Ever since Muni released in 2007 and became a huge success, actor/director Raghava Lawrence has taken it upon himself to keep the series alive, releasing an installment every four years (2007, 2011, 2015 and now 2019).
When the hero, usually a man who can single-handedly take on a group of goons and not break a sweat on a normal day, stutters and shakes for a silly ruse, the hilarity in the scene becomes endearing and fresh all at once. Rajinikanth's paambu jokes, for example. And it is perhaps this style that Raghava Lawrence, who is also a die-hard Rajini fan, had in mind when he sketched his character Ganesh in the first film.
We have seen several horror comedies since - the Aranmanai series, cringe adult horror comedies like Iruttu Arayil Murattu Kuthu, Dhilluku Dhuttu series and more. But over 10 years since Muni, the idea of horror comedy in Tamil cinema has completely fizzled out, turning into a ‘joke’s on you pal’ for the audiences.
Kanchana 3 is a sequel to the first Kanchana (Muni 2) and we see Kovai Sarala reunite with her on-screen son and daughter-in-law, Sriman and Devadarshini respectively. The three characters are the only redeeming factor in this tiresome film. If not for them and their antics, it would have been a completely unbearable experience. The pre-interval portion with the three of them in the haunted house is one of the funniest scenes in the film.
Talking about the film's story is a pointless exercise - not because of spoilers but because there isn't a new story to write about. At this rate, the question "What will Kanchana 4's story be?" can be answered with the famous Rajinikanth song, "Chinna kozhandhayum sollum!".
ALL the tropes from the previous three films are there. People scrambling about and toppling over each other? Check. Ragahva hopping on to his mother’s hip? Check. Ghost with a sob story? Check. Characters excessively slapping each other? Check. Broomsticks, footwear and god photos? Ting, ting, ting. The climax song-dance-killing is also there, don’t worry.
The first half is an exact reenactment of Kanchana. The only reason it works and makes us laugh or at least smile is because Kovai Sarala, Devadarshini and Sriman do a great job of it. So much so that we are willing to forgive the fact that whole charade is now stale.
But what of the horror, you ask? Let me get to it. Kanchana 3 has three woman actors doing the most forgettable roles in their careers. Vedhika, Oviya and Nikki Tamboli play Raghava’s cousins. The entire family is quite creepy, with the grandparents and parents egging on Raghava to “choose” among the three. If the idea wasn’t icky enough, the distasteful dialogues and the weird clothes the women are made to wear objectifies them further.
The three actors have only been written into the script to boost Raghava’s ego and there’s also a dance number where Raghava asks “How are you girls going to impress me?” The objectification and sexualisation are in your face, and even more objectionable considering it is certified U/A.
The world of Kanchana feeds on superstition, but what are horror films without these ideas? Ghosts hate slippers and broomsticks (actually humans aren’t particularly fond of these utility objects either), strange looking dolls placed on rangoli patterns will anger/upset the spirit and of course, ghosts cannot enter places of worship.
When I was younger, I remember watching Jaganmohini and making a mental note that ghosts and spirits cannot enter sacred spaces. In my scary-ghost dreams, I’d frantically run in search of temples. Then one day, at the Chottanikkara Bagavathi temple I was shown a tree with nails on it and told that they were marks of exorcism. I was tempted to ask the priest, ‘If spirits can’t enter temples, how did you bring them in, to be pinned to this tree?’
But such questions obviously do not rise in the universe where films like Kanchana are made.
The biggest horror, however, is revealed right at the end - there will be Kanchana 4/Muni 5. Oh god, WHY?
Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Neither TNM nor any of its reviewers have any sort of business relationship with the film's producers or any other members of its cast and crew.