Despite being the weakest entry yet in the famed Vijay-ARM combo, Sarkar offers some noteworthy sequences.

The first half follows the life of Sundar as he zooms in his convoy of expensive cars, first in Las Vegas, then in Chennai. The earlier portions don’t offer much that you wouldn’t have already gleaned from the trailer. Vijay’s Sundar Ramasamy, a combination of Sundar Pichai and Sanjay Ramasamy, is the CEO of the world’s largest company. Declaring him a corporate monster is understandable, but Genghis Khan? Really?

The movie, although largely devoid of logic, still works rather well in parts. AR Murugadoss is very adept at setting up cat-and-mouse sequences in his movies. While the villains don’t really hold up to the director’s usual high standards, Sundar’s legal battle with the state is a joy to watch, even though it is diluted with a healthy dose of thug bashing. Section 49-P is a real eye-opener, even to the politically affluent. The fight sequences are as logical as befits Vijay’s larger-than-life persona. They are unapologetically mass and pander only to his diehard fans. I understand Sarkar cannot be a grounded political thriller when it has IlayaThalapathy Vijay at its helm. But it could have done away with some over-the-top scenes like an IT employee crossing himself in relief after realizing Sundar has come to India just to vote and an election volunteer sweating profusely at the polling booth when they realize Sundar’s vote had already been cast.

It was a nice touch to justify Sundar’s billing as a hotshot CEO, by factoring in Sundar’s innate grasp of marketing skills and business acumen. I loved how Sundar is familiar with MBA case studies, branding, and how he manipulates YouTube to promote his video. The romance arcs in Murugadoss’ movies have generally been in a downward spiral since Ghajini. In Sarkar, Murugadoss dispenses with the usual hero-meets-heroine nonsense. He still keeps Keerthi Suresh’s Nila in close proximity to Sundar at all times (despite logic suggesting otherwise) so that she is able to earn her money’s worth in the song sequences, however out-of-place they crop up.

Varalaxmi Sarathkumar is an inspired casting. The film is all the more better when she steps in as Sundar’s main adversary in the second half. Her scenes with her father (the chief minister) and her uncle (the CM’s aide-de-camp) are brilliantly laced with foreboding. The movie is at its best when she holds her own against our effervescent hero, but it doesn’t last long and the movie peters out rather damply and predictably.

The movie, backed by Sun Pictures, doesn’t really hold back with a barely camouflaged portrayal of real-world politics in Tamil Nadu. The ruling party’s name is AIAMMK, Varalaxmi plays the role of Komalavalli (Jayalalithaa’s actual name), while the character is modeled more on Sasikala (including a thinly veiled barb at the “suspicious” happenings at Apollo hospital for conspiracy theorists). Visual shots of Vijay basking in the sun are possibly metaphors for the actor’s fledgling political ambitions and/or DMK’s insignia.

Despite being the weakest entry yet in the famed Vijay-ARM combo, Sarkar offers some noteworthy sequences. The Oru Viral Puratchi song resonates well with the audience, who have been crying out loud for a good government for decades. While Sarkar is currently setting the Box Office on fire (his fans are foolhardily setting other things on fire), it will be interesting to see if the reverberations are felt at the time of by-elections as well.