Idli Kadai X Review: Netizens Praise Dhanush's Acting & Criticise His Direction, Film Receives Mixed Reactions

Dhanush's much-awaited directorial venture Idli Kadai, starring himself alongside Nithya Menen, released in theatres on Wednesday (October 1), and early morning shows have already set social media buzzing. Fans took to X (formerly known as Twitter) with their first impressions, and the reactions are a mix of excitement, praise, and disappointment.

On one hand, audiences are hailing the film's first half for its emotional depth and star performances. Many praised Dhanush's powerful acting, particularly in his scenes with veteran actor Rajkiran, while his chemistry with Nithya once again won appreciation. Another user called the interval sequence "fire," setting up anticipation for the second half.

But not all reviews were glowing. A section of viewers felt the screenplay was sluggish and sentiment-heavy, calling the film "boring" and even labeling it "the worst ever story." Some went as far as to say that only the songs worked, crediting composer GV Prakash with saving the film.

A user wrote, "#IdliKadaiReview – First Half: Family drama unfolds at a slow pace, with heavy sentiments especially in the Dhanush–Rajkiran scenes. Dhanush–Nithya Menon chemistry is engaging as always. As usual @dhanushkraja acting 👌🏻👌🏻but director Dhanush 🥲 Boring screenplay."

Another posted, "Worst ever Story & Acting 👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻 Poor performance from D & Poor Story Only song are Good in the FILM 👏🏻 GVP Try To Save idli kadai."

#IdliKadai First Half - Too Good❣️ - Started off with the Foreign modern backdrop & character arc of Dhanush & Arun Vijay 🌟 - Loved Nithya Menen's character & Fun moments surrounding the character😀 - Actor #Dhanush once again peaked with performance, especially Emotional scenes✨ - GV Prakash Montage songs & his BGM towards the Interval was superb🎵 - Interval Face off block was Fire & elevation point of film🔥 First Half is fully what we have seen from the trailer, Looking forward for Second half," read another review.

Idli Kadai is Dhanush's fourth directorial and 52nd film as an actor.

The film's music is composed by GV Prakash, while Kiran Koushik did the cinematography. Produced under Dhanush's home production banner Wunderbar Films and Aakash Baskaran's Dawn Pictures, Idli Kadai has been edited by Prasanna GK.

It stars Dhanush as Murugan, Nithya Menen as Kayal, Arun Vijay as Ashwin, Rajkiran as Sivanesan, Sathyaraj as Vishnu Varadhan and Shalini Pandey as Meera among others.