Doing the right thing by whose standards?

Jagame Thandhiram (ஜகமே தந்திரம், Tamil, The Universe is Cunning; 2021)
Written and Directed: Karthik Subbaraj

Do not expect any high brow stuff here. This is purely a masala movie with a 'feel good' element with little cerebral activity involved. Suruli, a gangster from Madurai, Tamil Nadu, is summoned to London to be a consultant to a bigoted white gangster. The kingpin, Peter, is having a hard time with a rival Sri Lankan Tamil gang, and only Suruli seems capable enough to clip their activities.

Like a faithful dog and a coolie, showing gratitude to the alms strewn to him, Suruli hunts down Peter's nemesis, Sivadoss. After gunning down Sivadoss, Suruli realises that Sivadoss was actually a modern-day Robin Hood who had made it his life goal to help illegal immigrants who come into the UK from war-torn countries by getting them valid documents. His criminal activity helped to finance his noble intention. He contends that since the UK and its allies are responsible for all the world's population displacement, his nefarious activities are justified.

Suruli then changes allegiance and work for the rival faction. Through their language commonality, he gangs up with the remaining members to avenge Peter instead for his white supremacist stance. 

Although the storyline is nothing much to shout about, it did manage to bring out a few common questions that plagued the Indian psyche. It is a commonplace to compare Indians' behaviour to that of crabs. In a bucket of crabs, each crab would pull on the other, preventing the other from climbing out. 

It is also said that the Indian diaspora been has been subjugated so long under the colonial powers that they tend to seek validation from their former colonial master, even now. Macaulay's vision of wanting Indians to turn their backs on their glorious past has reached its intended target. Now, the former colonial masters have sepoys and baboos running around bending backwards doing their dirty job. The masters, through their years of warring, have mastered the art of instigating brothers to fight each other. They not only sit back and watch the melee, but they also fan the fire!

Kattabomman to Jackson
"How dare you!"

History buffs can remember a particular time in Indian history when the British were making inroads into India, then the country with almost a quarter of all world's GDP. The European traders tried to play the role of peacemakers and deal brokers by instigating wars between chieftains. A scene where a local leader, Ettappa Naiyanar, acting cahoots with the British Collector, Jackson Thurai, to win over Kottabomman comes to mind.

Everyone claims to be fighting for the truth, that the truth will prevail after all. Then the question is, what is that thing called truth; truth as decided by whom? In the case of this film, the protagonist thinks he is siding the party that is doing the right thing. The other feels that Suruli is a sell-out as he derails the Sri Lankans' efforts to give their brother-in-arms a chance at survival. 

Money changes everything. It gives status, recognition and takes care of generations to come. Once an obscene amount of wealth is usurped (and the usurper goes scot-free), everything is sanitised.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Loyalty, only so much!

Viswasam (Loyalty, விஸ்வாசம், Tamil; 2019)

I was ushered into this movie through word of mouth. The ardent Tamil movie fan who recommended this film allegedly cried through many scenes and promoted it as a good Fathers' Day promotional film as well as to showcase the love between a daughter and her father.

It appears that I am either emotionally blunt or that I have watched way too many movies to appreciate any new ones. It seems that all storylines followed three and four pre-set time-tested formulas. In intermingling plots and changing setting and actors, the moviemakers think they got a winner. Something must be wrong with me. Even though I do not think highly of this film, apparently the film is a certified blockbuster, broken box-office and is approved by the Broadcast Audience Research Council, an organisation that owns and manages a transparent, accurate, and inclusive TV audience measurement system as surpassing many records!

Is it just me or has this story been told and re-told in many presentations generations over? That two people of contrasting background should tie the knot only for one party to discover that mistake has been made. With a child to seal the relationship, later on, they go separate ways. Circumstances require re-kindling of bonds. Ego comes to picture to prevent each party to admit mistakes. Tragedy in the form of threat to life binds all together. This happens with and in spite of humanly impossible feats. We just have to accept the fact, without question, that an oversized greying man could do flips and fight scores of known bad-ass gangsters, be fit enough to wrestle hoodlums despite being in ICU just minutes before the encounter and the jumbling up of time and space in the perspective of the story! The audience is becoming an educated lot. With the ease of information at their disposal, they are becoming well-versed with what the rest of the world has to offer. Loyalty, like the title of the movie, only lasts as long the fun quotient lingers on. 

