast.
Amaran is strong on the technical front as well. Composer GV Prakash’s music and background score does the perfect job of elevating the mood of the film. Cinematographer CH Sai wonderfully captured the topography of Kashmir and the battle sequences need special mention.
Amaran is a beautiful, emotional and intriguing ode to Major Mukund Varadarajan and army men like him. Watch out for the emotional sequences throughout the film.