PETTA

Superstar (Noun) - an extremely famous and successful performer
Synonyms - Rajinikanth, Thalaivar, Kaali, Petta

Karthik Subbaraj's 5th directorial Petta is his most commercial film yet. Still he manages to retain his Midas touch throughout the film, with massive twists and surprises every now and then. The film can be easily divided into 2 parts. The first half belongs to Rajinikanth the Superstar, with little Karthik Subbaraj moments. Whereas, the second half belongs to the 'Thalaivar Fan' with Rajini moments.

The director must be praised for putting together a dream cast like this. Even more surprising is the fact that all of them have performed their best and stand out in their respective scenes. Simran, Trisha, Sasikumar, Bobby Simha, Munishkanth, and Guru Somasundaram deserve a special mention. It takes a lot of effort to act, and even more effort to make it effortless. The actors fall under the latter category. Even though Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Vijay Sethupathi deliver memorable performances, the film leaves us wanting more of them.

Petta is a Rajini fan's delight, as we witness a lot of scenes that remind us of the Superstar from the 90's. There are scenes where he flicks his hair, flips a cigarette, dances to a Kuthu number and what not. A separate thesis can be written on how the man manages to enthrall us in every way possible. As cliched as it may sound, we cannot take our eyes off the Superstar. There is a certain aura about him that breakes the 4th wall and hits us.

In fact, the film by itself has a lot of meta scenes, most of which works. Karthik Subbaraj once again uses Ilayaraja's music extensively. For example, the movie opens with the song 'Andha Naal Mudhal, Indha Naal varai', we get to listen to En Iniya Pon Nilave, and other Ilayaraja hits. The best part is, it all complements the scene well. Despite scenes working well separately, a set of audience can find the story to be less engaging in the second half, partially due to the history that Karthik Subbaraj carries.

Anirudh looks like a man who has been on a penance to work for a Thalaivar movie. He has unleashed every trick in his bag, leaving us with a terrific score. The popularity of the songs aid the film, but a couple of dance sequences creates a lag.

With a run time of close to 3 hours, it could have been shorter by a few minutes. The portions involving Rajini and Simran look as beautiful as the latter.

Petta is also technically strong, with Kunal Rajan's sound design and Vivek Harshan's edits hogging the limelight. Thirunavukarasu's usage of the blue color in the hill station scenes actually makes you feel cold, and the yellow tone used in the mass scenes look delightful and majestic at the same time.

We can safely say this is one of the most memorable Rajini films we've got. The film opens with a card: INSPIRED BY, PERFORMED BY, AND DEDICATED TO RAJINIKANTH. You can't agree more, and that's what the film is all about.

Marana Mass
Vocals: SP Balasubrahmanyam and Anirudh Ravichander
Lyrics: Vivek

For a very long time in Superstar Rajini's career, we hadn't witnessed the pakka mass thara local kuththu number in an album. Anirudh Ravichander seems to have capitalized on that fact and he delivers in style with Marana Mass. Firstly, though the words Rajini mouths in the song are less, the choice to bring the legendary SPB to sing for that is a fantastic move. Though he has only a few lines, his zest brings back so many memories and gives this song a big boost.

Vivek's lyrics are quirky and they adjust to the requirement of the situation. Another very interesting move is bringing in the authentic percussionists from various places to keep adding multiple layers of beats to this excessively powerful kuththu song. Anirudh's rendition is as always very strong and the local flavor is not missed out on!

Petta Theme
Instrumental
Vocals: Superstar Rajinikanth
 

Petta theme is a screamer for those who love Superstar Rajini. The track rides solely on the trumpets that lead the show. It catches on with an eerie tune that makes us feel like Rajini could have a negative shade in his character. The beats pick up, the synths straighten and the trumpet blows on. A retro feel is given to this track, making it an interesting theme for the film. A surprise is Superstar Rajini's one-liner with his signature laugh. Wait for it!

