Tamil cinema steretypes its actors very easily and so its admirable that Pasupathy, who debuted as a villain in Virumaandi, graduated to becoming a character actor in movies like Veyyil and Kuselan and has now progressed to become a hero. But unlike the movie he picked for getting introduced as a villain, his vehicle for being promoted to a hero seems like a bad choice. The character he dons plays to his strengths but the movie is so crass that some of the distaste it evokes rubs off on him too.

Vedigundu Murugesan(Pasupathy) delivers drinking water to the local businesses. He gets into trouble frequently for small-time crimes but is good-hearted and helpful, as is proved by his taking care of Ponni, a girl who is mentally retarded. It is this good-natured side that makes Nachiya(Jyothirmayi), a policewoman, fall for him. Murugesan is shattered when Ponni is raped one night and wants to punish whoever is responsible for it.

Vedigundu Murugesan opens like a comedy. While Pasupathy's situation isn't pretty, what with his small, unprofitable business and the woman in his care, his attitude, his comments and his acts(like the 'kidnapping' of a bus) give the proceedings a light-hearted feel. A serious incident like him having a seizure while being handcuffed to a pole is still jarring but the routine of his misdemeanors and the light punishments(the judge views him leniently because she knows his character) doesn't feel too serious.

But the director seems convinced that he should keep things light even when the plot turns serious. And that turns out to be a problem. Ponni getting raped and the subsequent developments cannot be taken lightly but the movie doesn't treat them with the solemnity they deserve. So in one scene we are expected to sympathize with her plight and in the next, we are expected to laugh as Pasupathy is worried about his fate at the hands of the bad guy. This combination disallows emotional investment in the fate of the characters and so the emotions seem fake and crass while the comedy doesn't work either since it seems distasteful.

While Pasupathy's character and Vadivelu's comedy track are more routine, one thing that does work in the film is the portrayal of the bad guys. They are an affectionate family and the dynamics here(like the things they do the first time the younger brother goes out for a job) and the interplay between the brother and his henchmen are funny because they offer something fresh and unique. Ofcourse, the brother's act is really reprehensible and so it is impossible to see any humor in the villains' acts after that. So the humor is diluted even in potentially funny situations when it is anything related to them, like the dream sequence with an auction among killers or the comedy segment where Pasupathy uses Vadivelu to get out of trouble.

Pasupathy shows that he can do comedy also. But his dialog delivery gets on our nerves, especially during those long, fast dialogs. Jyothirmayi overacts right from the first scene and reminds us of Asin in a few places. Vadivelu, showing up after what seems like a long break, hasn't really worked on changing anything during the gap. His track has a few laughs, especially during his encounters with the money-lender, but has an equal of misses.