Independent filmmaker Sanal Kumar Sasidharan had once made a very wise observation about the business of filmmaking. In a tweet, he wrote, “You can’t make many films, you can make one film and many copies of it!” His words of wisdom will ring true when you watch director Ponram’s latest film Seema Raja. It is his third consecutive film with actors Sivakarthikeyan and Soori.
Ponram discovered a winning formula when he made the blockbuster Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam, his first collaboration with Siva, in 2013. The formula is simple: Lead the film with a self-centered hero, and pair him with a sidekick whose primary job is to indulge his master’s ego. And have them chase around the most beautiful girl in the town. Just to make things a bit interesting, throw in a few equally egoistic opponents. There you have Ponram’s formula for creating box office hits. It worked wonders the first time in Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam. Ponram milked it further the second time in Rajini Murugan (2016). He has again tried to exploit the already overused premise with Seema Raja. But, he has drawn a blank this time.
Of course, you will find a seemingly endless number of problems with Seema Raja, if you take this film seriously. But, it’s an impossible task to do so. In fact, Ponram tells you to believe in the story that he’s telling. The catch is he doesn’t really mean it. How do you take a film seriously, when you have a village full of people who could be tricked into believing a skiny dog painted in watercolours as a leopard? Ponram doesn’t spell it out loud but it’s very obvious that Seema Raja is a spoof movie. It could be considered as a ‘spiritual sequel’ to Thamizh Padam.