Using the same melancholic tunes, using a soft lens in filming to stir nostalgia and sad, helpless facial expression to kindle emotions only can work so much. The fan base will get fed up and start looking elsewhere for thrills.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Am I missing something?

Thani Oruvan (Lone Man, தணி ஒருவன்,  Tamil; 2015)


This movie was highly recommended by a friend, a connoisseur of Tamil films of sorts, for its atypical storyline. So, I gave it a go. Sadly, it was nothing like how he described.

I fail to understand why some films keep on using the oft-tested formula of a lone man fighting and eventually defeating a corrupt society controlled by an evil conglomerate. How many times we have seen perfectly executed outlandish plans going on with Swiss-like precision. And how many police jeeps-flying stunts, dodging the bullets scenes and pyrotechnic display can one stomach?

Too many stories of shady politicians working in cahoots with corrupt law enforcement officers and unscrupulous people in business come to mind when we view this movie. The only different thing here is Arvind Swamy, the favourite moustachioed droopy-eyed heart-throb of the 90s. He is back. Instead of playing his usual lover boy role, he plays the role of a ruthless badass scientist who has no qualms about selling an Indian discovery which can potentially cure diabetes to foreign establishments for profit.

And another new in this flick is how a father is abused verbally and even murdered off by his son! This must surely be a downright low stunt to create sensationalism.

Maybe I am missing something here. This movie cannot be all that bad if, after this Tamil release, it was remade and is planned to be made in Telugu and Bengali as well as Hindi (Salman Khan starred), Kannada and Marathi respectively.

Comic, horror, PSA all in one!

Muni 2 - Kanchana (முனி-2 - காஞ்சனா, Tamil 2011)
Written, Produced, Directed, Starred by Raghava Lawrence

In order to be a commercial success, a Tamil movie has to cater for all layers of the viewers. Hence, that is why this movie, which is supposed to be in the genre of horror comedy (like Ghostbusters), had to infuse many synchronised ala-Michael Jackson Thriller type of dances and community message like the LGBT issue to ensure promising returns of investments.

Raghava Lawrence, who started off as a dancer like Prabhu Deva, has come a long way just like him. Here, he appears as a swashbuckling youngster who beats up ruffian in the daytime but turns into a fur-ball at night, a curl up scaredy cat at night who sleeps with his mother and is afraid to pee alone! His pairing with Kovai Sarala is a great selling point. In fact, Kovai Sarala singlehandedly leaves the audience in stitches with her many antics as Raghava inadvertently brings in the spirit of the Kanchana, the ghost into the house!

Raghava and mother lives with Raghava's brother, wife and two kids in a big bungalow with Raghava's love interest (Raghava's brother's sister in law, Priya [Laxmi Rai]) coming in to spice up the screen for a holiday. It sets a scene for Raghava to showcase his slapstick comedy and dance moves in synchronised dream scenes dance manoeuvres .

Muscle man Sarathkumar
(ex Mr Madras) in transgender role

The second part of the film sees Raghava possessed by Kanchana the ghost and starts showing effeminate demure, in dressing and conduct. It takes a full form of possession when the family summons ways to exorcise the ghost - Ragahava acts as a lady, a child and a North Indian Muslim man, much like Vikram in 'Anniyan'.

The successful exorcism was done by mystic Islamic priest who traps the spirit of Kanchana into a corner and later into an urn. Then it was the ghost's turn to tell of her sad story. In comes Sarath Kumar, the Tamil film muscle man, in flashback in full glory of a woman in saree, bosomy blouse, long locks, vermilion pottu and all as a transgender beating up a guy for disturbing her transgender college going adopted kid! Kanchana relates her childhood of being ostracised by her family for her gay tendencies, her adoption by a kind Muslim man and his retarded son - who were the ghost characters that Raghava was possessed. Kanchana whose birth name was Kartikeyan grows up to adopt another transgender individual who goes to medical school. Kanchana was cheated of her land and murdered together with her family and she was back for revenge. Expectedly, the hero rights the wrong. Sweet revenge is plotted and equilibrium is maintained - a piece of cake.

Kovai Sarala

The commercial success of the film which has gone into franchise is evident from the various remakes and dubbing efforts into other languages. You know you had hit it big when there is talk of casting Shahrukh Khan in a Hindi remake! The sequel of this film is out now - 2015.

Interesting to see various cultures in India blend seamlessly into the story. The secularism of the nation is clear when you see a Hindu with all trademarks of his religion entering a mosque respecting the local culture seeking help from the holy men without much hullabaloo. Even though exorcism of evil spirit is taboo is certain sects of Islam, it is acceptable to those in the Sufi sect.

