Monthly Archives: July 2011

Punnami Naagu (1980)

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Punnami Naagu is almost two films in one. It’s as though someone took a deck of cards marked ‘happy animal friends’ and shuffled it with the deck marked ‘a nagin stole my soul’ and voila!  It was an excellent opportunity to apply the principles in Jenni’s Field Guide.  Apologies for the crappy screencaps – the DVD picture is really grainy. And I didn’t have subtitles so I may have made the whole story up.

A local snake charmer uses his snake coercing powers to kill a priest after he had stopped the snake charmer raping a girl. The priest seems to make some dying invocation or curse, and leaves his young son an orphan.

The priest’s son is adopted by the landlord, and I think god sends an elephant to look after him. The elephant is very maternal, making sure Raju eats and washes regularly. It’s all very family friendly and sweet. When Raju moves in with the landlord, naturally his elephant moves in to the luxurious mansion too, and they grow accustomed to the good life. I would have had seizures looking at that decor, but apparently elephants rise above such things.

Meanwhile the snake charmer is in less happy circumstances, and his son Naagulu is growing up unaware of the curse that will take over his life. The father is feeding Naagulu snake venom in his food to help him become immune to snake bites, and he is being trained to take up the family business. It is lucky he is immune as his snake handling is a bit cavalier – I’m pretty sure they could fang you through a hessian sack. Nevertheless.

Naagulu’s heavily pregnant aunt has an animal helper of her own – a very useful monkey that assists with laundry and has exceptional empathy and communication skills along with basic midwifery knowledge. When little Laxmi is born, all the main players are set for the drama which is to unfold.

It’s a standard boy woos girl story, as Raju and Laxmi flirt and fight and make up, all under the watchful and slightly exasperated gaze of their animal friends who also help to patch up fights and carry messages. There is dodgy dancing, Narasimha Raju has an exceedingly voluminous coiff, the elephant and monkey are smarter than the humans, and that storyline is all quite cutesy. Laxmi (Rati Agnihotri) is bright and confident, their courtship is energetic and they get all the upbeat songs. Raju’s costumes are entertaining even without a story to go along with – Could his collars have been any bigger, his pants any higher? It’s kind of fun, especially a song and dance involving the couple wearing each other’s clothes. Laxmi does not fit any of the clothing or eyeliner indicators, so I suspected the snake thing skipped her side of the family.

But. The dark side of the film starts to emerge.

Chiranjeevi as grown up Naagulu is unaware that he is slowly becoming more snake than human. There are some annoying comedy snake charmers on the scene, and they perform with a troupe which includes a spectacularly flexible snake dancer in a bejewelled bodysuit. Naagulu berates the performers for using the gift as entertainment. He may not know why,  but he cannot control his response to the snake music. It was easy to pick the real snake here, bedazzled Fake Snake notwithstanding.

As his hormones kick in, the lust aspect of the snake character takes over when the moon is full. So it’s a bad idea when Naagulu falls for Raju’s sister Menaka after saving her from a rampaging roaring bovine. I applaud the enthusiasm if not the ability of whoever did the voiceover for the animal – I have never heard a cow go “Grrrr-aaaaaargh” nor have I heard one oink like a pig so I was very impressed. Menaka manages to be quite saucy even when barely conscious and Naagulu was smitten.

This can’t end well, what with Naagulu being lethal and all. He lures young ladies to a lonely spot, where it is always night and swirling with mysterious mists, and the venom contained in his bodily fluids is fatal to them. They are mesmerised by his snake gaze (blue contact lenses – tick!) and don’t seem to notice his odd mannerisms that echo some snake behaviours. In his human state he has no recollection of these interludes.

Back in Raju’s storyline, Naagulu’s father repeatedly stomps on a baby snake and the local snake deity eyes him with a vengeful glare. Duelling snakes ensue as Naagulu’s dad tries to kill Raju with his snake, and the deity pursues the snake charmer with eventual success.  Naagulu’s dad delivers a deathbed monologue which seems to include telling his son that he can never marry as he will poison any woman he sleeps with. This revelation came a bit late for poor Menaka.

Naagulu inherits a book that seems to explain his condition, but now he knows what he is there is no one to help him. Naagulu is devastated by what is happening to his body. His eyes change to those blue contacts, his skin is shedding, and he seems to be in agony as he sees these familiar but totally inhuman changes. And that’s what makes this a bit more interesting than I expected. It’s a strong performance in what started out looking like a fairly silly film. There is more to Naagulu than just the killing and being venomous, and Chiranjeevi shows the transition from carefree boy falling in love to tormented soul.

