Leo

 Leo

2023, Theatrical Release, Tamil, 8.3/10 IMDB, Directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj

'Leo', a seeming remake of a Hollywood flick, is set in a very familiar premise, a worn out, decades old template of Indian cinema. However, the extraordinary finesse in making and extreme attentive detailing in the action sequences, makes the film stand confident. The director lets the hero shine big, through minimal shout outs, contrary to the usually loud heroism.

What might have been a cringe worthy opening sequence of a spotted hyena, by and large substituting the usual mass hero introduction, disproves the audience. Crisp stunt narrative and convincing visual effects does the magic. As the director doesn't space out his shots much, the audience are never left idle to dwell on the much trolled hair extensions of actor Vijay. To our surprise, the introduction stint of the hero, boldly end as the camera trails behind him, exposing his 'ordinary person' backdrop, thanks to Anirudh for reiterating that same, musically. When the actor sits behind the small cashier desk in a fancy coffee shop that lights a 'wild beans chocolate coffee' logo at night, the mood is set just right. Equivalent to a Hollywood copy, the director efficiently brakes all barriers of 'mass hero cliches'.

During the launch and trailer release of his previous film Vikram, Director Lokesh, teased the audience with a monologue, of Kamal Haasan, taking jungle as a metaphor for the underworld drug mafia. Similarly the teaser for Leo, spoke a self-defense story, which lured the audience in making them believe it to be the film's premise. The mysteries, as they unravel on-screen, kindles expectations, giving a high, as the makers prove the viewers 'wrong'. It doesn't take much time to realize that the teaser was yet again a metaphor and not a mere one-liner. For the lot who had walked in, with a script of their own, it might have been disappointing to see Sandy's and Mysskin's story fizz out too quick.

The story of hero Parthiban begins, as he engages his son in tactical training during family time, pretty much like the animals in the wild, training their young ones. Parthiban, an animal rescuer, poses 'managerial scenarios' to his son, to test his ability to decide an effective way of handling similar real life situations. When Parthiban himself is posed with such a real life scenario, his self defense reflexes kicks in. One is lead to believe that the movie may thread similar paths of the 2021 movie 'Nobody', as Parthiban's reflexes were precise and trained.

Going back to Parthiban's training game with his son, it does gives away clues that the genre might be a mere version of the thirty years old template, where the hero has a 'secret past'. The 1991 Hindi movie 'Hum' becoming an inspiration for Rajinikanth's 'Baasha', had been recycled by many heroes including Vijay himself in the 2016 'Theri'.

But the director yet again lures the audience to make believe that, it is a 'Naan Avan Illai' kind, 'mistaken identity' films, which are aplenty across the globe. But the screenplay trots back and forth making the audience shuttle between Parthiban's version of mistaken identity, over his wife Sathya's suspicion, about his secret past. The director impresses by maintaining the genre's suspense till the very end and Vijay scores befittingly with his insistence that he is not Leo, all along. He in fact duly convinces the viewers through the emotional exchanges with his wife Sathya, played by the elegant Trisha.

Lokesh to me seemed focused in making the audience interpret the story by being the eyes and ears of his character Parthiban. As audience we see what visuals Parthiban sees and interpret only what the character would analyze. The maker's are left with a challenge of covering up the genre-suspense to the maximum. And the director thankfully keeps the genre specific cliches at bay, saving possible embarrassment through melodramatic exchanges in the process. The downside of this challenge though is, the viewers are left with a handful of mutilated character arcs, sans powerful set ups to back the lead character's traits.

But again the director's intention steers clear, not to thread the path of milking on hero's losses. Rather the focus is on the perseverance of the character, in believing that 'He is not the person whom He doesn't want to be any longer'. These words of the hero before he takes on his uncle, is what sums up Vijay's characterization, for me as a viewer. The end did seem as if the director succumbed to the grand old template. But again, to me it translated as, the director smartly hushed, to cash in on Vijay's mighty heroism, without a noise.

Vijay's usual ridiculing humor had been forced to take a back seat. His body language and dialogue delivery had been mellowed to transform with a purpose, in achieving the movie's Hollywood tone. While LCU's 'Napolean' Geroge and 'Escort' Maya fail to create a stir, the mention of Dilli's name and voice of Kamal as Vikram did make the crowd hysteric. The barebody climax fight, not more than one song to showcase the actor to his mass crowd, stylish dance moves to the family that boos and hisses at him, are many firsts for actor Vijay.

But the mature intimate scene with Trisha where Vijay's Parthiban character is trying to convince his wife Sathya that he is not Leo, scores the best for both the actors and the director. The two characters are emoting as the light towers above their heads, to cast a shadow on both their faces, letting them be. It is easily Vijay's career best emotional sequence. Trisha's soft kiss to Vijay, backed by the 'Kambalipuchi' dialogue from Manirathanam's Mauna Raagam movie, did seem a little rushed and imposed for the sake of it. But it made complete sense, post climax, as Parthiban didn't want to lose his wife by any means and hence spoke that dialogue to cling on to his happy life with his wife. Again the fact that Trisha is deprived of the truth, hurts big time in the end, but to me the premise seem to contain an intense 'interogation drama scope' in a sequel, if there is one, as the climax is left open ended as always in LCU.

