The maelstrom caused by the intersection of folk tradition with modern crime continues to rage in the new chapter of the Tamil series Suzhal: The Vortex (2022). In its first season, the Prime Video show created and written by Pushkar-Gayatri superbly mapped a murder investigation onto a festival dedicated to a powerful goddess.
Season one ended with Nandini (Aishwarya Rajesh) killing her sexual abuser with her policeman friend Sakkarai’s service weapon. In the new season, Nandini is in prison, while Sakkarai (Kathir) stands suspended for allowing his gun to be misused.
The trial against Nandini takes place in the fictional coastal town Kaalipattanam. The respected lawyer Chellappa (Lal) successfully makes the case for Nandini’s release. Before the order can be carried out, Chellappa is found dead, with the young woman Muthu (Gouri Kishan) seemingly responsible.
Seven other women turn themselves in for the murder. It was I who killed Chellappa, each of them asserts.
Sakkarai, who is following Nandini’s trial, teams up with local police inspector Moorthy (Sarvanan) to crack a case that appears to be a head-scratcher. Sakkarai is plagued by doubts over Lal’s uprightness as well as Moorthy’s intransigence.
Meanwhile in prison, Nandini grapples with the trauma of her past actions, getting some succour from the other inmates, especially the trans-woman Vimala (Anjali Ameer) and the prison’s de facto boss Saroja (Arshya Lakshman).
Written once again by Pushkar-Gayatri and directed by Bramma and Sarjun KM, season two follows the same format as its predecessor. Links are drawn between the Ashtakaali festival being held in Kaalipattanam, Chellappa’s death, the back stories of the eight women and sub-plots involving other dubious characters. The strand related to the octet gets considerable play, while also giving season two its moral purpose.
This time round, Suzhal doesn’t fall into place as satisfactorily or compellingly. While the scenes revolving around the festival and the jail bustle with colour and movement, Sakkarai’s quest to find Chellappa’s killer is a slog.
The previous edition beautifully used the metaphor of buried secrets rising unbidden to the surface. In the new season, the sea that surrounds Kaalipattanam is offered as a matching symbol, but it doesn’t have the same potency. The eight-episode show runs on for far too in trying to justify an investigation that lacks suspense and rigour.
The movements of the eight women in prison, as well as Nandini’s ability to be everywhere, beggar belief. Sakkarai’s investigation is more satisfying, revealing unknown aspects of Chellappa’s personality as well as Kaalipattanam’s own secrets.
Kathir and Aishwarya Rajesh wonderfully inhabit their characters once again. The new season’s surprise is Sarvanan, who superbly portrays the many-sided Moorthy.
Nobody is who he, she or they claim to be – a concept that worked so well for the first season gets an unwieldy follow-up. The vortex threatens to spin out of control ever so often, undermining the strenuous efforts of the show’s cast and crew.
Also read:
‘Suzhal – The Vortex’ review: A nail-biting thriller about secrets and deception
‘Suzhal: The Vortex’ 2 preview: A micro-festival with a larger message about the ‘feminine divine’
