Rocketry The Nambi Effect Effect

#RocketryTheNambiEffect exceptionally well made bio pic. Its a movie of its own kind and honestly speaking I have never seen such a brilliant Indian film(Long review ahead, only a long review will give a sense of satisfaction to me)

The first half has lot of physics jargons and details about scientific experiments. The explanation for solid fuel, liquid fuel, cryogenic engines, stability margin etc are damn brilliant. I appreciate the actor and director Madhavan for his uncompromising making. There were no cinematic liberties too

Rocketry clicks big time with average cinema lovers because of the witty dialogues and engaging screenplay. For instance, while commenting about an engine, Jagan says, "enna Jayamalini iduppoda bayangaramaa aadudhu"...one need not understand liquid fuel or stability margin, but they can easily understand that there's something wrong with the engine and it shakes unusually...Such witty dialogues are there throughout the film...

The movie deals with science jargons yet from a layman point of view it still creates an impact. Emotional scenes with Unni, the launching of Vikas Engine etc works big time with the audience(I watched in a multiplex theatre, it should work with B and C centre audiences too as none needs to know rocket science to understand emotions and achievements)

Mr.Nambi Narayanan got an offer from NASA and the package was much bigger than what ISRO could offer him, yet he rejected it and joined ISRO. But for Mr.Nambi, ISRO might have never seen so much of development. But for his Vikas Engine, Mars mission itself might not have happened and we would have been still dependent on Europe and US for technology. He brought so many things to India. For all his achievements and contributions, he was rewarded with traitor tag and he was given 3rd degree treatment, all this for no mistake of him

It is a shame that we still could not punish the morons who conspired and treated Mr.Nambi like this. When the CBI officer questions about why none from ISRO came out in support of Mr.Nambi, he says, "scientists are strange people sir, ஒரு ராக்கெட் கவுந்துட்டா எப்படி react பண்ணனம்னு தெரிஞ்சவங்களுக்கு, ஒரு மனுஷன் கவுந்துட்டா எப்படி react பண்ணனம்னு தெரியல(they know how to react when a rocket fails, unfortunately they don't know how to react if their man fails)". That dialogue is a tight slap to everyone who let Mr.Nambi down

In the climax scene, the real Nambi Narayanan sir appears and says he will not stop fighting untiil the real culprits are exposed. The clipping of Mr.Nambi Narayanan getting Padma Bhushan award from the President of India with our Prime minister Narendra Modi ji congratulating the scientists involved in Mars mission and clapping when Mr.Nambi gets the Padma award...hope Mr.Nambi gets Bharat Ratna soon...

Madhavan shows how a bio pic should be made actually. While testing Vikas Engine he is seen with kumkumam on his forehead. He did not manipulate the facts, did not show Mr.Nambi as a victim by accusing any particular caste or religion, did not shy away from showing Mr.Nambi as a believer. In short, for the sake of commercial success, he did not manipulate facts. Hats off Madhavan sir, this is the kind of cinema that will take Tamil cinema to greater heights. Hope people who ruined the biopic of Captain Gopinath understands how a biopic should be made and how the real life incidents should be presented in the movie

This 2 hr 40 min biopic of a great scientist has no dull moments at all. If you are a fan of good cinema, Rocketry The Nambi Effect is a must watch

Vinodhaya Sitham - Review

 

#VinodhayaSitham is a beautiful fantasy drama which captures the human emotions well... Gone are the days our Tamil cinema directors needed a hero with a fan following and mandatory songs and preachy punchlines. Guess what, this movie is directed by Samuthrakani, who has earned an image for being preachy in movies. He has acted in an important role in Vinodhaya Sitham and he is very convincing

Before going further, I came to know that Vinodhaya Sitham is a stage play of Dummies drama team. I had the privilege of watching their drama Valai 3 years back and also met Mr.Sreevathson. I introduced myself as a Sujatha fan and he responded that "we are Sujatha fans". 

I am standing right next to Sreevathson sir(blue shirt)

It was such a pleasure meeting him and I have written about it in this same blog. (http://dream---life.blogspot.com/2018/08/valai-technological-web.html?m=1)

It's not at all surprising to see Vinodhaya Sitham coming out as a beautiful feel good film. Opening credits say "story" by Mr.Sreevathson and he also has worked on dialogues. Appreciate director Mr.Samuthrakani for working with him.

Vinodhaya Sitham is all about Parasuraman, an arrogant man who considers himself as Mr.Perfect and is so proud of his achievement. In fact he is too egoistic, for him only his opinions matters and he is the only knowledgeable person. Time proves him wrong. Whatever he saw isn't the complete picture. Time shows him the real picture and what happens to Parasuraman is what Vinodhaya Sitham is all about.

Thambhi Ramaiya as Parasuraman is brilliant while Samuthrakani as time has done exceptionally well too. The entire supporting cast is too good that the movie looks realistic.

The main concept of the movie is that none is dependent on others. Whatever has to happen will happen. It's all decided and you can call this God or fate or time or any other power, but the fact is there's a force which is powerful than us and controls us. 

One may argue against this concept and claim if everything is decided by a force what's the point of taking any efforts and may claim this is demotivating. Well it's not. The movie says you will get what you deserve. You can understand this if you observe the interview and promotion scenes. 

Also the movie says, we human beings are blessed with humanity and it's completely our choice to be humane and that's the only thing we are blessed with. It's the choice of individual to spread humanity by being kind, polite, helpful, disciplined and respectful towards others. 

Not everyone can get a second chance to correct their mistakes. Vinodhaya Sitham is a disturbing movie which makes us feel for our mistakes and compels us at least to think that we should be responsible going forward.

Hats off director Samuthrakani for coming out of your cliche porali stuff and directing a beautiful fantasy film. Not just direction, even as an actor Samuthrakani is different in this movie. He doesn't preach humanity and love with 10 page dialogues or proverbs or quotes. His expressions are sharp enough to disturb you.

I have always felt novels and stage dramas can be made as full length feature films, instead of taking Hollywood movies as an inspiration. Samuthrakani has done it. He has chosen the right path, all the best Samuthrakani 😊

The movie ends with a beautiful dialogue 

"சொர்க்கத்தில ஜாதி, மதம், மொழி இதெல்லாம் கிடையாது"

"அப்போ நரகத்தில...?"

"அங்க இருந்து தான உங்களை கூட்டிட்டு போறேன்..."

Vinodhaya Sitham is a must watch meaningful feel good film 😊😊

Rudra Thandavam Review

 

#Rudhrathandavam is a well made commercial film... went to theatre after a very long time 😀... The propaganda that it's a casteist film or against Christianity is a good publicity for the movie... actually it is not against any community...it deals more with drug peddling and media's false propaganda, director Mohan G has maintained a right balance in exposing the anti social elements and an engaging screenplay... He has taken enough care to see that it doesn't become a documentary...

Actor Richard looks convincing as Inspector Rudra Prabhakaran...the role doesn't demand an Oscar winning performance, it needs a hero with well built physique, who can act little bit... Richard suits perfectly... hope atleast Rudra Thandavam gives him a new lease of life... Heroine Dharsha Gupta does her job, she comes only in 5-6 scenes and she did what was expected out of her...