A new school teacher arrives in the village, and takes a photo of Naagulu that later proves his undoing. He offers to guide her to the village but the sun sets and his cobra nature asserts itself. When Raju sees the significant photo he confronts Naagulu. There is no real outcome, just a scuffle and then everything goes back to normal. I was struck by another snake indicator – venom. During the fight, Chiru bit a chunk out of a tree, which then appeared to ooze blue ink. Both he and Narasimha Raju looked a bit taken aback by that, as was I. Another thing the book clearly neglected to mention was hunting technique. Naagulu keeps trying to bite Raju’s neck, when I suspect a nip at the fingers that were pushing at his face might have been just as lethal.

Despite the rising body count, Raju and Laxmi are still flirting madly and Raju doesn’t seem to be too concerned about all the deaths. But then Naagulu is drawn to his cousin Laxmi and it all becomes much more dangerous.

Luckily Laxmi’s monkey Anji has a reliable mongoose supply and the peril is averted.

This scene was so strange – on the one hand very silly with a mongoose being thrown at Chiru’s face repeatedly as he emoted fiercely, but also a strong defining point in the character’s transition from troubled man to snake.

Naagulu makes an unsuccessful attempt at assaulting a blind girl – she couldn’t see his mesmerising gaze so escaped. Raju and a mob of villagers with flaming torches (led by the elephant) are soon on his trail. Naagulu reveals he cannot control the snake and has become a monster even to himself. Raju cannot help but feel sorry for him and tries to help. But what monster ever gets a happy ever after? And seriously, could Raju’s collars be ANY bigger?

Rajasekhar’s film gave  a bit more food for thought than I was expecting. The Raju-Laxmi romance was sunny and a good contrast to the Naagulu story. The animals seemed fairly un-stressed, with the exception of the spring loaded mongoose and the sacrificial snake, and their antics were highly entertaining if predictable.  It’s a strange mix but overall, I really enjoyed the characters, the unusual story, and the general WTFery. The only thing missing was a Chiru snake dance. 3 stars!

Filmi Snake Spotter’s Field Guide

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We are delighted to have a special guest post for Liz’s Nag Panchami Film Fesssstival by BollyWhat’s resident snake fancier, jenni.

THE ILLUSTRATED FILMI SNAKE SPOTTER’S FIELD GUIDE

If you have ever seen the film Nagin (1976) you will know what I mean.  That is, that you are really much better off if you can identify a vengeful snake, before you are…well….dead.

If only they had been able to access my handy Snake Spotter’s Field Guide.

 original photograph located at  http://www.flickr.com/photos/dramaqueennorma/122105967/

Introduction

In this guide we will illustrate only a small sample of the many hundreds of filmi snake species featured in subcontinental movies, but sufficient, we hope, to show enough of those commonly spotted varieties, and a selection of rarities, to satisfy the beginner and excite the specialist.

Habitat

We have concentrated on snakes that are hardy enough to have tolerated subtitling and You Tube exposure.  The filmi snakes in this Guide are restricted to the DVD and VCD habitats.   Those filmi snakes only found on videotape and 18mm film are extremely rare and outside the scope of this particular guide.  Indeed, VCD snakes are often difficult to glimpse and are dwindling in numbers to the extent that some may even be endangered.  This is due to years of neglect and the gradual encroachment upon, and degradation of, their natural environment.

Methodology

The following observations are based on extensive work in the field and hours of YouTube research.  Although scientific validation has been undertaken through consultation with both acknowledged experts and enthusiastic amateurs in the area, hypotheses are always subject to revision with an expanded evidence base.

Instructions:

It is a simple case of frequency.  The more of the following identifying characteristics present in any film, the more likely you are to have bagged yourself a filmi snake!

 

General Filmi Snake Identifying Characteristics

1. Sex

Most important filmi snakes are female.  Male filmi snakes are generally underrepresented and play a comparatively small role in the proceedings.

2.  Actors

If the actor is an item girl (or even an actor who has repeatedly appeared in item numbers), the likelihood of that person being a snake is increased.

