Cinema has evolved in the decade Cheran was away from directing. Bakasuran has a television-drama aesthetic—flat lighting, static shots, and a background score that tells you exactly when to feel sad or angry. For a film about the slick, fast-paced world of cybercrime, the visual language feels dated. Younger audiences, accustomed to the stylish thrillers of Lokesh Kanagaraj or Sudha Kongara, found the pacing sluggish.
The director’s signature long, quiet speeches return. There is a scene in the second half where Sathya Moorthy confronts a young cybercriminal not with a fist, but with a devastating monologue about the weight of a father’s name and the hollowness of anonymous cruelty. For a few minutes, the film soars on pure writing.
Cheran’s recent movie proves that his heart is in the right place, but his craft hasn’t adapted to the rhythm of the 2020s. He is still making middle-class television plays for a multiplex, OTT-native audience. Bakasuran is not a great film, but it is an important one. It will make you angry at the state of digital safety. It will make you nod your head at several profound observations about modern parenting and online shame. But it will also make you check your watch during the long courtroom sequences and the repetitive moral sermons. cheran recent movie
Unlike the vigilantes of mainstream Tamil cinema, Cheran’s hero does not use a gun or a machete. He uses a VPN, a voice modulator, and a deep understanding of human psychology. This intellectual heroism is rare and welcome. The Criticism: Where Bakasuran Stumbles Despite the noble intentions, Bakasuran received mixed reviews and underwhelming box office returns. Why?
For over two decades, Cheran has occupied a unique space in Tamil cinema. In an industry often dominated by mass heroism, larger-than-life action, and star-driven vehicles, Cheran has been the soft-spoken chronicler of the common man. His films— Autograph (2004), Thavamai Thavamirundhu (2005), Mayakannadi (2007)—didn't just tell stories; they held up a mirror to middle-class morality, family fractures, and societal hypocrisy. Cinema has evolved in the decade Cheran was
Cheran has always cast himself as the everyman. But in Bakasuran , at 53, playing a retired professor hunting 20-year-old hackers, the physicality strains credibility. While his performance is earnest, one can’t help but feel that a younger, more dynamic lead might have elevated the material. There is a growing sense that Cheran’s off-screen persona as a moral crusader is now overshadowing his on-screen character’s vulnerability. The Larger Question: Is Cheran Out of Sync with Modern Cinema? The reception to Bakasuran forces a difficult conversation. Cheran is not an irrelevant filmmaker; he is an uncomfortable one. He makes films that should be made. Cyberbullying, digital voyeurism, and the collapse of family structures due to technology are urgent topics.
Cheran plays Sathya Moorthy, a retired, principled college professor living a quiet life in a hillside town. When his niece becomes the victim of a deepfake pornography ring and the police prove helpless against anonymous digital predators, Sathya takes matters into his own hands. What follows is not a typical action thriller but a cat-and-mouse game rooted in psychological warfare, legal loopholes, and moral lectures. The film contrasts the vile anonymity of the internet with the grounded, physical world of family honor and personal responsibility. The Cheran Stamp: Strengths of the Film For long-time fans, Bakasuran feels both familiar and frustratingly different. Here’s what works: Younger audiences, accustomed to the stylish thrillers of
The greatest strength of Autograph or Thavamai Thavamirundhu was that the message was embedded in the drama. You cried for the characters first, and then understood the moral. In Bakasuran , the reverse happens. The second half devolves into an extended lecture. Characters stop behaving like real people and start behaving like audience surrogates waiting for the next sermon. The subtlety that defined Cheran’s earlier work is largely absent here.