Maamannan follows the story of a father and son duo belonging to the oppressed community who are forced to take a stand against the arrogant son of a politician. Will they be able to hold ground? The story here is absolutely raging with seldom simmering moments that definitely does have a voice of its own. This may not be as effective as Selvaraj’s previous works but it still holds good ground while conveying its point across. The screenplay standing at a shade above 150 minutes did seem to be slightly stretched but it does have ample of moments that makes for a compelling watch.

The drama does open with a visual of the protagonist rearing pigs. This one image was enough to establish the fact that he did belong to the oppressed community. Elsewhere, his father, now a local MLA, is still being questioned about his son’s actions. This further highlights the point that even a position of power was not enough to keep the caste issues of the family away. You are also introduced to the antagonist, an arrogant and impulsive man who has kept wild dogs as pets. And when one of his dogs does not obey his command(loses a race), he bludgeons it to death. This represents two things – the man holds an intimidating position in society while also not shying away from harming one of his own! This was quite an effective beginning given that you aren’t acquainted with the baggage of the principal characters.

The proceedings are engrossing and interesting given that the viewers are further acquainted with the equations between the characters as the drama does unfold. While the love angle continues to remain inconsequential, a brief flashback, shot in black and white paints a clearer picture about the equation that the father and son share while not being on talking terms for ages. That sequence was powerful, and it does hit you right where it hurts you the most. A series of events(in the current timeline) leads to a face-off between the protagonist and the antagonist, and those set pieces are very well defined. The energy in those scenes start on a lower chord while tactfully making its way to the higher decibels through the bouts of simmering tension. There is an undercurrent of the issues related to casteism throughout which eventually becomes the driving force for the rest of the drama to follow.

The drama is also represented by the two sets of animals – the pigs signifying the oppressed community, and the wild dogs signifying the upper caste community. The use of these animals is prevalent throughout the narrative including and gut-wrenching action sequence that is heartbreaking. All the emotions hit home wonderfully well in that scene which is in many ways representative of the issues of current times.

I absolutely enjoyed the face-offs between characters but missed the subtle nuances of politics in the second hour. The approach was always the in your face kinds, and so there weren’t any shifting equations between characters which would have contributed in making the drama cerebral. But the obstacles resulting in the form of action set-pieces are brutal and hard-hitting that compensate for the lack of subtlety. The drama continues to remain predictable but the raging tension between the parties continues to dominate the proceedings. However, the final act for me didn’t quite work as it felt too simplistic in its approach wherein I had expected a final showdown between the characters. Yet, the screenplay is very well written and makes for a powerful watch with a great message at the end that everyone is born equal, and hence should continue to have equal rights.