Gautham Menon rocks as Vathapi...his sarcastic dialogues like '25 varusham service aam, kudukka chain kooda illaye' etc gets very good reception from audience... Gautam Menon should continue as an actor too... just loved his performance...

The movie mainly speaks about how the PCR act is misused...it takes guys to use the term Crypto Christians in Tamil cinema...hats off Mohan G...I have written this so many times in facebook and my blog - once you convert your religion, you cannot avail the benefits under SC category... it's really sad to see censor muting the dialogue that 'if you can't use your caste after converting, who will convert'... that's what the movie is all about

Director hits sixer by casting Radharavi as lawyer Indeasena...his dialogues like 'Ambedkar is not a leader for one particular community, he is a national leader...he should be celebrated on par with Mahatma Gandhi',' i feel proud to belong to 'pattiyal community(SC)'...

Music director Jubin's bgm is perfect, songs(I think just 2 songs), could have been bit better... very happy to see Vajpayee's photo in court... Malavika Avinash comes looks dignified as a judge...

More than all these points, I appreciate the director for exposing the media's vulture like behaviour... you can relate Puthuyathalaimurai, Sun tv , b grade websites like the news minute, to the scenes shown in the movie...movie explains how these so called youtubers twist the incidents and brings in casteist angle out of nowhere, how protests are stages etc...no wonder these channels are screaming 😀

There's a character named Anwar bhai, he is a honest NCB(Narcotics Control Bureau) official...Joseph(Thambhi Ramaiya) is such an honest man, who almost dies being honest and loyal... Indeasena (Radharavi) is a brilliant lawyer, who says how casteism can divide the people...Jayam S K Gopi as a honest DC...Deepa as Maran's mother(SC) with a brilliant emotional performance in the climax expresses concerns about how drugs has ruined the next generation...

If you observe all the characters above, they all are shown as people from the same communities which the vulture media claims has been projected in bad light...yet this movie is communal according to our press(I don't want to complete that word, then our feminists will abuse me)...

With absolutely no star value(except Gautam Menon), this director is able to create a curiosity and deliver commercial hits without compromising on his ideology... my respect for this man has increased...

Only Mohan G has the guts to expose that politician who comes in blue shirt with cooling glass 😀 

Rudra Thandavam - an enjoyable dance of the 'right', probably the first time in the history of Tamil cinema... you can watch it with your family in theatres with all precautions...

Bharat Ane Nenu

Bharat Ane Nenu is good. It starts with an usual intro song, but soon after the song, the actual story begins. It's an out and out political movie with commercial elements. I think after a very long time, a good movie for Mahesh Babu. He has boldly acted as Chief Minister, something which many mass heroes would not do.

There are some scenes which shows how irresponsible our society is, especially the traffic violations. You just have to clap for those scenes. When Mahesh Babu imposes heavy fine for traffic violations(for ex : Rs.30,000 fine for driving in wrong side). Actually, there was good response in theater. Not sure, those who clapped for the scene, would welcome the same rules if imposed in reality.

It's refreshing to see a CM, while going to assembly, seeing a girl in bus stand, calling her for a coffee, falling in love with her. Don't ask, even in a political movie, should it be like this? Those scenes were enjoyable. There is also a scene about private schools swindling money. His own party seniors betray him on a CB-CID inquiry. Those scenes were good.

The first half, had heroism, within a story. It had an interesting interval block too. The second half was totally different. Infact we can say the first half half was in one genre and the second half is in a different genre. The pre-interval scenes were like how a young man, who returns from London, due to his father's death, changes the system. But before the hero could change the system completely, the director has changed his mind it seems.

Take diversion from changing the system, its time to unleash the hero Mahesh Babu. He challenges the villains, fights all alone, beats a bunch of rowdies, dances with heroine etc. I would not say it wasn't good. Those scenes worked out too. mainly because of Mahesh Babu's charisma and electrifying screenpresence and terrific BGM by DSP. Without DSP, I doubt, the impact would have been same.

The movie doesn't spare media too. Of course, a political drama would be incomplete without importance to media. In this movie, media is so powerful that it is able to bring some 'change'(dont want to reveal). Whereas, in real life, I doubt if they would be able to do that to a CM. I have heard about one CM, who had a daughter and her mother was not his wife. When a journalist reported this, a defamation suit was filed against him and he was arrested. Later, that CM confessed it in his own style, saying that the woman was not his wife only his daughter's mother. Media used to wonder at his oratorial skills for comments as mentioned above...It has been almost 40 years, still the incident is in news. Anyway that's a different story.

Had only a thoughtful first half was backed by a similar second half, Bharat Ane Nenu might have ended up as an epic. Koratala Siva could have thought about it. Anyway, the movie is good and it will be a commercial blockbuster too

Rajni and politics

Rajni is again in the news, the reason is same, the age-old-political-entry stunt.. There memes doing rounds against Rajni thinking that he is a RSS man,BJP fellow etc.Well I don't agree with the statement that actors should not join politics. India is a democratic country and anyone can join politics. But, why am I criticizing or mocking Rajni?

He has been making political statements since 90s and some of them were hilarious. In 90s, 'Thamizh Naattil vedigundu kalaachaaram paravi vittadhu, Jayalalithaa aatchiku vandhaal Thamizh Naattai Aandavanaala kooda kaappatha mudiyadhu' etc.. Well, there is nothing wrong in making political statements too. Now we have twitter/facebook/whatsapp etc where almost everyone is a journalist, a critic. So there is nothing wrong in making statements too. But he used his fans for his personal gains. In 2004, I have witnessed Rajni fans campaigning against PMK and they were distributing the audio cassette with Rajni's speech. He will 'voice' out his support during elections and his fans will be doing all the field work. If you are not sure about your political ambitions, why do you involve your fans in such activities?

In 2004, he opposed PMK and gave a speech against the party and urged the people to defeat PMK. But PMK won all the 6 seats it contested. Rajni didn't have a face to acknowledge the defeat.He either underestimated the Tamil Nadu electorate or overestimated himself. How can a 45 minute speech make a difference in politics - which is fulled with caste,money,alcohol,biriyani,rowdyism,religion etc? I still remember that speech, it would end up like this 'nanbargalidam thanjam pugundhu vittadhaal, idhark mel vimarsikka manam varavillai' -  PMK was part of the DMK led alliance then, so (D)MK was Rajni's nanbar and he is not going harsh against PMK.. He thought, a 15 more mins of his speech would totally wipe out PMK. This clearly shows, Rajni has no idea about politics.

He released the first look of his 'Jaggubhai', exactly on the day of elections in the year 2004, posing himself as a Muslim. The moment, Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam objected to it, he dropped the project. I agree, cinema is a multi-crore business and none would like to face losses. But Rajni, cleverly used the mass media to his advantage. Had PMK not won those 6 seats, TMMK might not have objected Jaggubhai and Rajni might have ended up with another commercial blockbuster. There was a tagline in Jaggubhai - 'Iraivaa, nanbargalidamirundhu kaappaatru, pagaivargalai naan paarthu kolgiren'.Then something happened(heard one Saamiyaar mediated between Rajni and Ramadoss and they became friends. No, that was not Jayendrar).

