Pasanga 2 Review - Kiddish Attempt

Suriya tries to recreate the magic of Aamir Khan's Taare Zameen Par(TZP) through his home production venture. TZP successfully touched the topic of dyslexia while Pasanga 2(Haiku) takes up the case of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The one-line storyline is essentially the same with the situations handled differenly while borrowing some ideas. 

Story, Screenplay and Direction 

Pasanga 2 tries to drive home truck load of message to audience on wide range of topics related to kids -- ADHD, parenting, family values, urbanization and a long list of other topics. You may need a notebook to take notes of all the messages. Contrary to the title "Haiku" suggests, there is neither crispness nor subtlety. During the course of these 120+ minutes, the director fails to make audience empathize with the kids. The mischievous episodes are largely uninteresting. In fact, the kids' over-the-top activities do not evoke sympathy for the kids. It is not clear why the director required two parallel tracks of kids going through the same ADHD problems. This unnecessarily results in back-and-forth switching between the two kids.The movie also falls for the cliched notion of showing renowned successful people who were once scoffed at as part of the end credits.

 
Director

Pandiraj should be lauded for taking up a social cause with a message. The movie has a shot at winning a few national awards for its social theme. However, the movie lacks a good script to engage the audience. The script has no sign of spark and falters in execution. As a result, the end product turns out to be an amateurishly made docu-drama. 

Casting and Acting

Suriya and Amala Paul make a late entry right before the intermission. The second half shows how Suriya and Amala Paul reform the kids (and parents) and give pointers on how to nurture the kids in order to encourage their hidden potential. Suriya should be given partial credit for successfully elevating a mundane story. Suriya shows restraint from displaying any heroism. Suriya often overacts and appears artificial in a few scenes. Amala Paul as an ideal mother reminds us of house-wife models in TV commercials. Bindu Madhavi, Karthik Kumar, Vidya and other cast members act within the limits of what is offered by the script. Mundasupatti fame Munish Kanth provides good comic relief. However, his kleptomaniac track is a distraction and appear forced. 

Music and Technicalities

The songs are forgettable and the background tracks try to lend the necessary support to engage the audience. Balasubramaniem's camera work is adequate. The editing shows no ingenuity in translating the screenplay elements to something engaging.

Final Word : Despite all the noble intentions and message, Pasanga 2 appears kiddish.

Rating : 2.25 / 5 

Pasanga 2 - Haiku is currently rated 62% at MC, post your rating and review for the film