Aadukalam

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I first saw Aadukalam when it released in the cinema and despite the lack of subtitles was so completely drawn into the story that I didn’t want the film to end. I was very surprised that I enjoyed it so much since the film centres around cockfighting, which is something I abhor and wasn’t keen to watch on-screen. It was really only the Vetrimaran and Dhanush connection that got me through the door, but I’m so glad that it did. While the film didn’t change my views on the subject it was a lot more watchable than I anticipated, helped considerably by this statement in the opening credits and the fact that the cockfighting scenes were quite clearly CGI.

The film focuses on the relationships between the main characters and how these change as their circumstances alter. Alliances are made and broken, and pride and prestige are the driving forces behind the actions of Pettaikaran (V. I. S. Jayabalan) and his chief rival in the cockfighting scene, police inspector Rathinasamy (Nareyn).

The film is set near Madurai in a small town where Pettaikaran breeds and trains roosters for cockfighting. He is aided in this venture by three men; Ayub (Periyakaruppu Thevar) who stitches the roosters back together after the fights, Durai (Kishore) who provides financial support and Karuppu (Dhanush)who sets the roosters for fighting. Karuppu seems to look upon Pettaikaran as his father, while Pettaikaran is grooming Karuppu as his successor, so the two appear to have a close relationship, making later events all the more shocking.

The first half of the film deals with Rathinasamy’s attempts to force Pettaikaran to take part in a cockfighting tournament so that he can finally win over his main opponent. Pettaikaran however knows that Rathinasamy will stop at nothing to win and refuses to take part in any further matches despite major provocation.  However Rathinasamy is as corrupt as he is determined and he finally manages to set up the final showdown. The stakes are high – apart from all the money to be won, the loser will have to shave his head and moustache and, almost as a secondary consideration, they will also have to give up cockfighting for good.

The prize money isn’t important to either of these two men, but is rather more important for Karuppu. He lives with his widowed mother who has dreams of buying back the mortgage to their house, while Karuppu has dreams of a different kind involving an Anglo-Indian girl he has met. He falls in love with Irene (Taapsee) and his love takes the usual form of stalking until he finally manages to work up the courage to speak to her. Irene is horrified by his declaration and her initial reaction is very natural and honest. Sadly it’s also the only scene where Taapsee manages to convince in her acting. The romance feels clunky and awkward, and the actors seem to feel uncomfortable with each other as well. Taapsee is very wooden and lifeless, and there is never any good reason why a well-educated girl from a good family would fall in love with a scruffy uneducated villager like Karuppu.

While Dhanush is more convincing in his obsession with Irene, he’s a little too arrogant for me to fully believe in his love. His passion is much more for his idea of Irene, and once having made his decision that she is the right girl, he is determined to marry her more to flatter his ego rather than because of any genuine feelings for her.

Partly to pay back money he owes Irene, Karuppu takes his rooster along to the tournament despite the fact that Pettaikaran had earlier told him to put the bird down. As a result, Pettaikaran distances himself from Karuppu and tells everyone who will listen that his rooster will not win. So when it does in fact win all 3 fights and Karuppu takes home the grand prize, Pettaikaran is humiliated by this loss of his reputation and sets out for revenge.

While the first part of the film deals with the rivalry between Pettaikaran and Rathinasamy, the second half deals with the machinations of Pettaikaran as he seeks his revenge on Karuppu. Jayabalan is amazing as the aging champion and his character is beautifully etched in shades of grey. The change from his initial, more moral stance where he refuses to fight Rathinasamy knowing that he is risking the lives of his assistants by doing so, is beautifully contrasted with his change in ideals as he starts to plot and plan against Karuppu. His manipulations of the faithful Durai and the treatment he metes out to his young wife grow ever more disturbing, but still quite believable as he is determined to ruin Karuppu in every way that he can to soothe his battered ego.