So Rajni is someone, who did not have a face to meet the public, after a virtual defeat. He did not have the guts to field a candidate on behalf of him, against a party, that attacked his fans. He is someone who thinks his words are more than enough to influence the outcome of an election.He is someone who endorsed DMK-TMC in 96, defended the DMK govt during Coimbatore bomb blasts, offered a half hearted support to BJP in 2004. Before entering politics itself, he has switched sides :D If there is someone who has committed lot of political blunders, without being in politics, then it can only the Superstar Rajnikanth.

After 12 years, now again, he started it.

Jayalalithaa is no more, Kalaignar is inactive in politics, so Rajni thinks, he can try his luck again. Personally, I dont have a problem with Rajni's political entry. He can start a party or join any party, that's his wish. If his approach is convincing, he may be successful.

I am perfectly ok, with any actor, becoming a politician or CM. As if we have only true leaders in active politics. But the criticism against Rajni is valid and would continue for the reasons mentioned above. If Rajni really joins politics and his approach gives some hope that he would be better than the existing parties, we can appreciate him. As of now, I don't have any hopes on Rajni.

ReMo - A disgusting RomCom

ReMo a perfect example for how a bad movie, with an obnoxious storyline and misogynistic dialogues will strike gold at box office.. You have an actor, who is the most liked one by kids and has a mass appeal in the lead, still end up dishing out some socially irresponsible crap movie.

Usually, I don't reveal the storyline completely while reviewing a movie. But revealing the storyline is not going to make a difference for this particular movie and it also will give an idea about the movie.

Our hero is a good-for-nothing guy. He suddenly watches a girl crossing him and immediately falls in love with her. He is all set to propose her and straight away reaches her house, only to witness her engagement..The depressed lover boy doesn't give up easily. One or two incidents convinces him that the girl is born for him, so he goes in disguise as a woman and starts working with the heroine, who is a 'doctor'. He convinces her that her fiancé doesn't look good and a bad choice for her. The well educated doctor heroine falls into the trap laid by our 'intelligent' hero. One fine day, the hero in lady get-up, says some boy wanted to convey his love to the heroine and out of curiosity she agrees to meet him. He proposes her in a 'unique' way and gradually she falls for him(or gradually she realizes that she already fell for him in the first meeting itself). Now, somehow there should be a justification for this 'intelligent act' of our hero. So, as usual, show heroine's fiancé as a bad man. The climax says 'all iz well'.

This story is not something new to Tamil cinema. We have seen this in Kathal Mannan, Youth, Vaseegara etc. But as per my knowledge, those movies didn't openly endorse stalking and eve teasing(though personally I don't like those movies too). Throughout the movie we have dialogues ridiculing women and glorifying/justifying scoundrels and rogues. 'pasangaloda indha nilamaiku ellam ponnunga seira thappu thaan kaaranam', 'nichayam thaana aachi kalyaanam aagala la', 'ponnungaloda full time velaiye pasangala azha vekkaradhu dhaana', 'kaadhalikkira ponna kidaikanam nu muyarchi pannaadhavan, andha ponnu kidaikala nu varutha pada thagudhiye illadhavan' (though she is engaged to someone else), 'Appa Amma paatha ponnundradhuke ivlo scene podriye, avane sondhamaa love panna ponnu na avan evlo edhir neechal pottirupaan', when heroine refers to girl, who is an acid attack victim, you get an immediate justification with another guy ready to marry her 'lovekaaga uyira kudukravangalukum irukaanga, uyira kuduthu love panravangalum irukkaanga', 'enna maadhiri pasangaluku vera vazhi illa' etc. More than these dialogues, what is painful is, the kind of response it receives. Audience clapped and whistled for all these dialogues.

Throughout the movie, our hero whistles at the heroine and she responds to it, and there is a song to this lovely sequence. The message is clear, guys have all the rights to stalk, whistle and cheat on a girl. No matter whether she is engaged or married( though ReMo is magnanimous enough to spare married women). If she doesn't accept the proposal, then men again have all the rights to blame/abuse her. The nurse get-up is used well to make fun of the body of women.

I don't find anything good in this movie. It doesn't even have an engaging screenplay with almost all the scenes predictable. One or two scenes evoke laughter where Yogi Babu appears. Cinematography is awesome, thanks to P C Sreeram.

With so many incidents of stalking making it to headlines, the director has not bothered about it all. He happily justifies stalking and surely is going to achieve commercial success too, as a result of which, is going to come up with more such craps.

Otherwise, ReMo is a clear case of torture.

Miruthan Review

Miruthan as projected,its a zombie film. The movie is full of zombies and the hero fights them. The duration of the movie is just less than 2 hrs and to an extent its fast too. If the expectation is just to go for a movie which is different and racy, this movie is ok,but if you are looking for some exciting thriller, then Miruthan will surely disappoint you.

Dog bites can cause hydrophobia(fear for water) which is a symptom of rabies in humans. And yes, people diagnosed with rabies,will be fierce and behave like a maniac. If left untreated, they will die within few days. Nowadays, treating dog bites is very simple. All you have to do is to take injections periodically. The director Shakti Soundar Rajan has taken this simple concept and developed a script based on it.

There is nothing wrong in using a simple concept to make an interesting film. But in Miruthan,there are no interesting scenes or tense moments,which are essential for any thriller. The zombie concept seems to be just an exaggeration of hydrophobia/rabies, which didn't work for me. Jayam Ravi just keeps shooting the zombies for most part of the movie. Kaali, Manohar(the one who plays minister) and Sriman,provides comic relief. Their comedy scenes and 2 songs are good. Lakshmi Menon and the girl who plays Ravi's sister are ok, as they don't have much to do. Only one scene(detection of anti-bodies to the virus) stood out. I feel had the director built the screenplay based on the concept explained in that scene, it would have been an interesting movie.

Instead of merely shooting the zombies, had the director made more research on zombies and come up with an interesting screenplay, Miruthan would have been a satisfying experience. Miruthan is not so interesting zombie.

Irudhi Suttru review

#IrudhiSuttru is good :-) the movie is on the same genre as Chak-De-India and at times it resembles Chak-De too, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the movie :-) the hardwork of Madhavan is visible throughout the movie. His sarcastic expressions and dialogue delivery is appealing. Once again Madhavan proved that he is an excellent actor. Ritika Singh was just terrific as the boxer. Somehow I felt there is a link to Indian boxer Sarita Devi with the story(not sure if someone else too felt the same way). Santhosh Narayanan's songs and BGM connects us very well with the movie and gives the much needed sports movie feel. The dialogues are going well with the masses.Director Sudha Kongura has done well to make this an interesting flick. But she could have elaborated the politics happening in Boxing association, kind of let down with the way it was shown. Anyway, the movie runs for just 2 hrs. With all shows going full today, some theaters has increased the no. of shows for this movie. This Madhavan's comeback film, may end up as a commercial super hit too.

Bahubali - The Epic

The most expected movie of the year - Bahubali,directed by S S Rajamouli, has finally hit the silver screens.I watched the Tamil version.Rajamouli gained popularity all over India after his fantasy flick Magadheera - starring Ram Charan.The dubbed version itself was well received among even non-Telugu speaking audience.Then he went on with Eega(Naan-E in Tamil and it was not a dubbing, but a bilingual),which again went on to become a super hit.Now he has made Bahubali as a bilingual again(some say its trilingual - Tamil,Telugu and Hindu,but not sure).What's Bahubali all about? I can answer in one word - Grandeur.Ofcourse Bahubali has more to offer.

