By Vivek Ramz

Handmade Films' Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya (KLTA) is a complete entertainer from start to finish. The interesting title has been lifted from the popular Cadburys ad and suits the film perfectly. The film generated lot of buzz as Santhanam, the most wanted comedian in Tamil industry, has produced a film for the first time. The film is inspired by K Bhagyaraj's cult comedy film 'Indru Poi Naalai Vaa'. 'Power Star' Dr Srinivasan, who has so far identified himself as serious actor is also doing a full fledged comedy role in this movie.

What's it about?
The plot is simple. As the title indicates, the story is about three friends wooing a 'laddu' girl. Sethu, who plays an up and coming actor (much like his situation in real life), Kaalkattu Kaliyaperumal aka KK (Santhanam) and Power (Srinivasan) are best friends and their only job is to have fun by chasing girls. Sowmiya (Vishakha) enters their life by moving into the neighborhood and all three fall for her. They make a deal that if one of them wins her heart, then the other two should take a step back. Sethu tries to impress her by helping her aunty (Kovai Sarala) and brother, KK learns singing from her uncle (VTV Ganesh) and Power attends dance classes held by her dad. Who will win her heart? That's anyone's guess.

Director K.S.Manikandan along with Santhanam deserve all the accolades they can get. Even though it's a tried and tested script, they rework it well to suit the modern day audience's taste. Their only aim is to make people enjoy the film to fullest extent and there is never a dull moment in this two and half hour long movie. The casting is perfect. Be it Power star for the role of the 'Bandha' guy, or VTV Ganesh as the carnatic singer, Manikandan has made the right choices.

Santhanam, as usual, rocked with one-liners in his typical style. He makes fun of 'Power star' and their scenes together are enjoyable. Srinivasan, on the other hand, is the main pillar of success of this film. He has waited for a long time for an opportunity like this and has given it his all. His funny expressions and body language is a treat to watch on screen. He has proved that he is here to stay, if given right kind of roles. Newcomer Sethu is not bad and a barring few scenes, he's scored big.

Vishakha is beautiful and suits the role of 'laddu'. The story revolves around her and she has performed well, doing a good job in the song sequences too. The huge supporting cast, that includes the likes of VTV Ganesh, Kovai Sarala, Devadarshini, Raja, and Ganeshkar, keeps the audience in splits throughout. Special cameos by director Gautham Menon & actor Simbu also help the movie end in a right note.

Songs by Thaman are refreshing and in completely sync with the theme of the film. His background score is also used to good effect. The movie looks youthful and colourful, thanks to cinematographer Balasubramaniem. His camera work is crystal clear.

Overall, 'Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya' is superb fun with the cast and crew of the film getting everything right. The only minus point may be that there are one too many songs in the first half.

What to do?
KLTA is a perfect Pongal treat for the family thanks to its clean humour. Go watch it and have a blast!

in.com rating: 3.5/5