Dhanush is also excellent as the rather naïve Karuppu. His relationship with his mother is well depicted and the love and frustration between the two is very evident. His scenes with Pettaikaran are among the best in the film, although Karuppu’s relationship with Durai is also well portrayed and the two actors have a great rapport. Dhanush has done a number of these village type roles but here he totally becomes the character of Karuppu and I think deserves the National Award he won for his performance. His final realisation of just how he has been betrayed by the man he considered as his father is brilliant and throughout he effortlessly conveys his emotions without going to extremes. Vetrimaran has come up with characters that are essentially very ordinary with normal human emotions of petty jealousy and pride and made a story that works so well because it deals with them in such a realistic way.

The other actors in supporting roles are all excellent with some very good characterisations. Meenal as Pettaikaran’s wife is fantastic and while Periyakaruppu Thevar doesn’t have a large role he is very effective and paints his character fully in just a few short scenes. Nareyn is suitably immoral and villainous as Rathinasamy and it’s a shame that he vanishes from the story in the second half. I can’t find out who played the role of Karuppu’s friend but I though he was great and will keep a watch out for him in other films.

While most of the action involves roosters fighting there are a few human fight scenes which are more of the push and shove variety rather than the carefully choreographed and highly fictionalised fight scenes more usually seen. They also rely on the use of various stones, buildings and tree stumps to do any actual damage to the various opponents until the last few scenes, which are choreographed to imitate the cockfights from earlier. Cinematographer Velraj does an excellent job with the many night scenes, often involving fights, and it’s quite easy to make out what is going on.

The music by G. V. Prakash Kumar works well in the film but apart from Yathe Yathe it’s not particularly memorable and doesn’t stand out. This is probably all to the good as the songs don’t detract from the story and are used more to further develop the characters.

Aadukalam is certainly not a pretty story and there is no happy ending for anyone. It deals with the darker emotions of pride and jealousy and shows just how easily these can run out of control with deadly consequences. It’s a well made film with a great story and outstanding performances and despite the rather iffy romance, I thoroughly recommend it . 4 ½ stars

Dumm Dumm Dumm

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The charming and fun Suja of Music to My Ears has been in Melbourne and very kindly invited us over to watch a film. It was so nice to meet her and natter about films we love. Suja was generous in sharing her knowledge of Tamil language and culture as well as music so we got to appreciate a bit more of the subtlety than is possible just from subtitles. And to top it off – she is an excellent cook!

We chose Dumm Dumm Dumm on the basis of the cast, lead by Madhavan and Jyothika, the music by Karthik Raja and the beautiful rural settings. I have seen the film before and it’s one I enjoy because of the charm of the actors rather than the plot, although some intelligent writing makes the rom-com a bit more interesting and believable. The production values are high, as to be expected from a Madras Talkies production (Mani Ratnam also gets a writing credit), and the film looks beautiful.

Suja will be writing in more detail about the music of Dumm Dumm Dumm, so you must go read her blog post. You should read her work anyway if you have an interest in Carnatic music as well as some filmi music.

In a nutshell, Adityan (Madhavan) and Ganga (Jyothika) have their marriage arranged by family but neither is ready to settle down. He has women to chase and true love to find, and she has a seat at an engineering college. In order to avoid family disgrace, they try many ridiculous tactics to have the engagement dissolved. But all the time they spend on plotting brings them close together and when they are separated, they realise they have made a mistake. How this on/off relationship is resolved is the story.

Jyothika portrays Ganga as strong, not a squeaky voiced air head, and she has presence. Ganga is a good girl who doesn’t want to upset her family but she is also determined to make a life for herself and to support her sisters in their education. Her father Veluthambi (Murali) is so proud of his daughter’s academic achievements that it surprises Ganga to find her imminent marriage arranged without her knowledge. Jyothika is a curvaceous but athletic looking woman and this was much commented upon in the film with characters referring to her as a pumpkin girl amongst other interesting epithets. Having Suja on hand certainly gave us more insight! Ganga pushes Adi to take more responsibility in his life and to stand up for what he wants – and to make it clear if what he wants includes her. It was nice to see a female character be fairly low key, nice, intelligent, and handle her life and relationships in a thoughtful way.