Well in the name of review,I don't want to reveal too much about the story. Infact,more than story it is the narration and the visuals that keeps us engaged till the end.This is how the movie goes on - the tribal people see a hand carrying a kid in water,asking for help.The kid is brought up by Rohini and she names him Shivudu. The boy keeps asking whats there in the hills behind waterfalls and he attempts to climb that hill many times,but he fails.Needless to say,who that kid is - hero Prabhas. One fine day he sees an angel like girl calling singing and dancing at him,Somehow he climbs the hill and finds out a rebel group.Who are they?What's their goal?How Prabhas joins them and what he finds out? This is what Bahubali part-1 is all about.

Rajamouli's screenplay has more scope for 'mass' scenes than any suspense element.Performance-wise everyone has done their part very well.Tamanna as Avantika, has tried her best to act as a rebel.Her angry expressions and fights justify her casting.Other heroine Anushka as Devasenai, has less footage compared to Tamanna, but its a powerful character.Anushka's make-up and dialogues are well received by the masses. The very first scene when Anushka was shown,people started whistling.Glad to see a heroine having such a mass appeal,especially when her character is not an usual glamorous one.Sathyaraj rocked as Kattappa - the loyal slave.In one scene Sathyaraj fights with 'Kicha' Sudeep.It was choreographed very well.The energy shown by Sathyaraj in that scene makes it a treat to watch.Sudeep as Aslam,comes in just 1 scene.He may get more footage in second part it seems.Still I doubt it as he gets a special 'Thanks' in the title card.

Palvaalthevan(Rana) is a ruthless king.He kills his own people,tries to kill his cousin,doesn't mind people dying when his 100 feet gold statue is raised.Such is his lust for power.He looks good and has a good screenpresence.He had to work really hard to be accepted as a villain.His hard work paid off. Prabhas as Bahubali and Shiva fits to the character perfectly.He is not such a big mass hero, but his tall and strong physique is appealing.His physqiue makes some scenes like lifting the Shiva statue believable.There are mass scenes for Prabhas.His entry into the Magizhmadhi kingdom is the best sequence. Theater erupted to a thunderous response for the golden statue scene.There are more mass scenes like his walk after chopping off the head of a prince,lifting the Shiva Lingam,fighting in battle field etc.

Rajamouli has shown the quality called 'Rajabakthi'(people's devotion towards the king) very well.I have read this in novels as well,how a 'good' king will be treated by the people of his country.In one word - he will be treated like a God.We can see that from the expressions of people.It was so natural especially in the statue lifting scene.

CGI work was ok,not bad.It could have been bit better,but with an Indian budget,we have to compromise on this aspect.Flying scenes,the snow ride etc were bit amateur.But the battlefield scenes are the highlight of the movie.It was picturised so well that one could feel as if he is returning from real battlefield. Of course, one can argue that there are better Hollywood movies.Always there will be a better option,without comparison I can say the battle scene was marvelous.The funny language of 'Kalakeyas',the competition between Rana and Prabhas to outsmart each other in defeating the enemy to get crowned,Prabhas' inspirational speech and the grand sets and CGI work makes the battlefield scene a mind blowing experience. 

There will be comparisons between Magadheera and Bahubali.The question of whether Bahubali is better than Magadheera is unavoidable.Magadheera cannot be called as a period film as only the flashback portions involve all those wars and kingdoms.But Bahubali is completely a period film. Magadheera had a reference to Sagapthiya Vamsam, people of which will kill atleast 100 people before their death in wars to save the country, with the hero Ram Charan himself playing a warrior from Sagapthiya Vamsam. Bahubali has Kattappa,a strong and bold warrior,who is capable of saving the entire kingdom,but remains a slave to kings due to the promise of his ancestors.Magadheera had electrifying scenes like confrontation between Ram Charan and SriHari,RamCharan and DevGill etc. Bahubali doesn't have such confrontation scenes with villain directly.Probably I should say till now we didn't see such a scene as the movie is still not over.The director gives a clear lead to second part in the climax.Otherwise both the movies follows the 'mass template' faithfully. There are scenes of head chopping,item song etc in both the movies.Magadheera had better songs compared to Bahubali. But Maragatha Mani's BGM gives the much needed mass feel.

I have written about almost all the important characters except Ramya Krishnan.She deserves a special write up.16 years ago,her Neelampari character was a huge hit among masses.Her acting had such a reach that people teared off the screens in some theaters because she insulted Rajni(in movie). In these 16 years she has done many movies,but her Sivagami character in Bahubali creates the same impact.You get goosebumps when she feeds both the babies and says both are her sons(Rana and Prabhas), runs the kingdom in the absence of an able king,fights the traitors,brings up the children. The crowning scene was terrific.Ramya understood the character very well and has given what it actually needs.She stands up tall,with a proud smile on her face praises one prince and crowns the other.If I remember correctly only Ramya speaks punch dialogues,ex 'adhuve en kattalai,enadhu kattalaye Saasanam'.Splendid performance.If you ask me to watch it a second time,without any second thought I would go mainly because of Ramya Krishnan.She has lived as Raj Mata. I am sure Ramya will have a part in second part too.

We should ignore people who sit in home and say "my uncle's sister's friend's brother's daughter texted me 'Bahubali' is average,so its average".We have seen movies like this since black and white days.MGR's 'Adimaippen' had somewhat similar script.But that we can say for any movie. Bahubali is a tested and tried formula script with grand visuals and soulful performances.Royal salute to Rajamouli for making the characters speak proper Tamil.Credit goes to Karky(dialogue writer) as well. Its not only a visual treat but its epic. Go for it!!!

Papanasam - Recreates the 'Drishyam' Magic

Papanasam is a faithful remake of the malayalam classic 'Drishyam'.I am writing this review after watching both the movies - Papanasam and Drishyam.Before watching Papanasam,I had an opinion that it was highly impossible to recreate the magic of Mohan Lal's Drishyam. There were reasons for that.Be it Mohan Lal or Meena or the children who acted as their daughters or even the Muslim who runs the tea-shop,their performances were very natural. On the other hand,I thought Kamal may overact and spoil the character in an attempt to overtake MohanLal.There were many who thought like this.But 'Papanasam' gave a tight slap to us.We felt like Kamal through his 'Choyambulingam' character saying 'chinna pasangala yaar kitta?' to us.

Remaking a classic, which was also commercial blockbuster, is like walking on a tight rope. That too, Drishyam is a complicated case.Mohan Lal's George Kutty character doesn't demand any special appearance or loud dialogues.George Kutty is a common man, who earned all his properties by sheer hardwork and leads a happy life with his family.How he faces a difficult situation and how he overcomes it.That is what the protagonist of Drishyam or Papanasam is supposed to do.When Mohan Lal has already done this perfectly,the task of doing this role again in a different language is going to be a real challenge.Kamal took up the challenge.

