Kannathil Muthamittal is Simran's second consecutive movie where she has put in an excellent performance.This is definitely one of Mani Rathnam's better works. It could have been even better if certain cliched sequences had been eliminated. The movie undoubtedly belongs to Keerthana.Simran has also done a superb job.

The story is set against the background of the LTTE's war for a separate Eelam.

Thiruchelvan (Madhavan) and Indira (Simran) are a married couple with three children, of whom Amutha (Keerthana) is an adopted child. Her mom had abandoned her in an Indian Red Cross camp, to join the LTTE.

Amutha's parents tell her about her adoption when she is nine years old. On knowing this the kid becomes desperate to find her biological mom (Nandita Das) and so, her parents set out with her for the jungles of Mankoolam in Sri Lanka.

After some twists and turns, they find her but she is initially against seeing her kid.
But at the end, she convinces the kid to go back with the promise of joining her after the war. The story is simple but effectively told. It is patently obvious that Mani Rathnam's direction has undergone a tremendous improvement. He has spent a lot of time on Keerthana to extract the best out of her and the kid does justice.

One wishes that he had spent more time with Madhavan to extract a more convincing performance.

Hopefully, the days are not too far away when simran will win an award for her acting!!!
Nandita Das, Prakash Raj and Chakravarthy are adequate. As in any Mani Rathnam movie, the technical aspects are superb - slick editing, excellent camerawork and good visuals.
Rahman's music is pleasing but definitely not in the same category as his previous works for Mani Rathnam.