Raju Murugan has had a shaky career of late. Setting aside his fun romantic-comedy episode of ‘Modern Love: Chennai’ ‘Lalagunda Bommaigal’, his last two feature films were the heavily censored 2022 Jiiva starrer ‘Gypsy’ and 2023’s Karthi starrer ‘Japan’ – easily his worst effort to date. Murugan returns with his latest film ‘My Lord’ starring M Sasikumar and Chaithra J Achar as the lead duo in a satirical drama which hearkens back heavily in tone to his sophomore film, the heavily acclaimed and awarded 2016 film ‘Joker.’
The film follows Muthu Sirpi (M Sasikumar) and his wife Suseela (Chaithra J Achar), a couple who are declared dead by the government. Whilst campaigning to reinstate his livelihood, he is approached by a wealthy family requesting him to donate one of his kidneys to an ailing woman. The rest of the plot involves Muthu Sirpi’s decision on whether to donate his kidney or not. Much like ‘Joker’, ‘My Lord’ follows a character stuck in an initially absurd bureaucratic situation, with the tragedy of the backstory being revealed as the film goes on. The protagonist of ‘Joker’ Guru Somasundaram returns in ‘My Lord’ in a supporting role as journalist Kathirvelan, who aids Muthu Sirpi in his endeavour. Despite a few pacing issues in the second half, ‘My Lord’ is on the whole a return to form for the director. Although a little meandering, the core concept of the film is solid. The film’s conclusion at first feels a little melodramatic and counterproductive to the rest of the film preceding it, however upon reflection, the film imparts an important and timely message which transcends the manmade systems in place, asking the audience to return to their humanity.
The cast play their roles well. Hot on the heels of yesteryear’s success with ‘Tourist Family’, M Sasikumar’s turn as Muthu Sirpi is decent despite a lack of a complete characterisation. Again, although Chaithra J Achar’s Suseela feels a little underwritten, the actress performs the role well. Guru Somasundaram’s Kathirvelan alongside R Prasanna Ram Kumar’s assistant character are perhaps the strongest performances of the film.
The film’s biggest fault, however, is in its technical craft. Raju Murugan is more than capable of competent filmmaking, as witnessed in his previous films. Despite never consistently working with the same cinematographer – Nirav Shah handles the camera in ‘My Lord’ – there are often wonderfully framed compositions throughout his filmography. However, this is not always the case with ‘My Lord’, with many scenes and shots feeling rushed – most notably during a tense sequence set in a court at night which felt very flat. ‘My Lord’ could have been a much stronger final product with a little more time and care taken with every step of the process. Sean Roldan’s score and soundtrack works alongside the quirky film with the final song ‘Anbenum Peroli’ being the best of the selection thanks to its lyrics by Yugabharathi and soulful accompanying vocals of Meenakshi Elayaraja.
Overall, ‘My Lord’ is a prescient film with a wise message which could have been improved with more consideration in its production. Raju Murugan is an interesting filmmaker who is often let down by overlooking presentational issues and focussing on his humanitarian storytelling. If you enjoyed ‘My Lord’, I would highly recommend watching Raju Murugan’s first two films, 2014's ‘Cuckoo’ and 2016’s ‘Joker’.
Krishna's rating: 2.5 stars
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Official trailer for film below.