3.  Clothing:

a.  Amount of clothing

It is particularly the case in post 70’s movies, that more of a  ‘reverse proportionate’  factor in clothing increases the likelihood of the wearer of said clothing being a snake.  i.e.  the less, and more skanky, the clothing the more likely the wearer is to be a snake.  This appears to be a rapidly developing characteristic of the filmi snake, likely a genetic evolutionary response set in motion to impede the threat of extinction.

b.  Style of clothing

(i)  Female:  Body hugging attire is generally favoured by filmi snakes, therefore traditional south Indian sari tying styles or short half saris are often seen.

In more western style garb they are not averse to a body suit.

(ii)  Male:  Fairy tale princely garb often involving some kind of tunic, puffy shirt or ruffles are often found in the male of the species in the north of the subcontinent.

Southern males appear to prefer the body hugging styles of their female counterparts.

c.  Jewellery

Snakes are, by and large, nicely accessorised.  In human form one has to forego scales which have a natural glitter and sheen, and frequent attempts are made by filmi snakes to replicate this characteristic.  This is generally achieved with either metallic fabric, or substantial amounts of jewellery.

d.  Headwear

Most snakes appear to have headwear, ranging from

(i)  Everyday Use Headdress: a more subtle form (although still often elaborate from a human perspective) often daywear, frequently features a simple cobra head, usually in gold (often a give-away this one).

(ii)  Big Night Out or Ceremonial Headgear. Most snakes appear to have elaborate and bejewelled headwear for special occasions.

(iii) Confrontational Headgear:  Even more elaborate and intimidating than ceremonial headgear. As in their reptilian form, (e.g. cobra hood), this serves to make them appear more impressive and sexually desirable, more commanding and important, or just more threatening.

4.  Eyes

a.  The more eyeliner that is worn, the more likely that the wearer of said eyeliner is in fact a snake.  Heavy application of eyeliner cannot be underestimated as a hot spot indicator for the filmi snake spotting novice.

b.  Coloured contact lenses are currently popular in the filmi snake community.  There appears to be an evolutionary factor to this characteristic, in that the widespread availability of coloured contact lenses has only occurred since the mid 1980’s.

c. The “I am a snake experiencing murderous thoughts and I mean business”  Look.  Often, The Look will be highlighted with a lurid coloured camera lens filter for extra impact.  Sadly, if you are only recognising the snake at this point, you do not have much longer to live.  However, if you can identify this look when it is directed at others you still have a chance, not only of accurate filmi snake identification, but to execute a hasty exit.

5. Habitat

a.  If the said scantily dressed woman is out late at night in an isolated and often forested place, there is an increased chance that she is a snake.

b.  If there is a snake charmer/holy man present with a bedazzled snake charmer’s pipe (been), it is likely that a filmi snake is nearby.  If said snake pipe is being played, the chance a snake is likely to be revealed soon, is high (see Sound).

c.  Actual snakes or snake houses in the frame increase the likelihood of a genuine filmi snake sighting.

d.  Likewise, an environment filled with snake statues is generally a dead giveaway.

e.  (i)  The Jeetendra Effect 1 – Jeetendra Proper:    For reasons unknown Jeteendra’s presence in any film increases the chance of an appearance by a filmi snake.

(ii) The Jeetendra Effect 2 – Munchausen’s Jeetendra:  Sometimes even a Jeetendra look alike will serve this function (e.g. Naag Muni).

6.  Snake (Been) Music

Snake music appears to serve a number of functions and consequently has a complex relationship with the snakes themselves.  Essentially, snake music can provide a state of ecstatic release and abandon for the snake while in human form, through the medium of dance, albeit only briefly  (for more on Snake Dancing see Activity, part b).  Whilst initially snake music can liberate the snake from the confines of the human form, if this state is maintained for too long, or with sufficient intensity, all vestiges of the human state will be shed and the snake will revert to their inner reptilian nature and eventually, their reptilian form.

Reaction to snake music is not always helpful in discriminating filmi snakes from filmi humans in that both snakes and humans will typically experience strong reactions.  It is the underlying reason for the reactivity, however, that is the singular determinant in accurate identification.  Snake music is often cacophonous to human hearing so they will often cover their ears as a deterrent to an adverse auditory stimulus.  Snakes however, though they might also attempt to mitigate the auditory stimulus, have an adverse reaction only because the snake music in the presence of humans renders their camouflage ineffective and therefore exposes them to increased environmental threat. This is because, as previously mentioned, prolonged exposure, particularly at the hands of a trained professional (i.e. sadhu or another snake), can force any snake in human form back to its reptilian state.

