2025, so far, has been underwhelming for big-budget, eagerly awaited Tamil blockbusters, leaving “Madharasi” (Madharaasi, 2025) carrying the weight of expectations. This has created a sense of anxiety not only among Tamil cinema fans but also for Sivakarthikeyan, especially after “Maaveeran” (2023) and “Amaran” (2024). The success of “Amaran” opened many opportunities for Sivakarthikeyan, marking his emergence as a bankable star. With ‘Thalapathy’ Vijay stepping away from films to enter politics, fans are already speculating over who might emerge as the next bigger and younger action star they’ll gladly wait nearly a year to celebrate in theatres, no matter the storyline. And last year’s much-talked-about scene from “GOAT” (2024) almost hinted that Vijay is passing on the torch to Sivakarthikeyan. With “Madharasi”, he attempts to cement his status as an action hero.
“Madharasi” (2025) is an action thriller directed by A.R. Murugadoss, with music by Anirudh. The film stars Sivakarthikeyan, Rukmini Vasanth, Biju Menon, and Vidyut Jammwal. The story opens with the illegal importation of locally made guns into Tamil Nadu. Virat and his friend Chirag lead a gang determined to distribute and promote gun culture in the state. A secret NIA (National Investigation Agency) team decides to risk their lives to stop this mission. Meanwhile, a young man suffering from delusional syndrome for 16 years, reeling from a recent breakup, wants to kill himself. He takes many measures but fails to accomplish his mission. By accident, he meets the head of the NIA team and ends up assisting them in locating the stash of weapons hidden by Virat and his gang. The police team wants to use him since he is already willing to die.
The film opens with a character whose presence we have no context for. Nevertheless, the actor’s fans are primed to celebrate him the moment he enters. He walks in, breaks into song and dance all of a sudden, while we are not even handed a fragment of information about him, barely adding any depth in the beginning. Not a great or innovative start. Soon, we are told that he has a past linked to a medical condition, i.e., he is a mental patient suffering from delusional syndrome. The film teases surprises. But after endlessly stretching tiring sequences, we are left questioning whether these surprises are truly shocking or simply relief tricks designed to manipulate the audience. Ironically, they do work at some level.
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The entire first half of the film mostly tries to establish the hero and his connection to his girlfriend. But we are not fully invested in those characters. With mediocre songs, none of the characters leaves any impression on us. We don’t see Raghu, but Sivakarthikeyan. This reduces slightly in the latter half of the film. The protagonist transforms into an uncontrolled animal in the second half of the film to save his girlfriend. He goes rogue. His animal instincts make him fight like the Hulk. Amidst the film’s illogical detours, Vidyut Jammwal delivers convincingly entertaining moments—but they are brief. His appearance instantly excites the audience.
Whereas Rukmini’s character, though stretched across the entire timeline, feels underdeveloped—like a branch without enough leaves. The NIA head, who has spent days and nights without seeing his family, is betrayed by his own men, watches loyal teammates die, and even loses his only son in the battle. Yet he confesses that they managed to stop the spread of gun culture in the state solely because of the protagonist’s love. Purely senseless.
While the film has three major plots twirling around each other, the runtime does not help establish everything. The second half of the story moves faster than the first, packed with action sequences. Though the shaky camera work threatens to overwhelm, it actually elevates the choreography instead of distracting from it. Sadly, the music does not stand out. For those familiar with Anirudh’s work, “Madharasi” feels more like a compilation of his past scores than a fresh soundtrack.
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I noticed on social media that people are voicing out against many things as “cringe”. But it can’t be defined by a single value—it must exist on a spectrum. If it falls within a digestible range, it feels safe. But if the pointer on this cringe scale shifts even slightly higher, the content quickly becomes unbearable and gets mercilessly trolled. This thought came to me during a scene in the film where employees rush out of their office after an earthquake warning.
le=”text-align: justify;”>Once outside, everyone immediately calls their families and friends to say they are safe. Raghu watches them, feeling like the odd one out. It is a genuinely sentimental moment that could have resonated more deeply if the narrative had swiftly transitioned into another subplot. Instead, the scene drags on into a forced monologue, only to be capped by the sudden arrival of the female lead, turning what could have been poignant into a spoon-fed soap opera.
le=”text-align: justify;”>A.R. Murugadoss has not been able to impress audiences since 2014. His once-complex plots have now become just-bearable, moderately engaging experiences. It is hard to pinpoint a single department at fault, but overall, the film feels outdated. During promotions, the director reflected on the staging of his earlier iconic films, recalling moments like the coin fight in “Kaththi” (2014). It was fascinating to hear the thought process behind crafting such an action sequence with a superstar and still having logical and emotional connections behind the action. But watching “Madharasi” feels almost mechanical, as if it were directed by AI. The film is neither wholesome entertainment nor an entirely bad effort. Everything feels artificial and forced, and nothing is explored with genuine depth.
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