Sanjay Dutt's earth-moving performance in the first half, falls flat in the flash backed portion owing to weak writing. On the contrary Arjun's uncle character, was left to fend for himself in the past, but couldn't pull the weight of the story towards the climax, as it lacked momentum, again due to the hiatus in writing. Having said that, both the actors did have the audience swooned with their on-screen charisma.

Anirudh's swaggy numbers does sound familiar inside Lokesh's universe, but makes you want more. Anbariv's stunt choreography is the back bone of the movie and the proof lies in the first action sequence when Vijay kills the psycho killer gang as the gramophone plays a Tamil number on the background.

The director did bite bigger than what he could chew, as the ambitious casting, couldn't translate the grandeur as it did in Vikram, owing to less complexity in story telling. Probably in Vikram, the characters were unveiled to the audience through Fahad, a third person's perspective but eventually confirmed with actuals by Kamal's character himself. Whereas in Leo, the stroy unravels through the eyes of the lead character who claims a mistaken identity. Hence the characters are left to lack a complete arc, as the audience are dwelling only on Parthiban's perspective.

Gautham Vasudev Menon as his Ranger friend Joshi, does gather information to fix the puzzle pieces right, trying to solve the mystery in Parthiban's life. But again it is bound to remain blank and lose ended, as Leo's perspective is missing as to why he made certain decisions. The flashback portion is also a version of a disinterested aide's perspective, hence not overloaded with emotions and sentiments, which again is seen a big miss by the many movie goers. There is a possibility that the flashback content might not be the real truth and might have been cooked up to mislead the interrogator.

Lokesh like Thiyagarajan Kumararaja, handles his on- screen drama differently, in comparison to few others, who tries to spell out every other emotion and manipulate the audience to emote in acknowledgement. But when a director is left to explain his work outside the movie, rather than his work being interpreted rightly in the sense it was intended to be received, it fails a creator. We had seen it in Selvaragavan's NGK and now we see it happen in Lokesh's work.

'Evil' had always been done away with, right from our black and white sword-fighting hero days in the past, leaving them villains dead for their ill intentions and wrong doings. The template has not changed, except, with technology, it makes those 'blood baths', look and feel real and gory.

A stylish no nonsense making, of a face-lifted premise, daringly made by incorporating western sensibilities in an otherwise mundane star vehicle.

 

   

Chithha

 Chithha

2023, Tamil, Theatrical Release, 9.2/10 IMDB, Directed by S. U. Arun Kumar

An unprecedented perspective, of a rarely explored relationship, in a premise that sadly, rather 'unfortunately', takes inspiration from our dailies. A honest initiative that surfaces the emotional dilemmas of the victim's kith which demands 'bond realignment', while the victim 'resurrects' herself or himself.

When we discussed the movie 'Gargi' in our film group 'Reelfeelers', a doctor friend in the group was cross with me, saying he couldn't assimilate the fact that the film was cautioning the children about their own fathers. He feared the damage such cautions would do, to the sanctified father-daughter relationships.

The movie actually picks up from where Gargi left. The flawless naivety of a youngster and his bond with his brother's posthumous daughter, is the crux. Even though the story revolves around the innocent victim who falls prey, the psychology of repeat offenders, the child abuse pattern, understanding friendship and the tiresome job of cops, the director chooses to focus on the title character's perspective- The Uncle, Chitahh, short for Chitappa in Tamil (father's younger brother).

In real life, many were left startled, to hear stories of men, whose lives were toppled due to the misuse of 'Me too' Movement. When celebrities across the globe stood 'Cancelled' because of random women's malicious accusations with no proof attached, many were left speechless to witness how those celebrities had to pick themselves up and build their lives all over again. These thoughts kind of eat your brain as we spectate the associated pain of the on-screen character Eeswaran alia Eesu, played by a terrific Siddharth. His character's arc has been beautifully crafted, documenting child upbringing factuality, that a young parent should watch out for, in current scenario.

Siddharth, showcases all possible attributes of an overtly cautious parent, oozing with love and protection. The narrative captures his bond with his brother's wife and her eight-year old daughter so organically, that the thought that Sundari, not being his biological child, never crosses the audience's mind. The makers had banked on actor Siddharth's innate innocence that permeates honesty in every gesture of his. And the actor triumphs unabashedly, a clear winner, capturing many hearts, as he did nearly two decades ago in Ayudha Ezhuthu. The actor seems to have interpreted the character's essence and the director's vision, just in right proportions. He beautifully displays rich nuances while portraying the character's emotions at various levels. This role has elevated the actor to newer heights, as his acting skills seems horned many folds. He fits the proposed character, Eesu in perfect sync to the writing. It is homecoming for the actor, who seems all set for another innings.

