Vishnu (Rahul Ravindran) falls in love with Ganga (Seerat Kapoor) but their love isn't approved by Vishnu's childhood friend Tiger (Sundeep Kishan). Tiger misunderstands Ganga and out of love for his friend tries to convince Vishnu that she isn't right for him and as a result Vishnu chooses to break his friendship with Tiger. Years pass by and over a course of unexpected events, Vishnu and Ganga land in serious trouble. How did Tiger know this and how far did he go for his friend and his friend's love forms the crux of the story.
Performances:
Sundeep Kishan: This emerging star has indeed a bold move by choosing a story of this sort. He was smart and has got his act right except for his Godavari accent. Had the dialogues been more powerful, Tiger would have roared loud.
Rahul Ravindran: This chocolate boy has given his best to what is expected from him. However, his diction still misses the Telugu native dialogue delivery but nevermind... he is almost there!
Seerat Kapoor: This bubbly actress got a meaty role to play and she gives her best.
Thagubothu Ramesh, Swami Ra Ra Satya, Praveen & the Jabardasth comedians give the essential comedy relief.
This time it is the baddies gang from the North that'll do the screaming around and they did a decent job though.
Direction:
Anand, the much anticipated protégé of AR Murugadoss deserves a tap for bringing a story that is marginally different from the routine stuff we get to see in Telugu cinema. Glad for the fact that the hero isn't the usual super intelligent man on the planet who fools around the villain gang. And if you are expecting a heroine, some serious romance, duets and all that - sorry Tiger is not our routine Telugu hero. Of course, the rest is all same to same..uh!
Now coming to serious business, Tiger is about two thick childhood friends and a serious love story set upon an backdrop of honor killings. Though the storyline and characterization look alluring, with its share of loop holes in the narrative, the film on a whole appeared to be a wasted opportunity.
The first half was engaging enough with an intriguing start and a good blend of love, friendship and comedy. The pre-interval episode was predictable yet buys your attention. However, the second half did not get a deserving treatment and hence fails to give you that emotional high that it promises.
In the course of adapting the story to a Telugu nativity, the narration somehow lacked the smart mix of engaging entertainment through out the film. Of course, the intense performances of the lead actors and few gags here and there manage to get a positive talk over the first half but with a spineless and preachy second half, the film ends on a sour note & a feeling "Gosh! Tiger could have been better"
Merits:
- Good storyline.
- Performances of Sundeep Kishan, Rahul Ravindran & Seerat Kapoor.
- Engaging first half.
- Decent music and good background score.
De-merits:
- The second half is preachy, predictable and lack lustre.
- Dialogues could have been better.
Music:
Thaman's music was groovy but it is his background score that scores brownie points this time. Especially the Tiger title score has contributed the most to elevate the heroism in the film.
Others:
Cinematography by Chota K Naidu was top-notch. Rakul Preet's flashy appearance in the film evoked great response from the crowd.
Verdict:
Tiger is just not a regular formulaic commercial film. But with its share of merits and demerits, Tiger ends up to be just a one-time watch that will not kill your time - nothing more than that!