India, June 6 -- There was a time when Mani Ratnam defined the cultural zeitgeist of Tamil cinema - maybe even south Indian cinema at large. Even in an age of memes and GIFs, he remains relevant when shots of his old films are used in lieu of conversations. I mean, the image of Surya (Rajinikanth) looking heartbroken as the sun sets and his lover Subbulaxmi (Sobhana) walks away from him or the look Karthik (Madhavan) gives Shakthi (Shalini Ajith Kumar) as he locks eyes with her from a passing train are seared into any cine lover's mind.

Which is why it's even more heartbreaking for fans when a filmmaker like Mani's craft is called into question. After a day of analysing the seemingly many ways in which his latest release, Thug Life, fail...