Maddy plays that familiar character – the good middle class boy that every mother wants as a son-in-law. Adityan is self centred but not unpleasant – just a bit privileged and aware he is a catch. He does take to manipulation like a duck to water (he is a lawyer after all) but he lacks the necessary commitment to letting people believe the worst of him so most of his plans fall through. Adi is all talk for most of the story, and what action he takes seems to go awry. Maddy does very well at showing the change in Adi’s feelings for Ganga over time, and their relationship grows as they get to understand each other. Ganga sees a less confident and polished side of Adi emerge, and begins to appreciate him. While this is a typical nice guy role, it did give him the opportunity to show many moods of Madhavan. Here is a little sample for you – feel free to ‘name that mood’ via the comments section.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The schemes and obstacles to the relationship fall into filmi cliché but the story keeps things moving along even when the limits of coincidence were straining. Vivek as Adi’s friend Jim is annoying, goes slightly evil and is rarely (intentionally) amusing. Manivannan as criminal lawyer Sivaji is very good, playing it for laughs but also providing some quiet common sense at times. His performance is well modulated and he seems to have fun tormenting Adi. The various family members are all quite good, and the dynamic between the two fathers is interesting. Ganga’s father has moved up in village social ranks and was treated courteously by his senior, Adi’s dad (Delhi Kumar). They were friendly until an incident, and following that Veluthambi was seen as getting above his station. There were layers of resentment that were exacerbated by the engagement. This back story made things feel vaguely credible. The theme of arranged versus love marriage was woven in, but the film doesn’t belt you round the ears with one viewpoint. Director Azhugam Perumal takes a more discursive approach to some social questions and it is all the more engaging for that.

The minor supporting characters are all good, and many of them are familiar as That Uncle, That Friend, That Guy from other films. Pattamma, played by Kalpana is a standout.

She is a comedy aunty and the butt of many jokes which is par for the course. But she features in one of the prettiest song picturisations (which also blends farce and drama), and her character gets a sweetly romantic moment too.

And that’s what makes this film such a pleasure. The detail and respect in the characterisations and writing extends to the minor players as well. There are people bustling around, having side conversations and going about their lives and chores. Suja recognised so much of the activity around the wedding preparations, confirming the realism of those domestic scenes, and it really does feel like you’re a fly on the wall at times.

The cinematography by Ramji is a highlight. The lush green countryside and rich earthy tones in the village are beautiful. The rural settings have a luminosity that is lost once characters relocate to Chennai and the lighting becomes sharper with more contrast. The wardrobe for the ladies is quite nice, and the colour palette is intense but muted so there is a lovely harmony in group scenes. Ganga switches from a half saree to a salwar kameez when she is in the city, and the characters’ appearance reflect their background whether they are townies like Adi or from the country. Ganga was slightly scandalous in the village as we noted her lack of upper cloth on more than one occasion – that would never have got past Suja’s grandmother!

The songs are fun, and the country folks get the best melodies. Desingu Raja has stunning locations (at Thanjavur) and costumes, and Maddy doing excellent drama hands – plus that moustache!

The subtitles on my Ayngaran DVD are very special indeed. They range from the literal to the completely mystifying. No nipping out for a cuppa on this subtitle team’s watch! Suja confirmed some of them are very literal translations and quite correct but others were less helpful.

Dumm Dumm Dumm is a fun film to revisit, and seeing it with someone who knows the language and culture was an added bonus. I’ll never understand the nuances of dialect or accent so those subtleties usually escape me. The performances help the film stand up over repeated viewing and the cast work very well as an ensemble. The comedy is easily ignored when it is not integral to the scene and Vikek as Jim was slapped and beaten repeatedly so I had some vicarious revenge. It has nice scenery, good music and likeable actors in a not-too-stupid romance. 3 ½ stars!

Heather says: It was lovely to meet up with Suja and watch a film together.  We had a fantastic time chatting about Indian cinema and music, and as Temple says got a very useful insight into what we miss because of inaccurate subtitling of Tamil DVD’s and not getting the regional variations.