Despite the complexities of the interaction between snakes and their music, for the purpose of snake identification the following is a given: If there is snake music, there are generally snakes.

6.  Activity

a.  A snake orchestra usually indicates that filmi snakes are nearby.

b.  Snake dancing provides a reasonable likelihood of a filmi snake sighting in many instances, as long as the following provisos, contraindications, and cautions are observed:

(i) Proviso

Snake devotees rather than the snakes themselves perform a number of snake dances.  These can generally be distinguished by their comparative lack of eyeliner and relatively modest attire.

(ii)  Contra-indication

For the beginner, an oft-made mistake is the misidentification of women emerging from wicker baskets being real snakes.  Although snakes in their reptile form will often perform for human audiences in a wicker basket under contract to snake charmers, snakes in human form will generally not, and if they do, it is usually only as a ruse.  The tradition of women emerging from wicker baskets draws heavily upon both snake myth and stereotype.  These snake charlatans are generally involved in the entertainment industry and bear nothing more than a passing resemblance to the real filmi snake.  At most this is a symbolic plot device to illustrate an underlying jealous or vengeful nature on the part of the character. Otherwise known as the Snakeus Imposterus or, more commonly, Fake Snake.

Snakes love dancing. Genuine snake dancing most commonly can be categorised into five major categories (there are also minor categories beyond the scope of this guide).  An illustrative example for each category is provided.

1. Discovering Your Inner Snaky Nature dance.

When snakes have been reared with humans, they are sometimes unaware of their inner reptilian nature.  Snake music at maturity will allow these naïve snakes to touch their inner nature and sexuality, eliciting both a sense of freedom and power, sometimes conflicted with a great deal of associated confusion and fear (similar in some ways to the experience of human adolescence).

2.  Mating dance.

Can take the form of either an anticipatory mating/attracting the mate or an actual mating dance with the partner.

3.  Work dance.

Either undertaken in royal snake courts, temples, or (usually in snake form) in conjunction with snake charmers for mostly human audiences.

4. Hunting dance.

This dance has the sole purpose of attracting prey (this skilled re-enactment rather than actual footage is provided for illustrative purposes, given that the actual dance is rarely witnessed – at least by someone who lives to show the video evidence).

5.  Confrontational dance.

May occur when the snake is directly under threat and may involve transformations from human, to reptilian nature revealed but still in human form, to entirely reptilian form.

General Cautionary Afterword

The previous are general guidelines, and for every guideline there is an exception.  Snake spotting can be a dangerous activity so it is best to always maintain a state of being alert (though not alarmed).

It is hoped that this guide enhances both the accuracy and safety of your Sssnake Ssspotting experience.

Anukokunda Oka Roju

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Sahasra  is a B.Comm student, but her passion is singing. She is a smart, confident girl who is an unwanted addition to her step-mother’s household and she tries to keep her head down.  Her friends are an unexceptional bunch of students and singers, and she is an ordinary girl. So why are people trying to kill her?

Anukokunda Oka Roju translates as Suddenly One Day and the answer lies in a missing day in Sahasra’s life. The action took some time to get going, but I always felt there was some underlying sense I just hadn’t uncovered yet. The direction by Chandrasekhar Yeleti is pacy but allows time for the story to unfold in a way that felt realistic enough and the city setting gives a slightly chaotic edge to the action. It didn’t feel like a join the dots story and there were things that seemed irrelevant initially but took on more significance later. The strength of the characterisations helped keep the suspense set to high despite some overly contrived incidents. Once the motivation behind the attacks on Sahasra was revealed I struggled to completely believe in it, but I was so interested in the characters that I eventually found the ending quite satisfying.

Charmme delivers a great performance as a girl in trouble and out of her depth. Sahasra is a talented singer in a studio chorus with ambitions of singing solos for the great film composers. Charmme shows the spark of confidence and joy that Sahasra feels when she is involved in her music, and how that evaporates when she returns home to a less hospitable environment. Her speech and expressions become younger, almost childlike as she seeks to placate her step-mother, but then regains her robust cheekiness when on the phone to her mother. It makes Sahasra’s fear and also her resilience seem real as we see her strength in everyday situations, not just in the struggle to survive.

