I dont know how to write a review on this maverick filmmaker.So I am apologising that this is an effort to write a few lines about this genius.I dont know whether I deserve it or not..i mean, to write about him..!!!
It all started when producer ’venus’ Gopal rathnam’s MBA student son came back to his native with the wish to make films.He was studying at Jamna Bajaj Institute of Management, Delhi.His name was Manirathnam.He didnt take any help from his producer brother G.venkateshwaran to make his kind of movie..On the other hand he chose the difficult path...He and his film buff freinds took a flat and they spent their lives there for one year just discussing films and writing screenpalys...Atlast they came up with a screenplay which didnt work out...they parted...after sometime...Manirathnam got a producer who is a kannadiga and he wanted to make this movie in kannada langauge...Mani didnt think in any other way ...he said ’yes’.....He later revealed in an interview that " I would ve make a chinese film at that time even if I didnt know chinese, and that will be a very good chinese film....becoz that time a producer was the most important person in my life.."
Manirathnam had proper plans about making a movie.He directly went to critically acclaimed cinematographer Balu Mahendra.Balu mahendra asked him about his film industry experience..."Did you work in any films as an assistant director.."......"No sir"......"Well..You ve worked with any screen writers...?"........."No sir"........."aah.....Are you a film institute graduate ..?"........"No sir.."..........This time Balu mahendra got shocked.....A 24 year chap comes to a veteran like Balu mahendra and talking him all these non sense.....he asked "Then how can you make movie....?......."I will make sir, if you are with me and I am not ready to loose my years in training of direction...i want to direct a movie......"
This was the beginning......The shooting is on.....They shoot the film in Old quiet Bangalore with...
..with...Anil Kapoor and Lakshmi in the lead roles..Ilaiyaraja has done the music...
...Mani has shot one of his most beautiful song sequence in his very first film...the lighting was very natural that u cant recognize that this is a cinema and there is lights...Brilliant cinematography by Balu mahandra..........The song was "Nuvaga Nayana madhura mounaa.."..which is a vey sweet song later became Idea mobile network’s theme music as ..."thara thaa thara thaa thara thaan tha"...
Because the ad filmmaker R Balki who directed the idea mobile ad was a great fan of Ilaiyaraja and
When balki made his first feature film, he made Ilaiyaraja compose for his film..The film was Bachan-
Tabu starrer "Cheeni Kum"...
Manirathnam got state award for the best screenplay for the movie by karnataka government....Movie didnt do well in box office...thenhe went back to tamil film industry..things didnt work out..nobody helped him...he came to kerala and made "Unaroo" with Mohanlal with whom he later worked in ’Iruvar’..."Unaroo" is a very brilliant film with communist ideologies and the film showed the decline of a communist leader when he came to a well designated post...Sukumaaran portrayed this character.
Mohan Lal is the hero of the movie.....he has done that character with extra brillaince that you will doubt that whether it is Mohan Lal or who.....? He really got into his character’s Shoes....But "Unaroo" too didnt work in the box office.....
Again Mani went back to tamil filmdom where he made the movie "pagal nilavu" with murali, Revathy and Satyaraj as the politician villain...This film told the story of a racketeer who work for a bad politicia
n , falling in love with police officer’s sister.Ram gopal Varma later remade this film in telugu and hindi as "Antham" and "Drohi.."..with Nagrajuna and Urmila Mandotkar in lead.."Pagal Nilavu too failed at Box office miserably but the famous film personalities in tamilnadu noted the new director..
Next it was ’Classic" in the making..."MounaRagam"....what I can write about this movie....? ..A real brilliance..Mani made it in the box office with this movie.....And if you watch the movie you will find how bold and brilliant , manirathnam is..because he didnt make any compromise in this film even after stepping into three failures......Anyway I cant make a review about this movie because I am not qualified for that...Mohan , Revathi, Karthik featured in this movie..Topnotch Brilliance....Cinema
tography by P.C.Sreeram...Ilaiyaraja’ music broke the cassette selling record of all time....
Then Its "Nayagan".....I wont tell anything about Nayagan except it is nothing but a "Vishwaroopam of a roaring intelligence"...the movie is inspired by the Coppola film "The godfather" and manirathnam put the stuff in indian mileu..."Nayagan found its place in TIME magazine’s 100 film
s of all time.....I think you got it...that’s what a masterpiece it is.....Kamal Haasan won the national award for the best actor....Even still today people hums...."thenpaandi cheemayile therodum veedhiyile..."
Then mani wanted to make a slick stylish film.thats "Agni Nakshtram"....The film was a superhit.....
Mani sir proved that a good director doesnt need any content to entertain the audience by this film....
The film had made up of most stylish cinematography and music...Real brilliance...and this is the most commercial movie of mani sir till date..
"Anjali"...cinematography by Madhu Ambatt.......Children choreography in indian films for the first time...Anjali is a timeless classic..the film has got no story but a theme...only a strong theme.....its like walking on a thin rob....Ultra Brillaince...Quentin tarantino, Steven speilberg, Martin scorsese comes to india to join Mani sir’s school to study what’s film direction is all about.........
"Dalapathi"...Classic based on the karna-Duryodhana relationship in Mahabharatham.The first movie in which Rajnikanth takes a one crore rupees to his home as his remuneration.....Santhosh sivan has broken all paths of cinematography and all the indian filmmakers agreed that "kings are many but the emperor is one that is "mani"..
Roja....Introducing Mr..Mr.....".A r rahman ".....rocked....rocked..
Thiruda thiruda...Brilliant movie in which ram gopal varma served as a story writer...later varma made it in hindi with a little difference....."Daud" which flopped miserably...P C Sreeram and A R Rahman and Mani in competition...Akela cranes, Colour Grading, Background score, Audiography.
"A cowboy film in Tamil.."....people refers this film to "butch cassidy and sundance kid"...well things are far different from that...Chandralekha....thee thee..veerapaandi kottayile...raasaathi....kann
um kannum kollayadichaal.....Songs rocked metros and villages at the same time...
Bombay...a film about the bombay hindu-muslim riot.......Ithu janambhooomi..ithu engal bhoomi...ithil raktham seentha enna kaaranamo......Go and commit suicide if you didnt watch this movie.....disfigured the box office numbers of "The jurrasic PArk " of spileberg chap, that year in India..
I will write more about his other film in an other review....here mouthshut doesn’t allow me the enough space to write all that.....anyway, Kitna hum kahe tho uthna kam hai..Tehzeebom kaa woh sangam hai...!!!!!!!