Uriyadi

Uriyadi
File:Uriyadi Tamil Movie.jpg Uriyadi Poster
Directed by	Vijay Kumar
Written by	Vijay Kumar
Produced by	Vijay Kumar
Starring	Vijay Kumar Mime Gopi Chandru Kumar Citizen Sivakumar Jeyakanth Velu Henna Bella
Narrated by	Arvind Swamy
Cinematography	Paul Livingstone
Edited by	Abhinav Sunder Nayak
Music by	Masala Coffee
Release date	May 27, 2016 (2016-05-27)
Country	India
Language	Tamil
Budget	2.5 crores
Box office	10 crores -->

Uriyadi is a Tamil language action thriller film, directed and produced by Vijay Kumar in 2016. The main actors of the film are Vijay Kumar, Mime Gopi, Citizen Sivakumar, and Chandru Kumar. Songs in the film were composed by Masala Coffee and the background score is by Vijay Kumar. Paul Livingstone was the cinematographer and editing was handled by Abhinav Sunder Nayak. The production of this film began in July 2013 and was completed by October 2013, followed by a lengthy post-production process. The censor board gave the movie an "A" rating following the removal of several fight sequences. After obtaining the censor certificate, director Nalan Kumarasamy acted as co-producer to release the movie. Uriyadi was released in cinemas on May 27, 2016, to positive critical reviews, with critics praising its screenplay and fight sequences.

Many reviews of the film highlight the intense violence portrayed throughout. In an interview with the Business Standard, Kumar relates how actors were actually injured during filming: "I was supposed to hit someone in the back with a rod, and somehow the blow landed on his head, much to my surprise. Although we used a fiber rod, he suffered severe injury."

Plot

The story revolves around three sets of characters: 1) four friends that are college students in their final year of study, Lenin Vijay, Suresh, Akil, and Quarter, who are very lively and carefree; 2) a politician named Kumar who is eager to begin his own caste-based political party; and 3) Ramanathan, a part-time engineering student. The movie opens by showcasing the daily lives of the four student friends. The students soon meet the politician, Kumar, who also runs a dhaba on the highway which the students frequently visit. Ramanathan, who has little luck with love, yearns for a college girl who seems to be the ex-girlfriend of Lenin Vijay. One night, the four friends get very drunk and accidentally annoy some of the caste fanatics. Kumar happens to see this along with his uncle and contemplates how to take advantage of this tense situation.

In many similar situations, the students get into trouble with local residents. In one such instance in the dhaba, the politician comes to their rescue and hence they meet. But later that night, one of the students gets attacked by some locals. The other students become furious, chase the locals and a fight ensues. Meanwhile, Vijay’s ex-girlfriend gets harassed by Ramanathan. This is witnessed by Quarter, who hits Ramanathan. Quarter relates this to Vijay. Later, to their surprise, Ramanathan’s friends wait in the dhaba to ambush Quarter. While all this is happening, the politician, keen on launching his own caste-based political party for the next election, drafts plans to initiate the party. The plot reaches a climax when all three sets of characters meet and each of them discovers their mutual interconnections.

Cast

• Vijay Kumar as Lenin Vijay
• Chandru as Suresh
• Jeyakanth Velu as Akil
• Sivaperumal as Quarter
• Mime Gopi as Kumar
• Citizen Sivakumar as Ulagappan
• Henna as Agnes
• Suruli as Ramanathan
• Sathik
• Shankar Das
• Marris Raja
• Raja Ram
• Sai Prakash
• Shankar Narayanan
• Janaki
• Arumughan Bala
• R. Selvakumar as Teacher

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Masala Coffee and the background score was composed by Vijay Kumar.

Tracklist

No.	Title	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Agnikunjondru"	Masala Coffee	03:19
2.	"Kaantha"	Masala Coffee, Sooraj Santhosh & Varun Sunil	04:55
3.	"Maane Maane"	Anthony Daasan & Masala Coffee	05:34

Critical response

Uriyadi received high critical acclaim. The Times of India gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, stating that Uriyadi "displays a daring that belies its small-budget, first-film credentials, and stakes its claim in the list of the best films of the year." Baradwaj Rangan, an Indian film critic and writer, cited that "Vijay Kumar doesn't need a condescending pat on the back. He's a solid filmmaker, and he's made a gritty little film." Fully Filmy quoted that Uriyadi is "an unmissable masterpiece that deserves our support!" Filmibeat rated the film 3.5 out of 5 stars, claiming that it "is one of the boldest attempts that exposes the devious nature of politicians who use caste to their advantage. And yes, this one is not for the faint-hearted." Sify's verdict is that the film is a "Violent revenge thriller", and gave the film 4 out of 5 stars; the reviewer also praised the realistic approach, Paul Livingstone’s cinematography, and the razor sharp editing by Abhinav Sundar Nayak.

Indiaglitz reviewed the film too, describing it as a "gripping saga of extreme violence". The reviewer Prashanth from HeroTalkies greatly appreciated the movie and the director for taking up such a bold story and delivering it without any compromises, calling the film a "must watch". A reviewer from Behindwoods noted that "Cleverly screwing all the nuts and bolts at the right places the movie encompasses all the elements that are a requisite for a gritty watch". He also noted that "The [theater showing] of Uriyadi was about to be cancelled in Aurora, Mumbai. But the movie watching audience bought out the theater so that the show did not get cancelled."

External links

• Uriyadi at IMDb