Problem with biopics...

Thalavii (தலைவி,  Female Leader, Tamil, 2021)

That is the problem with biopics, primarily if the script covers a big chunk of their lifetimes. In the desire to capture as much of the story as possible, the filmmakers will lose much and not do justice to the legacy they intended to show in the first place. It may end up as a documentary instead. So many things keep happening that it appears like a speeding bus. We notice neither the destination of the bus nor the passengers seated it. 

No one is saying, but it is as plain as day that this biography is of former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, J Jayalalitha. This is also another problem in Tamil Nadu, where people are equally maniacal about their movie stars as they are with their political leaders. Hence, the scriptwriters walk on eggshells to ensure the storyline does not hurt the sentiments of viewers at the expense of messy court cases and the burning of screening halls. They are careful not to delve too deeply into something too controversial. 

The movie starts on a suspenseful note. It recollects an unpleasant event that happened in the Tamil Nadu State Assembly in 1989. During a heated argument between the ruling and opposition, a melee broke out. It ended with Jaya, the opposition leader, being humiliated and disrobed of her saree. Humiliated, she vowed never to enter the august house unless and until she had been elected as the ruling leader. Quoting the scene in Mahabharata where Draupadi had the same fate, Jaya reminded her enemies of the outcome of the Kaurava clan. She challenged them that she is indeed Draupadi who will rise from the ashes.

From then on, the camera rolls back to 1965 when Jaya is just a doe-eyed young cocky reluctant actress who just entered the studio at her mother's insistence. In comes the larger than life MJR (who is none other than MGR). The story's first half is about their romantic liaison but is careful not to portray Jaya as a home-wrecker. They wanted to cover so much ground that everything becomes wishy-washy, all touch and go, lacking depth. 

After much drama, in which MGR supporters complain that their leader was a lame duck and Jaya initiated everything, we see Jaya playing politics in Delhi, with Indra Gandhi and Rajeev Gandhi. Karunanidhi (portrayed as Karuna) is painted as a greedy, power-hungry leader whose only redeeming point is his oratory skills. 

The producers skillfully ended the story by 1991 when Jaya stepped into the Tamil Nadu State Assembly again as the Chief Minister. They probably did not want to stir the multiple corruption allegations, court cases and imprisonment that came later on.

One cannot help but compare this movie to the miniseries 'Queen', which tells the life and times of Jayalalitha. Perhaps that is how biopics should be narrated in multiple episodes miniseries. If one wants to make a movie instead, it should focus on a particularly momentous event in the life of so and so and delve deep into the crannies. Only then we would do justice to the icon and impress upon the viewer his legacy.

The main actors gave impressive impressions of MGR (Arvind Swamy), Jayalalitha (Kangana Ranaut), Karunanithi (Naseer) and Veerapa (MGR's PA, acted by Samudrakani). Of course, the whole film is about Ranaut and her zest to picturise a lady leader who made Indian ladies proud and convinced the average Indian lady that they are no pushovers in a male-dominated field.

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When Ali met MGR!

Sarpatta Paramparai (சர்பட்ட பரம்பரை, Tamil, 2021)
Written, Directed by Pa Ranjith

One can learn a thing or two by watching films, i.e. if one is bothered to check the backstory. This is one rare full-length boxing film in Tamil, coming from a land that usually infuses familial masala to the storyline. In keeping with the timeline the story is set in, in the 1970s, there is ample sprinkling of Tamil Nadu politics to set the mood.

For once, we see actors who really look their part as boxers. The make-up, boxing techniques and the make-believe props that cradles us back to the mid-1970s are convincing enough.

Before watching this film, I did not know that boxing was a passionate sport in northern Madras even before the 1940s. Boxing came to India with the British. In Tamil Nadu, it was named 'kuttu chandei', and it came with its own set of rules. Boxers could not hit each others' faces, not the body. In the early 1940s, it seems there was a black British boxer (some say he is Anglo-Indian) by the name of 'Tiger' Nat Teri was a fighter to be reckoned with. He defeated most South Indian boxers. Arunachalam, the greatest boxer of Madras of yore, fought him but died during the match. Three months later, an up and coming star, Kitheri Muthu, fought him and beat the British at their own game. He hailed from the Sarpatta Parampai (Sarpatta Clan).

Kitheri Muthu and ‘Tiger’ Nat Terry 

The clan does not refer to any caste or creed. It is basically a group of people who live together in the same locale and show allegiance to the Club/Clan/Paramparai. This area in north Madras where this sport became famous comprise shipyard workers and fishermen of all religions, Hindus, Christians, Buddhists and Muslims. The other prominent clans were Idiyappa Naicker Parambarai and Ellappa Chettiyar Parambarai.