This write up would not do justice if the doyen of comedienne of Tamil comedy, after the great era of Manorama is not mentioned. Kovai Sarala, who made her presence known in the 90s plays a pivotal role in inducing laughter as Raghava's mother. Her mere voice and her antics as a over-protective mother surely brightened up this rather unusual approach in film making and leave audience rolling in stitches.

The clash of the classes again.

Uyarntha Manithan (உயர்ந்த மனிதன், The Man in High Esteem, Tamil; 1968)

My friend once described this Sivaji's movie as the one where he gave his performance. So I thought I would give it go for it. It turned out to be another masala with loads of melodrama, poetic justice and a little bit of humiliation and thoughts of various social classes.
Rather than looking at the story line which was quite predictable, I was keen to see the hidden messages, lessons in life, dynamics of an Indian family value in play here.
At a time when the elite were kings, Sivaji's father expects the working to be always a step lower than the bosses. The workers are not even allowed to wear footwear in their presence. Sivaji, the newer breed, does not subscribe to this idea. In fact, he falls in love and marries a village girl on the sly. His father, on discovering the truth, goes the full nine yards to quash the union. He sets her hut on fire right in front of Sivaji's view with his pregnant wife and father still inside (of course, so they think).
Back in his family home, Sivaji is blackmailed by his father pointing a pistol at his own temple, to get him married to a rich family friend's daughter, Sowkar Janaki. I guess it gives a new meaning to the phrase 'shot gun wedding'.
Feeling guilty for not being able his loved pregnant wife from the fire but at the same time, being a filial son, agrees to remarry.
19 years on, as fate has it, Sivaji is childless with his second wife. He is successful but carries the cloud of hopelessness with him. His comrade (S A Asokan), a doctor by profession, who was in partner in crime during his first marriage and was also interested in the same girl before sacrificing in the name of friendship, is a constant reminder to Sivaji of his past folly.
By twist of fate and twist of story written to satisfy the Tamil movie buffs, the son (Sivakumar) starts working in Sivaji's household as a butler. His mother had died but not before passing him a framed photograph of herself.
The story hovers on to show the unhappy marital life that Sivaji leads, Sivaji lamenting on the hardship of adulthood, Sivaji dragging on with life to maintain status quo with order and finally meeting up with his long lost son to wash away all his misdeeds.
A predictable overacting masala with beautiful music and incisive dialogue on facts of life....

A sample of overacting by Asokan who deviates from his role of villain 

Who needs an army?

Jai Ho (2014, Hindi)

I thought the overused formula of one man's fight against a corrupt country is so yesterday, so 1990s and only works for South Indian movies involving new faces. Obviously, I am wrong. A Bollywood veteran thinks it will work and eavesdropping on the response of the contented praises from the viewers after the show, I guess it is going to be another cracker for Salman Khan!

Half of the crew of Ham Saath Saath Hain (1999) teamed up for this movie. (+Salman Khan, there are Tabu and Mohnish Bahl)
It is actually a remake of a 2006 Telugu film (Stalin) which had its idea from Hollywood's 'Pay it Forward' of 2000.
The unbelievable saga of a unceremoniously dismissed army officer go around righting wrongs of a corrupt society and in the process endangering his helpless family members is nothing new. Every time, we watch such a movie, the public tend to think a new dawn will come where society would be courteous and politicians would be honest. Dream on. At least that 2 hours in the cool ambiance of cinema would give you a temporary respite from the daily insanity of life.
I thought  the first part of the movie appeared disjointed as the dialogue, background music which a tad too loud and the acting was not in synchronicity. In spite of the believable well choreographed fighting scenes and the road chase scenes, we are not drawn into the movie.
There was a light moment in the cinema where the whole audience were in stitches. An actor was seen talking on  his i-Phone, held obviously upside down and the shot was repeated!
In short, it was a feel good movie hoping to earn some brownie points for the image of Salman Khan as a do-gooder who is seen kind to the handicapped and the underprivileged. 2/5

Stop! In the name of love...

Ram-Leela a.k.a. Goliyon Ki Raasleela (Play of Bullets, Hindi; 2013)

In my book of review and Rotten Tomatoes, this film would fall somewhere between decaying fly-infested flavanoids lost tomato and a maggot-infested putrefying one.