The story is simple.Choyambulingam(Kamal) is an ordinary man,who has come up on his own, marries Gautami without getting any dowry.He has 2 daughters.At times voices out against the corrupt policeman(Kalabavan Mani).One day his family faces an unexpected problem.What the problem is?Is Choyambulingam able to solve it?If yes, how? This is what Papanasam is all about.Recently,we have seen lot of thriller/horror movies.In such movies, the screenplay will revolve around an incident and the audience will be left guessing - 'who is behind the incident?'.But Papanasam is a different thriller.Here you will be tempted to know what will be the next move of the protagonist rather than thinking 'what would have happened when the incident took place'.You will understand this while watching the movie. 


Biggest success of Papanasam is its casting and performance.Baby Esther and Asha Sarath played the same roles in original version as well.I thought Gautami is a miscast after watching Meena.I felt Meena had a better screenpresence than Gautami,but that did not spoil the character.Gautami has done well.Hope she gets more offers after Papanasam. The elder daughter Niveda,corrupt policeman Kalabhavan Mani,Ilavarasu as constable, Arul Dass as sub-inspector have done well too.Nothing was artificial.Baby Esther's eyes, expressions and dialogue delivery would leave you spellbound. Asha Sarath as a tough police officer and a caring mother has done exceedingly well.It seems she is doing acting in this role for third time( after Malayalam and Kannada versions).

 But it was M.S.Bhaskar as the tea-shop owner stood out.He was damn brilliant.People will usually say 'he lived as that character',that sentence will suit Mr.Bhaskar very well.His local slang,expressions,body language etc proves his quality.I can proudly call myself as a fan of this actor.He was terrific in movies like Mozhi,Uttama Villain etc.Compared to those movies,he has less footage in Papanasam,but he has proved his mettle in this role too.Other than M S Bhaskar,I feel one more character has come out very well in Tamil - Anant Mahadevan's Prabhakar,who comes as husband of Asha Sarath.He was impressive with his innocent expressions and body language.This particular character alone I feel Tamil version is better than Malayalam.

Ghibran's BGM and songs are pleasing.The background music is neither too loud nor quiet. Ghibran has given as much as the situation demands.Sujith's cinematography takes you to Papanasam itself.Lovely visuals.'Yeya En Kottikara' song has a soothing music and pleasant visuals.

 I have mentioned lot of positives about the movie,but Kamal as Choyambulingam elevates the standard of movie.Full credit to director Jeethu Joseph.Though he has directed the original version,it is not easy to create the same impact again.Handling Mohan Lal and Kamal has its own advantages and difficulties.They are known for their acting skills,so it is quite normal for even an average movie-goer to expect some impressive performance. The advantage is they are capable of doing it,difficulty is extracting it perfectly.The director has mastered the art it seems. 

There are some scenes which are enough to differentiate Mohan Lal and Kamal.Mohan Lal shows an unimaginable calmness in his face and his body language conveys the message 'you have underestimated me and you are going to pay for it'. The same scene,Kamal does bit differently.He just gives a sarcastic look towards the police. It was like saying 'now you might have understood who Choyambulingam is'. Audience were crazily whistling and clapping for this particular scene.Again in climax, Mohan Lal maintains his calmness on his face still we are able to notice the tears in his eyes.Here too his expressions and body language says,'yes,it may be wrong.even we are not happy with that,but there was no other option,for me my family is important'. Whereas Kamal was completely different from Mohan Lal in climax.He starts of kind of normally, gradually he gets emotional and suddenly he breaks-down.Splendid performance it was. In short, Mohan Lal and Kamal have acted differently but with complete perfection. Those who have watched Drishyam and Papanasam will never say Kamal was better than Mohan Lal or Mohan Lal was better than Kamal.

There is another important point about this script.Anant Mahadevan once says 'our son is misusing your affection'.Parents should control their children - both son and daughter. When parents fail to control their children on some aspects,they will only end up suffering.Just because someone is a 'son',he doesn't get the license to do some 'small' mistakes. Ignoring some 'serious' mischief of the 'sons' is the starting point for most of the crimes in the society.

As I have mentioned in the title, the Kamal-Jeethu Joseph combination has recreated the 'Drishyam' magic in Papanasam too.Instead of walking out of theaters, when the hero does not fight with the villains using muscle power and uses his brains,the audience are whistling clapping like anything.Papanasam is going to be a huge hit for Kamal and undoubtedly this is the best movie of Kamal in the last 12 years.To be honest,I don't find any negative points in this movie.It is flawless. If you are a fan of good cinema,without any second thought,book your tickets for Papanasam.

The Never-Ending Viswaroopam Controversy

Long back I thought of writing about the DTH controversy surrounding the Kamal Hassan starrer Viswaroopam.But before I started the article,the controversy ended.But that didn't give the much needed relief to Kamal Hassan.As usual our religious groups started protesting against the movie.But this is common.This is not the first time a movie is facing protests by a religious group or casteist forces in Tamil Nadu.Lot of movies like Ore Oru Gramathile(deals with reservation policies),Roja,Bombay etc have faced lot of issues.Ore Oru Gramathile was sorted out in court.But this is the first time(to my knowledge) a movie certified by the censor board has been banned by the govt.

The reason given by the Tamil Nadu govt is that this movie might cause law and order problem. Is it an excuse?Just because a bunch of people doesn't like a movie,does it mean that the movie should be banned? If at all there is going to be a law and order problem,it will be because of some fringe elements.So it is the duty of the govt to provide security for the movie and to punish those who cause law and order problem.But here the govt took the other route and banned the movie.When a govt passes such orders to appease one particular section of the society,that itself will disturb the existing communal harmony.

A small flashback.

"Shah Bano, a 62 year old Muslim woman and mother of five from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, was divorced by her husband in 1978. The Muslim family law (marriage, gifts, inheritance, adoption and a few other civil laws are under the purview of personal laws in India - they are different for Christians, Muslims and Hindus) allows the husband to do this and not the wife: the husband just needs to say the word Talaq (meaning divorce) three times before two witnesses for a valid divorce.

Shah Bano, because she had no means to support herself and her children, approached the courts for securing maintenance from her husband. When the case reached the Supreme Court of India, seven years had elapsed. The Supreme Court invoked Section 125 of Code of Criminal Procedure, which applies to everyone regardless of caste, creed, or religion. It ruled that Shah Bano be given maintenance money, similar to alimony.

Some Muslims felt threatened by what they perceived as an encroachment of the Muslim Personal Law, and protested loudly at the judgment. Their spokesmen were Obaidullah Khan Azmi and Syed Shahabuddin. They had formed an organization in 1973 known as the All India Muslim Personal Law Board devoted to upholding what they saw as Muslim Personal Law." - source wiki


Targeting the minority votebank,Mr.Rajiv Gandhi,passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act,which diluted the secular judgement of the Supreme Court.This triggered a huge debate all over India.Later on in 1989,Rajiv ji allowed the 'shilanyas' to be held at the disputed site in Ayodhya.This was seen as a green signal for the construction of Ram temple in the disputed site.This he did to get the Hindu votes.These decisions intensified the Ram Temple Movement and it resulted in the demolition of the mosque. When we start disapproving the law and court to appease a section of society,it will result in disaster.