With 'Quit India' yells in full force in 1942, Kitheri's victory over Teri was hailed as a booster to the Indian psyche. Periyar and his people in the Justice Party feted him as a Dravidian hero. With that win also, the sport gained popularity. The game went on full force, with enthusiasts from other districts making trips to learn and perfect their techniques.

This movie loosely overlaps with Kitheri Muthu's story but is set during the 1975 Indian emergency. Kabilan, a fervent boxing enthusiast, has his boxing aspirations clipped by his mother. His mother fears that the fate that befell Kabilan's boxer father's life would repeat on her son. Kabilan's father used to be a feared fighter when gangsters from a rival clan knifed him down.

The story tells the competitiveness of the various parambarais and their effort to stage a boxing match amidst the background of National Emergency, witch-hunting of DMK party members (who opposed Indra Gandhi's government), internal squabbling and sabotaging of members.

The hero, Arya, as Kabilan poses with his opposer, Vembuli, in a pre-match photoshoot (Lt) and with his coach, Rangan, played by the talented Pasupathy (Rt). 

M Kitheri Muthu, one of the earliest boxers of the Sarpatta Parambarai.

Ali, the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion, and MGR, the Kollywood heavyweight, hold hands. An electrifying sight to the film-crazed Tamil movie-goers to see the star-politician and inspirational boxer together. Ali came to Chennai in 1980 for a bout with Jimmy Ellis in Chennai's Nehru Stadium. Boxing must have been that popular here that Ali decided to 'dance like a butterfly and sting like a bee' in Chennai. Before boxing became popular in Tamil Nadu, silambam was the primary self-defence sport. Gymkhanas and sports clubs were present even in ancient India.

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A trip down memory lane...

Ragasiya Police 115 (Tamil, 1968; Secret Police 115)

This MGR-Jayalalitha flick is supposed to be Tamil cinema's answer to Ian Fleming's James Bond and Hollywood's swashbuckling loverboy Errol Flynn. Unfortunately, it turned to be more of a light romantic comedy with an occasional espionage work.

The filmmakers decided to harp ever reliable time-tested chemistry of MGR-Jayalalitha and the one-man comedy machine of Nagesh, even though Nagesh does not appear in any of the scenes with the protagonist. To make it family wholesome, there was no dearth of melodious songs and eye-catching psychedelic Eastman colours. The film reminisces the typical 60s Indian movie where the typical crooks (Asokan and MN Nambiar) use trap doors, hidden switches and underground tunnels to hide their ill-gotten spoils. Hey, they are still using the same modus operandi for the same purpose in the 21st century!

Ramu (MGR) is a secret CBI agent who is sent on a mission to thwart a clandestine activity of selling arms to an enemy of the state. In the process, Ramu is sucked into a scheme to befall in love with a dancer who is scavenging on the family loom. Along the way, he develops feelings for his employer, Jayalalitha. As expected, with the power of comedy, music, love ballads, motherly-sisterly love and air-fisting, Ramu saves the day.

N.B. After all the years of singing and dancing together, these two Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu must be redoing all the ballads and the dance steps up in vaikundam! MGR would have been a centenarian this year (born 1917)

Early alien visitations to India

Kalai Arasi (கலை அரசி, Queen of Arts, Tamil; 1963)

Even when extra-galactical adventures, wars of astronomical proportions and extra-terrestrial visits in vimānas are mentioned in the Hindu scriptures, somehow, science fiction movies never really had a following at the silver screen level. A 1952 Hollywood collaborated film 'Kaadu (Jungle)' is the first Tamil sci-fi movie. Many alien visitation film ventures have failed, including Satyajit Ray's effort.

40 years before 'Koi Mil Gaya' burnt the silver screen hailed as the first successful Indian science-fiction flick, Kollywood did indeed release an epic saga of alien visitation, flying saucers and alien abduction. Keeping with the interest of viewers of that era, the elements of romance, songs, dances and swashbuckling scenes were kept very much alive.

This movie almost did not make it to theatres. The project was apparently started in the last 1950s as evidenced by choice of leading actors. MGR and Bhanumathi must have been the hottest pair in the late 50s after their successful pairing in 1955's 'Ali Baba and 40 thieves' (அலி பாபாவும் நாப்பது திருடர்கள்), hence the pick here, I think.  The lyricist who is credited passed away in 1959. The song lyrics were conversational-like, unlike the ones that came out in 1963 where melody, poetry and symbolism were given more importance.

Alien (MN Nambiar) with vision goggles and spacesuit

Talking about its songs, I have to say that, even though I can swear that I had never heard the songs before, they had a haunting feel to it. The lines were quite prophetic. One particular line in the opening song struck a chord with me, 'under enclosure of the blue skies, in the lap of the sea and earth, the Lord of Time rules over us'.  If one were to scrutinise the lyrics, we could also learn about the planet's weather, terrain and its day-night cycle. It had midnight sun and inhospitable environment.

