A decent murder mystery that misses the mark by an inch- Cinema express

Generally, when a murder mystery is unravelling, we long to know the murderer and why they committed the crime in the first place. The first half of Rajni (Malayalam), titled Aval Peyar Rajni in Tamil, establishes that a woman called Rajni has committed a murder. But more than the motive of the homicide, we are eager to know who she is (especially her appearance), thanks to the gripping narrative in the first half. If only the film entirely utilised this momentum and sustained it till the reveal, Rajni could have very well emerged as a ‘superstar’ of thrillers, but alas.
 

Director: Vinil Scariah Varghese
Cast: Kalidas Jayaram, Ashwin Kumar, Saiju Kurup, Namitha Pramod, Poo Ramu, Ramesh Khanna

Aval Peyar Rajni revolves around the murder of Abhijit (Saiju Kurup) in the presence of his wife Gouri (Namitha Pramod). Gouri’s brother Naveen (Kalidas Jayaram) teams up with Inspector Paul (Ashwin Kumar) to solve the case and arrest the murderer.

The biggest plus of the film is the effective usage of its 120-minute run time. Unlike some recent films that are short in length, but incomplete due to poor writing, Rajni jumps right into the story. Every time Paul’s investigation hits a dead end, a new suspect is introduced, making the story take a new turn. Karunakaran, who appears as one of the suspects, auto driver Selvam, contributes to the mild yet refreshing comedy in this serious crime thriller film.

The first half also introduces us to a horror angle. While I would like you to watch the film and figure out its genre, the jump scares and the eerie frames ensure that we get the chills at the right place. Up until much into the second half, the identity of the murderer is not revealed, but throughout the film we can feel her aura. Accompanied by red hue, the portions showing the character have been shot with great taste and effort. For example, in a scene where the mystery character looks into the camera, yet her identity is protected thanks to the brilliant usage of lens flare. Though such admirable craft keeps the pace consistent through the entire first half, post the interval, Aval Peyar Rajni slips into a familiar space.

The red herrings, twists and the flashback start feeling functional rather than exciting after this point. The much-awaited reveal of the film approaches us at a snail’s pace rather than an exhilarating rollercoaster drop. A better place to drop the reveal would have been in the flashback narrated by Poo Ramu, considering the heaviness of the subject, despite the over-the-top emotional treatment.

Usually in whodunits, the narrative goes back to the crime scene post the reveal of the killer, this time showing how the homicide actually happened. I believe this approach helps the viewers enjoy the reveal to the fullest. But in Rajni, we don’t get any of that. This feels like a major letdown as we get detailed descriptions like the strength and Modus operandi of the killer.

After the flashback, the film starts going in circles. There are elaborate fight sequences, to a conclusion that isn’t really out of the ordinary. The last stretch after the flashback ends up serving hardly any purpose. But full points to the makers for orchestrating an entire action sequence with a woman at the helm of things. It was a breath of fresh air to watch a woman thrash up multiple men single-handedly.

Aval Peyar Rajni has its heart in the right place. It talks about body dysphoria, and mental health, and tries to convey a message, even though it barely scratches the surface. Even though the film is nowhere close to a testing experience we leave the screens half-hearted not having experienced the kick the film initially promised.