Adarsh T
Bison Kaalamaadan Movie Review: Mari Selvaraj’s film is imperfect but powerful. A Dialogue-Heavy Sports Drama With Exuberant World-Building. Works to an extent. Dhruv Vikram breathes fire in Mari Selvaraj’s extraordinary film. Mari Selvaraj Film Is Vibrant, Vivid, Uncluttered.
Bison Kaalamaadan Movie Synopsis: There's only one thing that Kittan really loves and that's kabbadi. He navigates innumerable hurdles while following his passion, both personally and professionally.
Bison Kaalamaadan Movie Review: Bison Kaalamaadan is the latest addition to the Mari Selvaraj Cinematic Universe. Even though the director's films don't follow a single narrative, they are, more or less, connected by an emotional and ideological thread. First things first, Bison is not among its director's finest works. But the film, based on the life of kabaddi player Manathi Ganesan, is still effective and bears the signature stamp of its accomplished creator.
The filmmaker’s interest in using animal metaphors continues with this film as well. Of course, the title in itself is Bison. But beyond that, you see the ‘Bison’ truly come alive in the body language of Kittan (Dhruv Vikram) as he engages in a fight or plays a crucial kabaddi match.
The kabaddi matches throughout the film are grippingly and cinematically executed very well. Cinematographer Ezhil Arasu K captures the rustic intensity of the protagonist's tumultuous life. Nivas K Prasanna’s music doesn't try to standout. Instead, it seamlessly blends into the film's world. With a runtime of nearly three hours, Bison is super long and has a plethora of characters. Few of the characters who are introduced in the latter part of the film don't evoke the same emotion in us as the characters who we are introduced to earlier.
Bison isn’t just about Kittan’s journey. It's also about his relationship with his father (played by a moving Pasupathy). Their bond is the soul of the film. Madankumar Dakshinamoorthy deserves a special shoutout. He plays a teacher, who is a mentor figure to Kittan. Their teacher-student bond is endearing, even if it's overlooked in the latter part of the film.
Ameer and Lal’s casting proves how a good actor can elevate a role with their presence. Rajisha Vijayan and Anupama are mostly bystanders to what's happening but they’re good in their parts. The only hiccup comes with Rajisha’s dubbing. Choosing to go for a cookie-cutter dubbing voice for Rajisha definitely took away from the earthy tone of the film. Dhruv Vikram’s physical transformation for the film deserves applause and so does his acting. But, it has to be said that the actor fares way better when he has to let out intensity or aggression rather than moments of emotional outburst.
The film also does a good job transitioning from black and white to colour and from past to present. It's hard not to root for the film's protagonist considering the innumerable odds stacked against him. But, at the same time, Bison as well as Kittan feel emotionally distant. At several instances in the film, you don’t quite get a grasp of what’s going on in Kittan's mind or how he’s processing the incidents around him. You see his physical/external reaction but don't get a sense of his inner emotion.
With that said, Bison, despite its flaws, is meaningful, ambitious and gripping.
Verdict : Hit.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
11/30/25
Full Review
Lucky01
I have decent expectations for the Bison movie.
Dhruv Vikram & Pasupathy's performances are excellent, and they performed like a real father and son, which gave you a strong emotional connection for the movie.
Remaining cast Anupama Parameswaran, Rajisha Vijayan, Lal, Ameer, and the other cast members did a very good job, and all lived in their roles very well.
Music composer Nivas K. Prasanna's songs and score are simply superb & enhance every scene.
Cinematography by Ezhil Arasu K frames and visuals captures very well, and it is good.
Mari Selvaraj's writing and direction are superb; this is my first film of Mari Selvaraj, and I loved it.
While watching Dhruv Vikram in a few scenes, he reminds me of Chiyaan Vikram.
Good production & technical values.
The Bison movie is in slow pace.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
11/24/25
Full Review
Naren S
Bison: Kaalamaadan is a powerful return to form—a sports-drama that uses the backdrop of kabaddi not just as show-game, but as a metaphor for struggle, survival and the raw fight for dignity.Dhruv Vikram's finest work till date.Pasupathy is a revelation and deserves a National Award for his performance.
Technically, the film shines: cinematographer Ezhil Arasu K captures the landscape of the Thoothukudi belt with both beauty and grit, while music composer Nivas K. Prasanna gave a banger of an album.
Bison- Kaalamaadan stakes claim as one of Mari Selvaraj's finest works till date at par with Pariyerum Perumal.
Rating: 4.5/5
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
10/20/25
Full Review
A K
This goes into my list of the greatest films I have watched in my life, there a lot of things to specifically mention and say in this movie, each and every scene was goated, Mari Selvaraj you are a gem to this Kollywood fim industry, nobody has the guts to do movies based on villagers and caste films but this man has done it again and again, whatever people may say about this movie this is the best film you have done in your career, and Dhruv my god this guy's acting was out of this world bro you have a very great potential in acting top notch, Mari Selvaraj has given 2 best beautiful messages in this movie one is that you can't judge a person without knowing their perspective which we can see clearly in the Lal's and ameers character, it was so fascinating to see how Mari handled both the characters perfectly just wow, AND ONE MORE WHICH AMAZED ME IN THIS MOVIE WAS THAT WHERVER YOU ARE, WHOEVER YOU MAY BE, IF YOU HAVE THE DETERMINATION TO GET SOMETHING AND IF YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO IT YOU WILL GET IT. This is clearly evident from dhruvs character people said he begged people and got place in the teams he played but he showed them that only by his talent he reached the top and the songs were too good hats off to the composer, If I have to talk about this film I can pick up each and every scene and talk about the fantastic work by the director and the actors. One thing which gave me a little disappointed was showing that he went into the Indian team at the start of the movie itself, the director could have not shown it so that the people watching it will be in doubt that will he go or not, because in someplaces in the film as the director showed that he is going to go to the Indian team it made me feel like he is anyways going to be alive and going to go to the Indian team so.. and this is just a small thing overall this movie was the best movie by Mari Selvaraj bro you are the best, Please Don't miss this in theatre just blindly book the tickets and feel the goosebumps in every scene of this movie.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
10/19/25
Full Review
Stephen C
Success in 2.5 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dubbed and subtitled in worldwide studios!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
10/17/25
Full Review
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