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Subramaniyam Shiva’s Seedan, the remake of Nandanam, a 10-year-old Malayalam film, is an old fashioned, familiar 'family drama' formula, packing in every cliché that fits.
The original was a classic, made a star out of its debutant hero Prithviraj and stood out for its subtleties. The Tamil version could not get the milieu and the feel and lacks the soul of the original.

Mahalakshmi (Ananya) is a servant maid in the palatial ancestral home of Amritavalli ‘Paatti’ (Sheela), whose only daughter Thangam (Suhasini) lives in Bangalore. Maha is an ardent devotee of Lord Muruga of Palani, and spends most of her time talking to a portrait of the lord in her room.

The ‘Paatti’ treats her well and Maha behaves like her own daughter. Enter Paatti’s grandson, the handsome Manu (Krishna) to spend a few days with his grandmother before he leaves for UK. Maha was shocked to see Manu for first time, because she had seen him in her dreams before as her groom.

Soon in a jiffy, both fall in love, and when Manu’s mother asks him to marry her friend's daughter, the twist happens. A visibly upset Maha prays to Lord Muruga. Suddenly out of the blue, Saravanan (Dhanush) enters the household as a cook and wins over everybody’s heart. Things start happening in favour of Maha, like a miracle.

The film drags, even though it is only 2 hours and 8 minutes. The love between the lead pair is not established. How can an IT guy fall in love with a maid servant and do such houses still exist? The audiences can easily find out the true identity of Dhanush character. The surprise element which was the trump card in the original is missing as the character has been given a super hero build up.

However Dhanush’s holds the film together in the second half and is the only saving grace. Vivek after a long time, makes us laugh in few scenes as a fake Godman. Ananya is the heart and soul of the film and she effortlessly slips into the role of a maid. She’s easy on the eye, and a welcome change from the usual faces.

Krishna is wooden and lacks screen presence. The rest of the characters Sheela, Suhasini, Ilavarasan and others have walk in roles. Music of Dheena is another drawback.

On the whole, Seedan is lacks subtleties and nuances of the original. If you like old-fashioned melodramatic family dramas with a message that true love will triumph against all odds, then it is your cup of tea.

Verdict- Average