Ratnam keeps the different strands moving at a fast pace so that you don’t notice the nearly three-hour running time.

There are so many factions jostling in this game of thrones that it becomes hard to keep track and consequently, to stay invested. But it is also impossible to look away.

Mani Ratnam has never made the same movie twice. Although all his movies are of a certain ‘kind’. Has there ever been a filmmaker who has built a body of work that is so large and so diverse by exploring just human relationships?

While the blood baths in the name of battle and the typical petty humor seem redundant and repetitive, Ratnam's epic covers up through his complex characters and their passionate determination.