These Muslim groups which protests against Viswaroopam,Thuppakki etc were quiet when Mr.Owaisi gave that hate speech.When a speech like that cannot disturb the communal harmony,how can a 2 and half hour movie?Mr.Owaisi is a democratically elected MP.I updated a status in facebook when I came to know about the ban on Viswaroopam that "...hereafter every caste/religious groups will demand a special screening of new movies and they may expect some commission from the producers,if the producer fails to give the same,they will approach the govt and the movie will be banned.". Within 2 days,some Hindu outfits protested against Ameer's Aadhi Bhagavan and filed a complaint against the movie.Now they are demanding a special screening of the movie even before it goes to censors.This is going to be the outcome of this ban.The govt has set a very bad example by banning Viswaroopam.And regarding Aadhi Bhagavan,the interesting point is,director Ameer issued a press statement that he can't comment about the ongoing Viswaroopam controversy without watching the movie. And now his movie was targeted.Well,I don't support the Hindu outfits' protests either.It is equally dangerous.


Apart from the protests of Islamic organizations and minority appeasement,there might be other reasons as well. Some people like Pawan Kalyan,Kalaignar Karunanidhi say,the TN govt is targeting Kamal as he didn't give the satellite rights to the channel which the ruling party supports.Some days back, Kamal was present in finance minister Mr.Chidambaram's book release function.There he said something like,someone wearing Dhothi should become Prime Minister.There are rumors doing rounds that only because of these reasons, the Tamil Nadu CM is angry with Kamal.I don't know whether these are the reasons for the ban,but the activities of the state govt gives me a feel that Kamal Hassan is being victimized.All of a sudden the lawyer who argued for govt said,the censor certificate for Viswaroopam was not obtained on legal means and huge corruption is involved in getting censor certificates.If that is true,the govt should have filed a case against censor board,not against the movie.The Madras High court lifted the ban on Viswaroopam after almost 6 hours of argument.The judge watched the movie(which itself is not necessary) and said there is nothing against Muslims in it.After this only he lifted the ban. But within few hours the govt appealed again before another bench and the bench upheld the ban on the movie.In so many theaters the banners were burnt and people who went to watch the movie,were sent back.The police even lathicharged on them.


Even though the court has banned the movie again,I don't find a proper reason to stop the shows which were already started after the first judgement.There is no necessity chase one actor or movie.There are lot of problems the people of Tamil Nadu are facing.Power shortage,water shortage,corruption etc.To be honest,I feel this govt is taking steps to solve these issues and we have to wait to see how successful these steps are going to be.But giving so much of importance to any religious groups may result in law and order problem.And recent incidents like protests infront of the US embassy,protests against Thuppakki and now the big Viswaroopam has shattered the popular belief that Tamil Nadu is the most secular and peaceful state.And the govt's move to ban the movie should be vehemently condemned.This is an assault on freedom of expression.Today it is Kamal and tomorrow it may be anyone else.


P.S. : I have criticized Kamal Hassan on so many occasions and am not a fan of him either,but now he needs the support of sensible people.I am showing my support to him through this blog post.

Movies in 2012 - An Experience

2012 has come to an end.Just two more days to go,which means,hereafter there wont be any releases this year.Just wanted to write a blog post on movies released in 2012.

Nanban :

This year started with an ultra-cool movie 'Nanban' - remake of the Hindi classic 3 Idiots.I watched first day night show in 'Chitlapakkam' Varadaraja theater.I love movies based on friendship.Vijay's friends is one of my favorite movies.Without friends,life is nothing :-).

When the cast and crew was announced,lot of people complained that Vijay is worst choice for this movie and he will spoil the classic.Even a section of Vijay fans were not convinced.I strongly believed Vijay is the right choice for the character played by Aamir Khan and Jeeva is the perfect choice for Sarman Joshi's role.I even told this to some of my friends.I had a valid reason to justify Vijay's casting.

The hero's role is somewhat preachy.It is like motivating his friends.If a debutant or an upcoming artiste gives lectures,none will listen to it.And you need an acceptable face to give lectures also.I felt only Ajith or Vijay will be accepted by the audience.But here the hero is a college student,so he has to look physically young too.Thala cannot reduce so much of wait and look so young.But Vijay is slim,so without any doubt people will easily accept him.And the audience were convinced after the movie released.And now don't think am a Vijay fan,am a die-hard Ajith fan.Though I was satisfied with the outcome of the movie,certain aspects of Nanban really disappointed me.Vijay imitated Aamir Khan's mannerisms and expressions(not at all needed, Vijay's casual acting is his biggest plus),Sathyaraj's dialogue delivery was horrible.Shankar should have taken care of these,barring these negatives Nanban is a must watch.

Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi :

A perfect February month movie.I watched it twice in theaters.Earlier,it was released as a short film,but then it was made as a full length cinema.Some people said this is a movie for only youngsters and college students. Well this is a movie for everyone who is young at heart.I have seen lot of such lovers-fights and the director has shown it beautifully on screen.Suresh-Surekha(heroine's parents) love-story is the highlight of the movie.The way Suresh realizes his responsibility and Surekha trusts him completely will give you a good feel for sure.If you have not watched this movie,give a try.This is a must watch movie.

Kahani :

One of the best thrillers in bollywood.In an age where the Khans are selling craps and showing 100 crore profits,here is a movie, without any big hero,which completely depended on its script.Since Vidya Balan became popular in dirty picture,her name was good enough to market the movie.A pregnant woman comes to India,in search of her husband.She is surprised to find another person who resembles her husband and he happens to be a most wanted criminal.Whether she finds her husband or not?Does the criminal gets caught by the police?This is the story.Very simple storyline and the movie has an interesting screenplay.Instead of concentrating on huge sets,the director has given more importance to the script,which is a rarity nowadays. Camerawork was awesome.The cameraman has shown the Kolkata city realistically.

Kalakalappu :

The movie was laugh riot.From the beginning till the end the movie made me laugh.Vimal,Siva,Santhanam, Ilavarasu and Manobala and everyone else were outstanding.Even the dog(google),made its presence felt. Sundar C should understand he is good in directing comedy movies and his serious movies becomes a comedy when he acts as a hero.

Naan E :

A bilingual movie which had Sudip,Nani and Samantha in the lead roles and it was directed by Mr.S S Rajamouli.Its an usual revenge story told in an unusually different way.Here the hero(Nani) after his death,is reborn as a housefly and tortures the Villain Sudip.Sudip's acting was unimaginably brilliant.He had to imagine that a housefly is troubling him and act accordingly,which is a not at all easy.The technical work deserves a special mention.It was all done by Indian animators.Neither the director nor the animators crossed their limits.Great job and hats-off to Nani's cast and crew.One special information,dialogues were penned by one of my favorite writer Mr.Crazy Mohan :-).

Attakathi :

This movie had mixed reviews.A section of people claims this is a very good attempt by the director and another section claims this is one worst movie.But I felt this movie as a good time pass.Written and directed by Pa.Ranjith,the movie has a novel touch in it.Making and the performance of the artistes was too good.Yet again,the hero's character is a reflection of reality.I have seen lot of guys who closely resembled the hero's character.After a long time,this movie had 2 good gana songs(aadi pona aavani and nadukadalula kappala). The director could have come up with a better storyline and gripping screenplay,that's the only negative and otherwise I enjoyed this movie :D.

