Kambi Katna Kathai Movie Review: Con job cinema that mostly cons itself

Synopsis

: A smooth-talking conman digs up a valuable diamond only to find his hiding spot transformed into a temple, forcing him to pose as a godman to retrieve his prize.Kambi Katna Kathai Movie Review: When your buried treasure becomes a place of worship, the logical next step is obviously to become a fake guru. Kambi Katna Kathai operates on this brand of logic-optional comedy, where Arivu (Natrajan Subramanian), a fast-talking scamster, steals the precious Kohinoor diamond and buries it in an empty field. Six months later, post-jail stint, he discovers his stash spot is now the Thoongum Thuravi temple. His solution? Transform into Arivanandha, a Himalayan godman, complete with devoted disciples recruited from local beggars.The setup has potential. Arivu’s rapid-fire con artistry, his double-dealing with corrupt MLA (Muthuramanan) and his aide Vetri (Mukesh Ravi), and the scramble to locate the missing diamond amid ashram politics creates a serviceable heist framework. Natrajan sells the fake confidence well, delivering his torrents of dialogue with convincing sleaze. The film truly felt alive when he reached his peak of sleaziness, as he wormed out of situations and became bolder in his scams. The comedic diversions just felt uninspired. Seeing a white foreign girl he’s tussling with during a robbery and then being all lovey-dovey with her as she tries to get tough with him? Does anyone find that funny?At two hours nineteen minutes, the film drags considerably, padding scenes with unnecessary romantic subplots involving Vetri and the MLA’s daughter Yazhini (Aarthi Shaalini), plus an out-of-work actress Sangamithra seeking refuge at the ashram. The comedy remains stubbornly hit-or-miss. Some bits land through sheer audacity, but most default to tired tropes of men fawning over women or loud, predictable gags. TSR, in particular, feels distractingly over-the-top. Two songs appear in the first half for no discernible reason other than obligation.Singam Puli’s jokes are funny at times, but he can be a bit much. Mukesh Ravi blends into the ensemble with little trouble. Kambi Katna Kathai coasts on familiar Tamil comedy territory without offering fresh angles, feeling somewhat like a Sundar C production stripped of glamour and polish. It avoids being outright cringeworthy, which counts for something, but rarely rises above passable weekend filler. For a film about digging up treasure, it never strikes gold.Written By:Abhinav Subramanian