Dumm Dumm Dumm has excellent music, a fun romantic storyline and very beautiful cinematography particularly in the first half. I really like the characters of Ganga and Aditya as they are realistically drawn and their initial dislike of each other which slowly develops into attraction is well portrayed. Jyothika is excellent as the feisty girl who is determined to make it to college. I love the way she rolls her eyes as Aditya ineptly tries to follow along with her various plots to derail their proposed marriage. I also like that she doesn’t just have a hissy fit and refuse to get married but instead has a plan and tries to stop the marriage without actually hurting her parents’ feelings. She is a more successful schemer as well, so her frequent frustration with her co-conspirator is understandable. Madhavan has a flair for comedy and he puts it to excellent use here. His committed bachelor is a character with plenty of charm and his dramatic changes in expression were excellent.  Jyothika’s Ganga is more serious and more committed to her studies and I liked that her chosen profession was engineering rather than something more fluffy. I do like Jyothika as an actress and she really does seem suited for these roles where she has something to get her teeth into and isn’t merely a passive heroine.

The first half of the film is a different take on romance with the depiction of two people trying to get out of an arranged marriage, but it is back to more usual territory for the second half of the film. What started off so promisingly does become a little more of a routine love story with an irritating comedy track once the characters move to the city. However both Madhavan and Jyothika keep their characters entertaining and the love story is sweet enough to want them to finally succeed in reconciling their families. 3 ½ stars from me.

Patala Bhairavi (1951)

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Patala Bhairavi is a wonderful fairytale complete with a pauper turned prince, a wicked wizard, a princess, a quest, flying castles, magic, disguises and divine intervention. This is not a stuffy staid classic; this is fun! I watched it without subtitles, but the story is clear and easy to follow. And the cast is fantastic – NTR, Malathi K, SV Ranga Rao , Relangi – and  a young Savitri makes a small appearance.  There are beautiful sets as well, and lovely music by Ghantasala. It really is a feast.

Thota Ramudu (NTR) lives with his mother Kanthamma the palace gardener (Surabhi Kamalabai) and his sidekick Anji (Balakrishna). He spies the princess Indumatha (Malathi K) and is smitten. Her father  is not as enamoured of the idea, and tries to deter the youngsters but love will not be denied.  The King dreams that the poor man will be his daughter’s saviour and decides to be merciful. After being released from the palace dungeons Ramudu vows to make his way out into the world and return with the requisite riches and glory to be deemed worthy.

NTR is excellent as the hero. He stands up to the king’s bullying brother (Relangi), defends those in trouble and exudes righteousness without being stuck up. He gives his mother some trouble as he and Anji are silly boys when given half a chance, but he is fundamentally a nice guy.

Plus – he has snake wrangling and crocodile wrestling skills! It’s a fun role and he really embraces the swashbuckling hero style. He also gets to do romantic and dramatic scenes so there is a range of emotion and intensity. NTR balances it beautifully. Had the performance been tipped more towards silliness or self importance, it would have been a lot less enjoyable.

Indumathi is a proper princess. She lives in a palace, indulges in approved princess pastimes like singing to flowers and playing music, and after an exhausting day of these activities she sleeps in a peacock bed.

Indumathi doesn’t do much except wait…wait for her sweetheart, wait to be married, wait to be rescued. Malathi K made a strong impression in her later scenes when she is fearful and alone, but Indumathi is off screen for a lot of the film so she has little scope.

Relangi plays the king’s relative, and is NTR’s rival for Indumathi. There is little to fear on that front however as he delivers his habitual bumbling fool performance. He does have an eye catching hat though, so that was something. And he does his own singing. He and Balakrishna have ownership of the comedy track, and it is fairly amusing as the jokes are integral to their characters.