Sundarapandiyan :

This is the best mass movie this year.This is on the lines of Nadodigal.Again this movie is based on friendship. Sasikumar's character was too good.He has a very good screen-presence.Songs were also enjoyable and Lakshmi Menon has acted well too.Very good entertainer.

Saattai :

One of the least noticed movies this year,which was actually good.Director Anbazhagan has given a real picture of Tamil Nadu government schools and the attitude of teachers.He also criticizes the private schools in a one scene.And the way the adolescent age problems are shown,is commendable.Samudhrakani was brilliant as 'Dhaya sir' and Imman's music is a huge plus for this movie.Adi Rangi rangi and Shreya Ghoshal's Sahayane are the pick of the album.Only negative for this movie is,its too preachy,but still its a must watch.

English Vinglish :

A perfect re-entry for yesteryear dream girl Sridevi.After a long gap,she has acted in a full length feature film and that too in a heroine-oriented subject.Her acting was too natural.Her English class scenes were the highlight of the movie.Every character made its presence felt,I personally enjoyed the Pakistan taxi-driver Salman Khan.A cameo by 'Thala' Ajith(Amitabh ji played this role in the Hindi version) was a real gift for Thala fans.His dialogues about English and purpose of visit received thunderous response in theaters.After a very long time,I enjoyed this feel-good family movie.Z Tamil channel is going to telecast this movie on Jan5th.Don't miss it.

P.S. : I watched a first day show this movie too,as it is a Thala movie for fanatics like me :P.

Pizza :

A rare movie in Tamil cinema.The best part of this movie is,you can't categorize it to one particular genre.You can't say its an entertainer or a thriller or a horror movie.The movie was made on a shoe-string budget,but the settings looked realistic.Vijay Sethupathy carried the movie pretty well.Movies like this are a welcome change for Tamil cinema.

Thuppakki :

This is an engaging action movie.Perfect entertainer for a Diwali.It was good to see Vijay acting in a neat action movie.There were some protests against this movie by the Muslim organizations,which was not acceptable.I wrote an exclusive blog post about the Thuppakki controversy here.Kajal Agarwal and Jayaram's characters had no significance at all and the songs were not appealing(except 'Google Google').But the director made an engaging screenplay,which overshadowed these small negatives.Thuppakki was good enough to watch more than once in theaters.

Neerparavai :

Best movie of the year.Seenu Ramasamy has made an art-film in an enjoyable manner.Songs and background score deserves a special mention.The director should be appreciated for making a movie based on the lifestyle of fishermen.Instead of making it too preachy,director has taken a beautiful lovestory as base. For detailed review,check this link.

Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom :

Yet another movie to show the maturity of Tamil cinema.This is how movies should be made.There were no unnecessary songs,fight,comedy track etc.The story revolves around 4 friends,Prem,Bagsu,Bajji and Saras. Screenplay was so good that the movie was not boring at any point.Everyone has acted well and my favorite character is that of Bagsu :D.He was a scream guys.If you have not watched this movie,please watch it.Its hilarious.

Neethane En PonVasantham :

This movie was teared into pieces by 'so called intellectuals' like RJ Balaji.The movie was good enough for a one time watch in theaters.People should learn what to expect from the movie based on trailers and stills.On seeing the stills and trailers,we should have expected a slow feel-good love story.Those who were shouting in theaters didn't have any patience at all.It has happened to so many movies.Pokkisham was one such movie. And we have social networking sites like facebook,twitter and orkut etc.Even without watching people starts sharing crap about movies.Everyone has a following in facebook and most of these followers, tend to get carried away by the comments of the person whom they follow.Opinion and expectation differs from person to person,so never criticize a movie without watching it.And most of these facebook users has the habit of sharing one line reviews in their profile and am no exception.I have shared my opinion about lot of movies in my facebook wall.But,there is a difference between sharing our review after watching a movie and watching a movie only for the sake of reviewing.The problem is with the latter.When you watch a movie with a premeditated mind,you will never enjoy the experience.

Coming to the movie,Jeeva and Samantha has acted very well,Samantha was awesome in school scenes.Ilayaraja's music and background music had its class.Rightly,The Hindu reviewed,NEPV is an ode to Ilayaraja.If you have some patience,you can enjoy this movie.NEPV may be your love story.Once again Gautham Menon has proved that he is a master of romantic movies.

I have mentioned about the movies which impressed me.There were also movies which I expected to be good and got disappointed too.They are Aravaan,Thandavam,Kazhugu,Mugamoodi.

Movies like Saguni,Billa2,Maatraan,Kazhugu,3(Moonu),Mugamoodi were boring and had nothing interesting.They were bad.Among these movies,I felt Saguni and 3 as worst movies.

Most of them said Vazhakku En 18/9 was a must watch movie.Unfortunately,due to time constraints I missed it in theaters and I couldn't watch it again(watching movies online is a very difficult task for me).


That's it.2012 had its own share good and bad movies.If you observe carefully,you can find that,movies with different content, received good response from the audience and they were box office hits too,but not all the movies.Serious movies like Neerparavai,Vazhakku En 18/9 etc., were just average in box office.This is a trend which I observed - movies with different theme,if has humor and entertainment content,becomes box office hits and serious movies find it very difficult to survivie in box office.

As a cinema fan,I expect more no.of quality movies in 2013.Already Kamal's Viswaroopam has created huge expectations and its audio is smash hit.And also Power Star's Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaya is all set to break the collections of Avatar :P.Looking forward to it.

Wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year :-)

'Neerparavai' flies high

I post movie reviews in this blog only on rare occasions.This movie is worth reviewing.
 

We can expect such artistic movies only once in a while..Seenu Ramasamy has proved his worth as a director yet again.. With such a soothing music and brilliant camerawork,watching this movie itself was a great experience.Acting was brilliant. Vishnu's performance is damn brilliant.He has shown a great amount of maturity, be it in expressions or body language or dialogue delivery. Sunaina's performance too is worth mentioning.She has acted very well too.Saranya and 'Poo' Ram were brilliant.Ram is an excellent character artiste, one who acted as 'penakaarar' in Poo,has now lived as Lourdusamy.He has shown variations in his acting when fights with Samudrakani for his son and when he urges the same Samudrakani to help his son.Pandi andT Thambi Ramayyah's witty one-liners evoke laughter. Instead of having a separate comedy track,their part comes with the story.So its good.

As I mentioned earlier camerawork is beautiful.The way the churches,sea are shown,makes the audience very much involved into the movie. They have captured the lifestyle of fishermen perfectly.The Christian-fishermen lifestyle and their internal issues can be felt by watching this movie itself.Songs like Devan Magale adds a great weightage to this concept.But still the Para Para Paravai song is the highlight of the movie. It has 3 versions and all the 3 are awesome with lyrics fitting perfectly to the situation."enadhu asuthangal paaradi,ennai parisutham seyyadi" and in another version "kannaalan nilamai enna kadalodu paarthucholla kokkukkum naaraikkum kan alayudhe" kind of lines shows the director has worked with every technician like cameraman,lyricist(the great Vairamuthu),music director,art director etc.Art direction is like soul of this movie.The old churches were shown beautifuly.Dialogues,as expected is good enough to brand this movie an excellent movie.

