After a long (with 30 O’s in it)...I am writing a review at MS!!!
Azhagiya Theeyae
When everybody is busy churning out hero-bashing-the-corrupt-villain or mine-is-an-essentially-different-movie kinda movies,
Here comes..... a refreshing movie which doesn’t try to be stylish, new or anything pretentious.
3 Cheers!
Everybody knew clearly what they were looking forward to while making the movie.
The producer Prakash Raj, The director Radha Mohan, The Dialogue Writer Viji (three ’wow!’s there), all of them deserve an applause.
The movie is intensely funny in some parts.
I ought to mention abt the innumerable number of references and digs it takes at the world of tamil cinema and cinema in general to a certain extent - movies ranging from thiruvilayadal to boys find themselves a reference in the dialogues.
The best of the lot is the scenes involving prasanna and prakash raj!!
Prakash Raj’s emotional reaction to Prasanna’s extemporean-story-weaving is a treat to watch!
Oh.. mist? Pani sirpam? Nandhini? Oh!!! How Rommmantic!!
(Though ppl thought the koothu-p-pattarai guys predominantly chithappa really stole the show. I personally feel prasanna was no lesser and as his scenes with prakash raj are the ones which are actually part of the story, they stand out!)
The story is about 2 ppl.
Chandran (Prasanna very natural and witty), who wants to make it big as a film director. The friends and Roomies of Chandran, Chithapa (Kumaravel), Bala (Bala) and Moorthy (Jayavarma), who too are aspiring to make it in film industry (Chithapa as a comedy movie maker and Bala who writes love subjects are enuf a premise for the movie for innumerable references to films. and not in any scene forced coz all of them are involved in the industry they do speak tht way! third guy, murthy wants to become a film actor) are very impressive.
The way they speak is vey natural and is devoid of all cliches.. esp. the scence in which chandran and co. come to know of the job taken by murthy.. even after murthy getting emotional, telling he wanted to earn something when the chaps are without their jobs.. the scene does end in a lighter moment ( chithapa : enna thaan irunthaalum unna maari oru piravi kalaignan... road’la.... and Bala : ivuru periya abdul kalaam.. ivuru paera kedukkaraanga...)
Thats all life is abt. isnt it? ppl dont get senti and cry together in real lives..
The other protagonist is Nandhini (Navya Nair.. good for a newcomer tho comes in with over-expression at times) who wants to get out of the patriarch System, father-brother duo in her house (she thinks all men are the same and so doesn’t want to marry and definitely not the one chosen by her dad).
When Nandhini’s father arranges for her marriage with Aravind, a software tycoon in U.S. (Prakash Raj in an excellent cameo!), she seeks help from her friend’s bro (who is like her bro), who in turn is Chandran & Co.’s friend. Chandran, reluctantly etches out a plan (he is sought coz he is an aspiring writer-director and asked to find what would be his idea if it that will stop the marriage; but ends up playing the lead role himself in his ’script’). A visibly hurt Aravind (watch out for chandran safe-keeping his coke tin!) after listening to Chandran’s appeal that he and Nandhini are in love with each other lambasts Chandran and later feels sorry for what he did.
In a second meeting in the beach (xlnt scene this one!), he is greatly impressed by Chandran’s character and determination to make it big. He takes a further step in arranging the marriage of the ’’lovers’’ without nandhini’s father’s (a repeat peroformance for V Natarajan, now a prototype for such characters. But does have few good dialogues to mouth!) knowledge. And to safeguard them, gives his flat for the married couple to stay, and leaves for the US.
Then they live together reluctantly until they taste success after which the movie ends very predictably.
Its Chithapa who gets the meat in comedy scenes with Annachi. However, the comedy sequence of Chandran and Chithapa looking for a ’puppy’ is unnecessary and deviating from the original story.. but yeah ends with Chithapa’s timed dialogue - ’’cha.. aniyaayathukku engappaa’vellam izhuthu kaevalap paduthinae’da’’)
Quoting dialogues generally doesn’t happen in tamil films.
The contemporary Masters (whose dialogues could be quoted!) for me are Kamal Haasan, Crazy Mohan and Sujatha.
Well this movie does have some memorable dialogues.. like..
in the beach scene... after aravind fights out with a thief,
Chandran : Sir, aedho satham....
Aravind : I just broke his (the thief) hand.
Chandran : Enna Sir?
Aravind : Avan Kaiya odachittaen.
Chandran : Nallathu Sir! (in a hurried low voice)
There are hell-a-lotsa references to other movies which form an interesting piece of trivia for movie buffs...
Eg.:-
appo, muthuraman ’kku vantha santhegam enakkum vanthuthu...
oru bullet.. velai 50 Rooba.. ennoda selavu
Annachi : aiyo.. adhu paavadai trouser’laa.. Nallaa irukkumma?
Chithapa: Kamal’ukke nalla irunthappa ungalukku nallaa irukaadhaa?
Bala: Appo, Naama Balachander School’kku povom’aa?
The movie doesnt come without flaws..
the comedy track, tho very well-equipped, hinders the pace of the movie, at times. And some jokes are very cliched. Like someone calling ’bala anna’ etc.
the ending tho not at the railway station, it is equally implausible (i personally feel tht BOOM theory is not all tht covincing..)
the other plot proccedings (like chandran’s parents coming to his place etc.) don’t have much impact.
The killing of Murthy is criminal as far as the plot goes. Maybe the writer wanted to add the twist of murthy telling nandhini abt chandran’s love. But ends up like an unintended reference to Boys. :=)
songs are very ordinary. and if at all, catchy the recording gives it an effect as if u r listening it in a hand-radio-set. Some of them do not come at right places as well. The rambha song and the song tht comes afte the nandhini’s marriage is stopped by chandran. And even all the rest of the songs to different extents.
dialogues at times are very formal.
murthy : naan unakku kettathu nennappaena’da? (in the park asking chandran if he loves nandhini...
a mentionable dig here goes like ’’eppavum love sollaama iruntha murali’yae ippallam thaan love’a solla aarambichittaaru!.. ’’ :-))
The Flashback employed didn’t have any significant effect and was jus a gimmick used to show a character (Devadarshini) with knowledge of the story jus as the audience.
Anyway, this is a movie very-much-worth-watching at a time when remakes or movies of ’’Good Vs Bad’’ kind are the only ones tht rule the industry...
A Welcome Change!
3 Stars (or perhaps 3 1/4 stars!)
P.S. : (Forgot to Add) Do RRC guys!