After back-to-back 100-crore hits with Doctor and Don, Sivakarthikeyan’s 2022 Deepavali release, Prince met with harsh assessments from critics and a modest Rs 40 crores in its first week on the international circuit. The film stars Sathyaraj in an important role and introduces to the Tamil screen Ukrainian actress Maria Ryaboshapka in the female lead. Others in the cast are Premgi Amaran, Sathish Krishnan, Subbu Panchu and Anandraj.
The first impression on seeing Prince is that the critics have been unfairly harsh on the film. The film is a light-hearted comedy entertainer that clearly does not even pretend to be serious about anything, providing pure escapist comedy fare.
School teacher Anbarasan – or Anbu – played by Sivakarthikeyan is forced to make a written promise to his father – played by Sathyaraj – that he would not marry someone of the same caste or religion. When Anbu then meets Jessica, a British girl residing in India, it is love at first sight but Anbu did not count on the many challenges he would have to face.
Writer and director Anudeep KV has a quirky sense of humour that has some elements of the Crazy Mohan brand of humour embedded in brilliant satire and wit. It is possible that some of the wit could have escaped some of the critics because the quality and frequency of the comedy keeps one engaged from beginning to end.
Sivakarthikeyan has carried the bulk of the film on his shoulders with his brilliant comedic timing and facial expressions. Providing delightful support is Sathyaraj in a role that reminds one of his ease in comedy roles. Maria Ryaboshapka makes an impressive debut with expressive acting and great on-screen chemistry with Sivakarthikeyan.
Premgi Amaren is in a role that is somewhat different from others he has played. Suri seems to have been under-utilised in his cameo while Anandraj is a sheer delight to watch.
Cinematographer Manoj Parmahamsa has created a unique palette of colours in this film but does not experiment enough with the lighting.
Thaman S has a peppy soundtrack with an equally impressive background score.
Prince remains a light-hearted film right until the final credits roll and because it clearly does not intend to be serious, the film is even more palatable. It’s a different brand of humour from Doctor, so the two films should not be compared. However, one thing is certain, Prince provides solid entertainment for the whole family.
Prince scores 8 points out of 10.