For a directorial debut, Feroz's 'Pandigai' packs a few punches (literally!). There's a not-much-explored-into storyline of betting and an illegal fight-club; the absorbing build-up on how a house-keeping employee (the protagonist, played by Kreshna) gets embroiled in it. While a few can't-be-left-out factors such as a trashy romance (that doesn't add anything but dryness to an otherwise enjoyable flick) and the inclusion of another (needless) must-have (pun?) in Tamil cinema these days - the item number.

Moving on the good things. Kreshna has handled his character of a hotel employee with money-needs quite decisively. He is ably supported by a horde of supporting artists as well (naming will take too long). Another impressive aspect to note is the sudden change in tone/genre post interval. A movie about underground fighting quickly turns into a heist thriller. To the credit of Feroz, the heist scenes although not the most crackling in terms of technique, manage to raise the suspense levels quite a bit.

'Pandigai' is a movie where almost every character has a well- defined arc attached to them (including the ones that show up quite late, such as the killer-twins) and make their presence felt. If only some of those commercial-cinema-compromises weren't deemed necessary, 'Pandigai' would have emerged a cinematic triumph. Even the (few) bits of humor are mostly situational and add to the overall funkiness. (Hint: You can simply fast-forward the item number and romantic segments and not miss a damn thing!)

Verdict: Definitely worth spending an evening on.