In the end, it is all about a mother’s sacrifice shown in a lighthearted manner

Here comes the Tamil version of Nil Battey Sanatta titled as Amma Kanakku starring Amala Paul. The movie is directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and is one of the most different Kollywood movies you will see this year. Check out the entire story…

What’s it about

Amma Kanakku is all about Shanti, a single, hardworking, mother of a teenage daughter, played by Amala Paul. She belongs to the financially lower class and lives with her daughter Abhinaya in a slum like part of town. For Shanti, it is her life’s dream to make her daughter an educated, capable member of the society so that she never has to struggle like her. But Abhi is super playful, rebellious and does not want to study at all. Abhi passes from 9th and goes to the 10th grade, which means the board exams. Shanti is super worried about Abhi and her poor performance in Maths. When she conveys her worries to the person she works for as a maid, a Dr Nandini, played by Revathi, she suggests that maybe Shanti herself should commence her education again and in that way help her daughter pass.

So in a really unexpected twist, Shanti joins Abhinaya’s class as a student, much to the amusement of Mr Ranganathan, the Maths Teacher, which is played by Samuthirakani. But this move from Shanti really sours the relationship she has with Abhi. As time goes on and Shanti becomes more and more popular among the students for her hardwork and dedication, Abhi decides to vanquish her mother in Maths. So a hilarious rivalry begins between the mother and daughter to see who will do better in the subject.

But in spite of all the planning, Abhi still refuses to focus and the rapport of the mother and daughter gets really strained. Whether Shanti finally manages to make Abhi understand about what she is going through to educate her and whether Abhi manages to ace the boards makes up for the rest of the tale.

What’s hot

This is the best performance from Amala Paul in her entire career, hands down. Whether she will get a National Award for it like Dhanush claimed remains to be seen. Her act of a Tamil speaking widowed mother living in the slums of Chennai is perfect. She acts, moves, talks and feels like a person who has spent their entire life in that setting. The attention to detail in terms of her dressing, the setting of the house is amazing for which the director Ashwiny Tiwari deserves full credit. Even young actress Yuvasri, who plays Abhinaya was really convincing, although her act did look overdone at times. The story itself deserves to be praised to the maximum for its uniqueness and treating the emotional conflicts in a sincere manner.

Of course, one can also not forget the super hilarious performance by Samuthirakani as Headmaster Ranganathan, the Maths teacher. He is strict, yet playful and really quirky at the same time. His character will definitely make you laugh. Also the heart touching sentiment of a mother’s sacrifice for her daughter will really move you to the core. Best part is it has not been overdone but just enough for you to really ponder about your own mother and what she has gone through to keep you happy.

What’s not

Maybe the one and only drawback, if it can be called that, is the slow moving pace of the film. But then, it depicts reality and real life is slow and boring at times. However, some scenes are a little too slow and it might struggle to hold the audience’s attention completely. Other than the snail pace of the movie, another problem is that since it is so real, it may not have many takers as most enjoy commercial cinema.

What to do

Definitely do not miss this film if you love your mom, for it will move you to the core. In spite of having such a deep and emotional message, it has been dealt with in a very breezy and lighthearted manner so don’t worry about the waterworks starting up. You can enjoy this flick with you entire family!

Our Rating