This is my favourite of Charmme’s performances, and if you want to see a modern heroine carry a film other than a rom-com, this is a great place to start. And she sings a song sort of dedicated to Chiranjeevi so clearly she has excellent taste in film heroes!

Rajesh (Shashank) is a student who runs an unofficial taxi service on the side. He spots Sahasra and chases her demanding money for a taxi fare she doesn’t remember. She denies everything but they keep crossing paths. He rescues Sahasra from a gang of big burly men and in turn becomes a target of sorts. Shashank does an OK job, but as in Sye he doesn’t do any more than just OK. He is suited to this role, and the fight scenes are realistically scuffly and non-heroic, but despite being in a couple of highly dramatic sequences he made little impression.

SI Suresh Reddy (Jagapathi Babu) is an odd character. A corrupt and eccentric juice-swilling policeman, he is in the vicinity when Sahasra is attacked. His investigation is motivated by both judicial and personal concerns – unbeknownst to Sahasra, her father was in talks to marry the pair. He is socially awkward and falls for her like a ton of bricks.

Jagapathi Babu is brilliant at showing glimpses of the awkward guy with a crush as well as the confident bully. His eccentricities seem to stem more from boredom in his career and his life, and when he means business, he is convincing. He takes on the investigation and at first is totally unwelcome in Sahasra’s life and her friends resist him. But he gets results and as he unravels the events, he realises that other mysterious deaths may be related and Sahasra is in more trouble than she knows. His character builds over the course of the film, and I found myself first dismissing him as a corrupt nutter, but then anxiously looking for his face in the crowd as things looked grim for Sahasra.

Sahasra’s friend Shwetha (Pooja Bharti) took her to a party and Sahasra’s drink was spiked. This is the reason for the lost time, and lost memories. The drugs were let go by Suresh Reddy when he took a bribe from the dealer so his involvement takes on another dimension. The dialogue (by Ganga Raju Gunnam) was excellent, often amusing and very illuminating in terms of character insights. The girls are such different characters and I liked that they were shown as disapproving but not bitchy. There are a couple of dialogue exchanges where the girls discuss sex and it is refreshing to see friends who can tell each other they think the other is an idiot but without rancour.

The safe sex message is loud and clear and despite being linked to an unwanted pregnancy, I didn’t feel that the girl was being demonised, and she certainly wasn’t made to suffer or repent. In fact, the good girl was the one to walk out of the hospital and nearly be killed. It was an interesting detour and suited the low key modern urban setting and the cast of 20-somethings. Sahasra is a typically good girl heroine, but her friends are diverse (although very much in the background) and that makes her more relatable and real.

It was this level of detail in the characterisations that made the film so engaging for me. These people had lives I could identify with to an extent, and their motivations were believable. Sahasra’s home life was complicated by her father’s remarriage, but her step mother wasn’t a crazy evil stereotype, just a bit of a bitch. Shwetha was partially responsible for her friend’s predicament because she didn’t speak up at first, but she was still a good friend when Sahasra needed support. Rajesh had debts and aspirations, but didn’t let his own plans blind him to a person in need. Suresh could have used his authority to pressure Sahasra but he backed off and when she came to him, he helped and did it in as sensitive a manner as he could. There is a scene at the end where Suresh just says what he needs to say to the guy who he thinks might get his girl and it’s touching but realistic.

There is a comedy sideplot, but mercifully it is carried mostly by the very likeable Harsha Vardhan as a hapless school teacher and neighbour, and to an extent by Rajesh in his taxi. The comedic incidents do all in some way feed back into the main story, and involve relevant characters. Harsha Vardhan wins my special gold star for most excellent insults delivered in delightfully plummy English.

And there was a fight in a music shop which I enjoyed a lot as it was funny and still menacing – and Charmme acquitted herself pretty well before her rescuer turned up.

The M.M.Keeravani soundtrack is effective and all the songs have their place either illustrating characters or incidents, so there were no breaks in the dramatic tension just because people burst into song. The cinematography adds to the mood, using changing angles and distances to show the pursuit, but balancing that with character focussed shots that reveal people’s inner thoughts and hopes.

It’s a really enjoyable thriller and I highly recommend it. I have to make a minor deduction for an over the top although rarely seen bad guy, and his motivation. But the conclusion for the three main characters is satisfying and a little less predictable than it might have been. 4 stars!