Vetri Maaran teases the audience at the end of Viduthalai Part 1 with a scene from the upcoming second part that resembles a hastily made trailer.

Considering the dramatic scenes in those images, Part 2 excites me more because it will be more political and direct.

Since the focus is primarily on creating the milieu around constable Kumaresan, Viduthalai Part 1 cannot be characterised as a hard-hitting film.

There is a chance that Viduthalai could be just as spectacular as a Visaranai when viewed collectively.

The opportunity to fight this injustice gives Kumaresan's (an incredibly good Soori) new assignment the idealism he requires to function.

Because even in the most basic reading of a man like him, the word "idealist" comes to mind.

Kumaresan has joined a police outpost guarding the forest from these alleged rebel forces who bombed the railway line, and he is replacing another officer who was killed on the job.

This is new information for him, but he accepts it as if the challenge makes his job more meaningful, and we, too, soon see the forest through Kumaresan's idealist eyes, at least in the beginning.

As a result, when he is punished for his efforts in saving the life of a dying women, even if she's from across enemies lines, he'd rather accept the punishment than admit to himself that he'd  taken the easy way outBecause of this characteristic of Kumaresan, we might compare him to Perumal (Vijay Sethupathi), the head of the Makkal Padai, who is a direct adversary of the State. If things had turned out differently, Kumaresan probably would have followed Perumal or become a leader himself. Even though Perumal and Murugesan were destined to be foes, this adds a depth of respect to their otherwise invisible relationship.

Vetrimaaran casts some really intriguing roles.

The choice to cast Gautham Vasudev Menon in a significant part is brilliant.

A director whose previous works celebrated police deaths now portrays a cop in a film that brutally exposes police violence.

It makes sense to cast Vijay Sethupathi as Vaathiyar.

Despite his lengthy cameo, he makes the biggest impression in those passages.

The role of the women, who take the brunt of the abuse, is what makes Viduthalai at times unsettling, and Bhavani Sre is a talent to watch out for.

One may argue that the violence depicted in the film is historically realistic in terms of the torture carried out on people involved in Left-leaning armed conflicts who the government labels as terrorists. It might also be claimed that most viewers wouldn't be familiar with this hazy past. Yet, retelling that history must be grounded in empathy for those who suffered; it must be dedicated to the dignity that was robbed from them. Kollywood consistently demonstrates an inability to see that clumsy ruses like acting out abuse and trauma are signs of a lack of politicised empathy.

Thankyou.