‘Nootrenbadu’ marks the entry of the ad filmmaker, Jayendra to the tinsel town. With the help of a good storyline and a potential team, Jayendra has presented a romantic drama with a clear social theme.

The film opens with Ajay (Siddarth) taking bath at holy Ganges in Kasi. Later he settles down in Chennai as a tenant in the house of Mr.S.V.S.Moorthy (Mouli), saying that he’ll need the house for only six months. Being an affable and gregarious lad, he wins the hearts of the locals easily. This sociable nature of him also attracts Vidhya (Nithya Menon), a photo-journalist, who eventually falls in love with him. During a mishap, Ajay was forced to disclose his past as a doctor at San Francisco, happily married to Renuka (Priya Anand). What happened in his life and why did he come to Chennai were answered in the rest of the movie.

Siddarth, returning to Tamil after 7 years, proves that he has matured a lot during his hiatus.  He has played his character of Ajay/Mano with perfection. Be it the cheerful boy next door or the practicing doctor or the fear struck sufferer, he excels in every frame. Both Nithya Menon and Priya Anand have done their roles admirably.  Mouli and Geetha as the landlord couple and Sricharan as Sidddarth’s friend have all done their part well.

Cinematography by Balasubramaniem is a visual treat. After Payanam, this is the second Tamil movie to be shot with a Red One camera and the visuals are simply enchanting. The colors used in the background go well with the mood of the film. Music by Sharreth is appealing. Almost all songs are good and special mention should be made for ‘rules kidayathu’ for its electrifying beats and exotic filming. The back ground score looks repetitive at times and could have been more versatile. With the assistance of the writer-duo, Subha, Jayendra has penned the dialogues and screenplay of the movie apart from wielding the megaphone. Dialogues are precise and concise and are a major boost for the movie. The screenplay with its flashback narration is impressive and the director has infused it with many interesting stuff trying to keep it fresh till the end.

On the flip side, the main drawback of the movie is its prolonged second half which tests the patience of the audience towards the end. The interest with which the movie progresses in the first half couldn’t be maintained in the second half, though major part of the story happens only in the latter half. A taut screenplay particularly in the second half would have made a lot of difference to the movie.

The final verdict is that, ‘Nootrenbadu’, in spite of its slow narration is worth watching once owing to its brilliant theme and interesting storyline.