A century ago, when the sub-continent was experimenting with the silver screen, it chose 'Raja Harishchandra' from its vast reservoir of traditional folklore. In time, the story of love took many turns and U-turns to depict love in innumerable possibilities. Occasionally, new formulas would produce many copy cat follow-ups with the same storyline but different settings. Mostly, the films would end depicting poetic justice, satisfying society's beliefs, traditions, and fragile society structures.
Maybe I am a sucker for a good storyline and unexpected twists. Hence, when the credits rolled in to announce that the story was based on 'Romeo and Juliet', I was tad disappointed.

In a flash, the whole story flashed in front of me. We all know the story of Shakespeare's momento of undying love which ended in tragedy. So, it was... the story of two promiscuous teens dancing around the streets in the fashion of a musical in various degrees of dressing and undressing, finding 'love at first sight' type of forbidden love, in tumultuous times, with 'over-my-dead-body' type of opposition from either party ending with untimely death with the love-struck couple leaving the world to live happily on the other side.

Exposing a sculptured body is Indian Culture.
Bodybuilding started here.

The movie's saving grace would be the well-choreographed dances set against the picturesque backdrop of Rajasthan with the kaleidoscopic gaudy crimson and dark green combination clothing with rhythmic, repetitive gyration of body parts. Suppose you think Tamil movies over glorify violence where the most the petite of beau brandishes a samurai sword (e.g. Trisha in Tirupachi). In that case, their counterparts dance jubilantly emptying the contents of their Kalashnikov assault rifles in the air as they danced in the name of the Gods and Indian culture! 

People who decide to tour Rajasthan after viewing this film hoping to find pretty oversexed deep cleavaged abdomen revealing ever dancing lasses with faces like Deepika Padukone in the deserts of Rajasthan may be in for a shock. Maybe not the protective patriarchal guardians who have no reservations about honour killing! 

Unifying masala

Chennai Express (2013, Bilingual - Tamil/Hindi)
Another cheesy typical Bollywood movie that would satiate the appetite of the masses as well as the coffers of the producers - it has set the history of being the highest grosser surpassing '3 Idiots'!
It tells the story of a 40 year old sweet merchant (Rahul, SRK, who else) orphan who grew up with his grandparents. His 100 year old granddad dies and to fulfill the deceased's wishes, he has to spread his ashes in Rameshwaram in the southern tip of India.
Rahul is upset because it interferes with his grand plans to holiday with his friends in Goa. He tricks his grandma into believing that he is leaving by train when his friends are actually waiting at the next station. Unfortunately, Rahul gets into the same compartment as Meenammal (Deepika Padukone). Meena, the daughter of a villager gangster, is escorted back to her village by her father's henchmen after she tried to abscond from being married off to another gangster cousin.
Rahul gets pulled into the web of mis-communication, deceit and violence to follow Meena to her village. Bla, bla, bla, Rahul hates Meena, Bla, bla,bla, Fights, eloping, in another village, situations, understand, fall in love, goes to Rameshwaram with the urn of ashes, fights with gangsters, fall, rises from ashes like phoenix fights the villains, wins the heart of the girl and everybody is happy!
As you can see, it did not really win my heart. As Indians all passionate about classic story lines and dialogues, the filmmakers have successfully used these formulas. Many scenes are reminiscent of classic Hindi and Tamil movies. The early scene of the heroine running to alight a moving train is ashamedly similar to Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. It is probably done to draw the audience to the aura of the evergreen hero since the 90s. A letter throwing incident involving different young couple to be at a secret rendezvous is eerily same as a scene from Muthu. So is a scene where the couple is on the run. They are treated as a couple in a land with Kerala background.
Sadly, many of the talented Tamil actors' might is wasted here. Sathyaraj, besides his masala wise talk cracking matinees, his acting is quite recommendable in films like 'Periyar'. Delhi Ganesh's ability also goes to waste. I suppose the viewers are going to the theatres not to see this oldies but to see their favourite pint evergreen actor challenge the massively muscular gundhas, take them one on one or many, fall, rise with rejuvenated zest by the  power of love, make a come back, put a scythe at the neck of the opponent to put his claim on the girl of his choice and feel good about it, not to analyse and criticize!
The release of the film coincided with India's Independence Day with the aim of uniting the country especially the Hindi speaking and the Tamil speaking population of India. At the same time, so as not to upset the southern viewers with their brand of stereotyping and jokes, the director must have come up with the skeet that idolizes the uncrowned King of Tamil Nadu - Super Star Rajnikanth.