Anji is by Ramudu’s side for the adventure, and he contributes a little bit more than just comedy, although that is his primary purpose. In the battle of the sidekicks between Anji and the sorcerer’s apprentice Dingiri (Padmanabham), Anji wins the day. He is loyal and resourceful, if a bit dim, and without him the hero might have failed miserably. Considering I usually find the comedy sidekick more irritating than entertaining, I think he did really well to keep me from fast forwarding through his solo scenes.

SV Ranga Rao is Nepala Mantrikudu, a sorcerer who needs to sacrifice an innocent young lad (I wonder who will fall into his hands) in order to gain control over an idol that can compel goddess Patala Bhairavi (Girija) to grant wishes. He has a fabulous cave lair with excellent statuary, and the hapless Dingiri as his assistant.

Nepala Mantrikudu is a determined man, who will stop at nothing to gain his desire. He even cut his own arm off once for a spell, and then used his magic to reattach it. I like his dragon headed telescope that sees whatever the user wants to find.

He impresses the yokels with a great array of tricks – including turning a rock into a monkey and then transforms the monkey into a dancing girl before giving Relangi similar treatment. Ramudu can’t resist the show, and that brings the protagonists together. I always like SV Ranga Rao as a villain because he can be amusing with a twinkle in his eye and then turn to seriously threatening in a blink. He adds most of the drama and menace to the story, and is larger than life.

Ramudu steals a magical vessel and tries to create his own wealth. But he lacks the ability to use it so, promised money and the princess, he goes with Nepala Mantrikudu to retrieve the idol. The quest involves a lot of near death moments for NTR including – the crocodile wrestling!

Not the most lifelike crocodile, nor the most convincing wound I have seen. I shall digress – I keep hearing rumours that Rana Daggubati may be in a remake of this film. I think he is a competent actor although I’m not sure he has the right acting style for this sort of caper, but I do think he might be excellent at shirtless crocodile wrestling scenes.

Ramudu emerges from his dip triumphant, and worded up about the magician’s treachery by a goddess in the crocodile pond. Of course the sorcerer and his intended sacrifice have different ideas, and Ramudu wins that encounter and the idol.

While he is rich (thanks to the goddess) on his return to Ujjain, he is not out of trouble. It takes more than decapitation to stop a dark sorcerer who has a history of sticking his limbs back on.

Old enemies unite against Ramudu and he loses control of the idol. What next?

There are demons, bears, seven-league boots, invisibility cloaks, disguises, flying palaces, fisticuffs and so much more before the end of the tale.

When I say the sets were lavish – there are 3 separate credits for set design, moulding and painting and I think they earned their keep. When Ramudu takes the royal family on a tour of his magically appointed residence, the building is stunning. This song includes some performances by his household dancers (including Savitri), and the sets are just delightful. I’ve screen capped if you can’t be bothered with the song clip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The visuals perfectly match the story book action and characters, with the painted backdrops reinforcing the fantasy element. The special effects are lots of fun (especially considering it was the 1950s).  I saw Sri Rama Rajyam on Friday night and despite the apparently huge budget for CGI, I found the effects more distracting than beautiful. I know that is a devotional film, and this isn’t but it made me think about the use of visual effects in films that are depicting an alternate reality. Patala Bhairavi keeps the people at the centre. When someone pulls on an invisibility cloak, other characters react to this amazing sight – the gimmicks support the story. In Sri Rama Rajyam, they chose to use CGI for things like birds, leaves, foliage, peacocks and deer to the point that it cluttered up the screen. It detracted from the story and from the actors. I appreciated the mastery of Kadri Venkata Reddy. He and the team including writers Subbanna Deekshitulu, Kamalakara Kameshwara Rao, Pingali Nagendra Rao art director Madhavapeddi Gokhale and DOP Marcus Bartley  have created a really beautiful fantasy realm with an engaging story.

Perhaps I am fond of this film because it reminds me of being a kid, watching Disney TV shows with my family on a Saturday evening. The good guys are nice, there are pretty jewels and costumes to admire, the music is lovely and the story ends on a high note. I would love to see it with subtitles but I enjoyed it immensely without. 5 stars!