Mirugam is a strange movie. It appears to be an old-fashioned message movie since it presents a man with all vices and then shows us the suffering he goes through because of them. But the message it contains is really dated and since the film is set in the 80s, the environment it portrays doesn't really hold true today either. So it has to be seen as just a character-based movie about the life of an immoral man. And when seen like that, it's effectiveness is considerably weakened.

Mirugam is set in a small village in the 1980s. Ayyanaar(Aadhi), a man with pretty much no vice left untouched, earns his livelihood by renting his bull out so it can impregnate cows. He weds Azhagamma(Padmapriya) and just when it looks like she has changed him a little bit, he is hauled off to jail by the police for bashing up the relative of a well-connected man. Ayyanaar picks up more bad habits in prison but realizes soon after coming out that he has paid a high price for his sins.

Movies typically go out of their way to make their protagonists earn the viewers' sympathy. So director Samy has been pretty brave in presenting a protagonist like Aadhi. Unlike typical heroes who always have a heart of gold no matter how gruff their exterior, he is really evil. The director pulls no punches in painting him as the epitome of badness as he drinks, beats his mother and rapes other villagers' wives. But as was the case in Pacha Kudhira, there are quite a few times when the movie's perverse nature seems more highlighted than Aadhi's and some of the sadism, vulgarity and double entendre comments seem gratuitous.

Mirugam has a pretty simple story - bad guy is punished for his sins and repents. So it banks more on its characters and they are strong enough to hold our interest. Aadhi is pretty one-dimensional and so in his case our interest lies more in seeing how far he's gonna go. Padmapriya is more complicated as she struggles between the thaali sentiment and trying to correct Aadhi. The former does win since she stays with him inspite of all the ill-treatment but there are a few occasions where she stands up for herself. Characters like Aadhi's mom and the friend who resolutely stands by him in both good and bad times are also nicely shaped.

Ofcourse the downside of having a character as evil as Aadhi is clear when he starts repenting for his sins. By then he has earned our hatred and repulsion. So we simply feel that he deserves all that he's getting and never feel sorry for him though he does suffer a lot. It also doesn't help that the movie becomes very predictable and cliched as, for instance, Aadhi works hard to do the same thing for the villagers that he had so rudely denied before. The director suddenly tries to make the villagers the bad guys but it doesn't work.

With his piercing eyes and tall physique, Aadhi fits the role very well. He is rough and gruff initially and suitably mellow once he starts repenting. Padmapriya once again gets a role where she proves her acting chops. Whether fighting with him or standing up for him, she is impressive and is able to bring out the nuances of the complicated character. The actress playing Aadhi's mom earns our sympathy easily and Ganja Karuppu gets a chance to act too in addition to making us laugh as he compares himself to Aadhi's bull.