I have a funny feeling about MGR showcasing his atheistic outlook in this movie. As per the norm in most Tamil films, praises and salutations to the God are the order, either in the opening credits or as props. Surprisingly, none of these was present. As if reading my thought, a line was heard, something to the effect of 'time is under the purview of the sun, and that decides all the occurrences on Earth', i.e., not God who runs the world!

Mission: Earth!

Another line which says about the same ideology towards the end of the movie is 'எங்கிருந்தோ வந்தோம், எங்கேயோ போகிறோம்,எப்படி செந்தோமோ, அப்பெடியே செண்டுகிறோம், வருட்டோமோ?' (Don't know where we came from, don't know where we are going to, don't know how we met, the same way we are going.) It looks like the Creator is nowhere in the equation of birth and death. This, the main character (Mohan, MGR) says this to an alien being as he departs from her planet.

The story can be described as a bit wishy-washy sometimes. The filmmakers must have got some of their ideas from 'Flash Gordon' as seen with some of the cinematography. One can sense that some scenes were added. At one juncture, Mohan is running dressed in dhoti just to continue in another locale in pants and trousers. This can be expected as filming had come to a halt due to MGR's other prolific offers and had to rejuvenated years later after the producer held a hunger strike in front of MGR's office!

It starts with MN Nambiar as the commander of an alien ship navigating through milky way past Jupiter and Saturn heading towards Earth (Boologam). Even though his race had attained great heights in the field of science and technology, it lacked wisdom in art and music. The two-manned flying saucer was heading to Earth to kidnap Vani (Banumathi) whom the aliens knew to be good in this field. The mission was to get Vani to teach his people music and singing.

What is Tamil movie without dual roles?

Mohan, a do-gooder farmer, lives with his sister (Sachu) and an old mother. He is in love with Vani, and the feeling is mutual. Aliens abduct Vani and Mohan is imprisoned as the kidnapper. In the meantime, the no-good manager (VS Veerapa) spots a village idiot who resembles Vani as her replacement. Mohan is freed. Mohan spots the alien who was left behind, overpowers him and sneaks into the flying saucer and makes it to the planet where Vani is held.


She is treated well and is promised of her freedom after she imparts her knowledge to the prince of the land. Guess what! When Mohan reaches the planet, he spots his doppelganger who is kind enough to teach him a thing or two about the planet like using anti-gravity shoes and the environment. Unfortunately, he is hit by meteor and Mohan uses his costume to enter the palace as a jester. The rest of the movie shows the princess (Jaishree) falling in love with Mohan, Mohan wriggling himself away from the princess, convincing her of his undying love to Vani, getting a crash course on manning a spaceship, having a duel with MN Nambiar who is keen to get Vani, saving Vani and safely returning to Earth!

Is that a bird or a plane? No, that's a flying saucer!

Bearing in mind that the film was made in the late 50s, it can be said to be quite unconventional. Although you cannot compare it to Star Trek or Star Wars where all the tiny details are thought of, it can be said that they did introduce something new as far as Indian cinema is concerned. The idea of anti-gravity shoes is refreshing. Laser guns came in the form of flame-spewing taser guns. Some of the scenes look like they are preparing the people for a time in the future where spotting a UFO in the sky is as uninteresting as seeing a cow on the Indian street.

Unconventional also is the fact that there were no comedians in the cast. The only light moment that I found is a line at the finish when Mohan and Vani are met by Vani's father and questioned about their disappearance, Mohan just says, "Oh, we were abducted to another planet!" To which the father says, "Oh, come off it, we have a lot of work to do."

Mohan and Vani just say to each other, "One day all these will be possible!"
At another instance, farmers are fascinated by the flames in the sky. Mohan, the knowledgeable one, just tell them matter-of-factly, "Oh, that is a flying saucer in the sky!"

It only goes to show that a revolutionary thought just stays a thought if the time is not ripe for the general public to accept. Many forward thinkers who were way ahead of their times just disappeared without having ideas jotted in the annals of time. The performance arts, literary work and now with the aid of cyberspace, every thought process can potentially reach every nook and corner of the civilisation. Ideas evolve so fast in this restless world that even before you say "Eureka!", your discovery is already yesterday's news.

http://www.thenewsminute.com/article/tamil-film-had-aliens-spaceships-anti-gravity-boots-half-century-ago-44272

http://milliblog.com/2010/08/11/was-mgr-starrer-kalai-arasi-the-first-indian-film-to-feature-an-alien/

Dedicated to SM in JB, you know who you are!
Juno makes it to Jupiter orbit!