On the whole Seenu Ramasamy has attempted to make a movie based on the miseries of fishermen and he has succeeded in it to a great extent too.The best part of this movie is this does not completely deal with the fishermen problems with Sri Lankan navy.The Sri Lankan fishermen problem is dealt nicely through dialogues and some incidents.That works big time for this movie as it doesn't give us a feel like we are watching some pro-Sri Lankan Tamil campaign.Personally we can support Sri Lankan Tamils,but if only that aspect is there in a 3 hr movie,it will look more like a documentary film.Thank God this film is not like that.The director has intelligently dealt all these serious issues keeping a beautiful love story as a base.If we want to point out some negatives,I found only one - "meenukku kadal meenukku" song could have been avoided.Anyway that song is good,so its acceptable.For such an excellent movie,they could have made an even more interesting climax,though the climax is good.

'Neerparavai' flies high and it is a must watch for people who love good cinema.

Verdict - Awesome

Rating - 4.5/5

The Thuppakki controversy

Note : If you want to make an opinion about this article/me,read this post fully,till the end.If you don't have the patience to go through such a long article,better skip it completely.

There were lot of arguments about this movie last week.A Muslim organization showed protested against the movie.As a result director A R Murugadoss agreed to remove some 'controversial' scenes from the movie.And finally this controversy ended with a comedy by actor Vijay's father,S A Chandrasekhar.SAC gave a statement that "Vijay will act as a Muslim character in one of his future films".The Muslim organizations too agreed and the issue was 'amicably sorted out'.

Now about movie.Jagdish(Vijay) is an army man and he comes back to his home for a vacation.After a bomb blast,he finds out the involvement of terrorists.The cat and mouse game between Vijay and the villain forms the rest of the story.What made the Muslim organizations angry is,the villain and terrorists were shown as Muslims.They are not ready to accept this.And Murugadoss agreed to remove 'offensive' scenes from the movie.How can he remove offensive scenes?Is he going to name Ajmal Lathif as Arul Murugan?

First of all we all should understand something,'Thuppakki' is just a cinema.Whatever shown in the movie need not necessarily be true nor false.When you are making a movie about Mumbai blasts,you can't show the terrorists as Hindus or Christians.Just consider the case of 26/11 attacks.We could capture only one terrorist alive - Ajmal Kasab - is he a Hindu?So as per the script one can't show the terrorists as Hindus or Christians.

Nowadays these kind of protests has become very common.When Cheran makes a movie like Pokkisham, in which the heroine is Muslim,people object to it stating Cheran has shown Muslims in bad light..Worst case is,one pervert made a movie against Muslims in America.And there were assaults and protests against the American embassies in some countries.Here,in Chennai, they gathered in huge number and protested in mount road.Can anyone enlighten me what good impact did it have?If some lunatic makes a movie against Islam in some country,you should protest against him in that particular country.Not in other nations.They call their protest as peaceful protests.Just because they didn't have weapons,those protests cannot become peaceful protests.It caused a heavy traffic jam.I feel - the only reason for that protest is 'show of strength'. It is a veiled threat that 'be careful,we are huge in number,don't try to mess up with us'.

Sometimes some religious groups object to certain scenes in a movie stating that it hurts their sentiments.No community/religion is an exception to this.Hindu organizations objected to movies like Dasavatharam, Manmathan Ambu etc. Christitan organizations protested against The Da Vinci Code.So do you think these religious groups really reflect the opinion of common people?The answer is big NO.One one hand some religious groups say Murugadoss showed Muslims in bad light,but on the other hand,lot of Muslim guys support the movie and they say there is nothing offensive in the movie.

Common man never bothers about these things.This is a dialogue in the movie Velayutham - "Muslim friend illadha oru Hindu kooda nee kooda paakka mudiyadhu(you can't find a Hindu without Muslim friend)". They might have added this dialogue to appease the Muslim groups,but still its true.For me the first wishes for all Hindu festivals like Vinayakar Chathurthi,Vijayadasami,Diwali etc,will be from my Muslim friend only, who is in Kuwait.It is highly unfortunate that I have to use the term 'Muslim friend' here.Because for us a friend is a friend,religion doesn't matter,but there is no other go,I have to use this term to justify my stand.So the common man is fine.For him Ajmal Lathif is a terrorist and he doesn't see him as Muslim.

Reputed writers and social activists claim,through these protests,the Muslim outfits wants to distance themselves from terrorist activities and showing a terrorist as Muslim hurts them.I am not sure whether this is a true statement.Because some organizations like TMMK(TamilNadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam) has appealed actor Kamal Hassan to screen his Vishwaroopam movie to the Muslim community first and then release the same.I don't know is it really possible to get hurt without even watching a single scene from a movie.The social activists also claim,just because these movies show terrorists as Muslims,Muslims are facing several problems.They link everything like starting from renting a house to getting a visa approved with this.Guys think,is it really fair to blame the makers for visa rejection and all?

After the 11/09 attacks,US has made its visa process very difficult.They are not like India.On one side, the Pakistan rejects all the evidences produced against it by India,but on the other side,India liberalizes the visa policies for Pakistan.We can't expect every nation to be as intelligent as India.People allege Muslims are victimized at the time of visa processing.I have seen lot of Muslim guys going onsite.But one thing - if the assault on American ambassadors and embassies is not going to make the visa policies difficult,movies like Thuppakki or Vallarasu will not have any impact at all.One more question arises - whenever there is a bomb blast or terrorist attack on any part of the nation,carried out by terrorist outfits like LeT,Al Qaeda, SIMI etc,no Muslim groups come to streets and condemn those blasts.They don't even issue a public statement against these attacks.But whenever a movie like Thuppakki or Velayutham releases,they gather in huge numbers.

Another question which most of the activists raise is,why always terrorists are shown as Muslims.Watch the below scene.

It is from the movie Kazhugu,which had Superstar Rajnikanth in the lead role.This movie was based on 'narabali'.Does this mean this is against Hindus or Hinduism?We had a 'Vedham Puthithu' directed by Mr.Bharathiraja,which showed the caste feelings of Hindus.Even in the recently released 'Vaanam', the director(Krish) has shown as if some Muslims become terrorists only because of the harassment by the Hindus.And the Hindu groups objected to this movie,which was also wrong.In the movie Baashaa, the villain's name is Mark Antony,does it mean projecting Christians in bad light? Even in Christian nations, the screening of The Da Vinci Code was not banned,but it was banned in India,later on after going to court, it was screened.So much of respect the minority communities command in India.

When we start fighting for religion or caste for silly things,we cant make a movie at all and such silly fights may even harm the good relationship between Hindus-Muslims-Christians.I am not against any religion.An individual has his own right to follow any religion.Am not against atheists too.As much as one has the right to believe God,one has the right to question the very existence of God too.But we should not fall prey for the politicians who use the religion for their petty gains.When someone makes a movie against any religion,file a case against the movie.A movie like Innocence of Muslims will hurt the religious sentiments.Making such movies is heights of stupidity.But showing a terrorist or any character as a Muslim or Hindu should be considered as the creator's freedom.

We should learn to watch 'Cinema' as 'Cinema'.