Ilamai Thirumbudhe
Vocals: Anirudh Ravichander
Lyrics: Dhanush
 

In a completely fresh dimension, we have a quintessential Anirudh melody pictured on Superstar Rajini. This breeze of romance is written by Dhanush, bringing back the iconic DnA combo. However, this song isn't drastically different from many of Anirudh's other romantic melodies. The groove is intriguing and catchy with his typical flute interludes backed by the piano and strings. Anirudh's rendition is very sweet, and the feel of the song is efficiently sucked in by the lyrics. Dhanush masters his job with good support from Anirudh.

Madura Petta
Instrumental
 

This is Anirudh's first attempt at a rural groove. Without any surprises, the track consists all of the typical rural percussions, the thavil, and other beats. These are very well accompanied by the nadhaswaram that drives us right into Madura(i). The earthiness of this track could add a lot of value to the portions in which this is used.

Petta Paraak
Vocals: Anirudh Ravichander & Chorus
Lyrics: Vivek
 

This is a high octane number that will receive unanimous love from all the fans. The lyrics give the perfect build-up for a superstar like Rajinikanth and his character. Anirudh's powerful rendition with huge support from the chorus pumps in energy into this song and it works wonders. Along with the energy-powered beats, Petta Paraak is typically a rock number that rides high on the lead guitars. The effect created by the amalgamation of all the instruments gives the listener a high of being in a Rajinikanth world, with a completely new dimension.

Singaar Singh Theme
Instrumental

Previously, Anirudh's background scores for the antagonists have worked very well. This time, for Nawazuddin Siddiqui's character, Anirudh's theme score seems to be quite intimidating. The weight of the character is portrayed with ease in this track with some very unearthly tones lingering in the background. The mixing for the track also deserves some praise as they play with the instruments and the listener very interestingly.

Aaha Kalyanam
Vocals: Anthony Daasan
Lyrics: Ku Karthik
 

Aaha Kalyanam adds to the list of enriching tracks from the Petta album. Again, this is a complete fun-filled ride with Anthony Daasan's antics adding so much value. Anirudh's arrangement skill is a big positive for this song and the output lives on the high spirits. The instrumentation along with the synths would give the listener a rush and wouldn't let the feet lie idle.

Jithu Theme
Instrumental
 

Yet again, a score for the antagonist. This time it is Vijay Sethupathi's Jithu. There are a few elements in this track that seem to bring out a psychotic feel from this character. The tones used are seemingly eldritch and that works in a big way for the otherwise, above average theme.

Ullaallaa
Vocals: Nakash Aziz and Inno Genga
Lyrics: Vivek

Ullaalla was the second single that was released by the team. This one is the Thalaivar Baila, that is filled with intellectual lyrics. The Baila genre is a naturally dance-inducing one and this one also works in the same way. There is a certain sense of positivity that transmits from the lyrics and music to the listener. It will be a treat to watch Rajini perform the dance for this super fun number. A few portions seem to be designed for the stylish Rajini dance, and we have the Padayappa connect with the mouth organ! Ullaallaa is a sure-shot love for the fans!

Kaali Theme
Instrumental
 

The Kaali Theme is what we heard in the first ever motion poster released by the team. The theme drawn out from the song 'Marana Mass'. With liveliness and a lot of sap, the Kaali theme is a winner! The theme powers out Rajini-ism and has already been received with a lot of love by all the fans.

Thappad Maara
Vocals: Sarwar Khan & Sartaz Khan Barna
Lyrics: Karthik Subbaraj
 

Anirudh seems to have dug deep into the earth to find voices like Sarwar Khan and Sartaz Khan Barna. The youngsters are the fire-power for this fun-filled track. This seems to be pictured on the Jithu character played by Vijay Sethupathi and the lyrics suggest that this is constructed around a Jithu's slap, The design of this track is also quite interesting. Along with the lively voices, the beats that accompany seem to be very indigenous and entertaining.