The female lead Shakthi is played by a fantastic Nimisha Sajayan. Her character is etched as a sample to the huge population of child abuse victims, who have learned to pacify their own wincing self over the years. She has evolved as a thick skinned strong being, amidst the vulture-eyed men in the society. Her intersection with Siddharth's character at the right juncture to make him realize his mistake in wanting to avenge the antagonist, adds more power to the screenplay. After all, Her's is a strong representation of similar victims, for she herself is a brave survivor of child abuse. Her lament on how, she as a victim was left to cringe, while the offender walked with his head held high, is sure going to help many real-life victims, to raise their voices against these ruthless exploiters.

Sahasra Shree as Sundari alias Settai, Siddharth's niece, does a fine act and so did the sister-in-law character by Anjali Nair. Actors who played Sidharth's friends were super casual and spot on. The little girl, who played Ponni, was note-worthy.

The director calls attention to major red flag signs in today's parenting, as the children have begun to mimic adults, through their gluing screen time and gaming addiction. While mobile phones have broadly substituted children's toys, the maker emphasizes the irony that the very same addiction comes handy to parents, in either keeping the hyper busy bodies occupied or as a family bonding exercise. The director Arun Kumar, befittingly addresses this on a casual note in the opening scene where Siddharth woos the child to come out of her playful hiding. But later the director demonstrates the intensity of its danger, through a scene, where all that a mother had to do is, give the mobile to her daughter, even in a life-threatening situation, which acts a cue to make the child obey her orders. Eventually predators lure children using same sparkling screens.

One is absolutely convinced that the lead characters are going to be hailed for being role models in parental upbringing. They sure are to become mentors for the new age children, by warning them about the world that is infested with molesters and rapists, all forms and shapes. I personally even went to an extent of imagining the movie being screened in every school auditorium. Sadly, the movie derails to a vigilante revenge mode, shifting the blame on the shortcomings of the system and the bureaucrats who failed to nab and punish the offenders, gravely.

The justice-yearning director, let me down, while he chooses to deviate from arriving at a constructive solution, and rather makes the hero 'an anointed one', to eradicate offenders of all kinds- petty to heinous. Nevertheless, the movie effectively speaks 'For' all the men out there- The Fathers, the genuine Chithhas and the Uncles, as the lead character represents their emotional trauma, when their love for their children are accused and indicted.

The screenplay also throws light on the fact that the children are left confused to differentiate the 'touch' of the loved one from that of the offenders, and the 'good and bad touch' pattern, seems a broad spectrum. Siddharth, bathes and dresses the child since the day she was born, presumably till present day when she is eight years old. And he also pampers the friend's niece Ponni of similar age, by carrying her, feeding her and bonding with her. Suddenly, the girls are left on their own to differentiate between similar touch of a molester's and that of their loving uncle Siddharth's. Nimisha's character Sakthi, also quotes that she begged her molester 'Uncle' to show mercy on her when she was in her teens. Now one is left to ponder on how the children are expected to associate, which of the 'uncle' is a criminal and which one is not.

Our dailies report on biological fathers molesting their daughters and our statistics alarms that 90 percent of child abuses happens within family. One is left to sympathize these children who are left with a huge task of differentiating good from evil. The makers choose to emotionally address the issue. Both Sundari and Ponni, the traumatized girls on varied levels, for a period of time after the incident, despises the touch of uncle Siddharth. But eventually when they heal with time, they extend the same love and affection to him, as before. It was a magical moment on screen, no doubt, but there seemed a void.

Going back to the doctor friend's question I began with, the makers of Chitahh addresses the pains of fathers who claimed movies like Gargi alienated them from their own children. But these elite dads make just a minimal percentage of fathers of our country. Sadly the 'not so elite children' are left to fend for themselves in the jungle-life of theirs, where most of the time the family turns a predator.

I shall wind up with few of the many questions that I was left to search answers for after the credits rolled. Should there be norms on an 'imaginary boundary' like in the olden days, between the parents and their children as they grow older? Like the father baths a girl child but asks her to wash her private parts herself, a mother baths a male child and educates him to wear his undies himself? Men folk usually were not encouraged to let girl children sit on their laps, especially when they are in their casual clothes. Will that keep the children alert enough to easily identify offenders when he crosses those boundaries, that even family and uncles are not allowed to? What is the right age to maintain such 'not to be crossed boundaries' with a child? Fathers and uncles talking to children on possible molesters in societies - will that do the trick or will it do more harm than good? Are only mothers responsible for educating her child about these sexual predators, from a very young age? When both parents are working, and when a father is often left to play mother's roles, with these imaginary boundaries and limitations, how can a father create magical moments with his child, like Siddharth's character in the movie?

The success of these kind of venture, lies in these many questions that we are left with after we watch the film. It is an awareness in itself. Kudos to the team.

 

Jailer

 Jailer

2023, Tamil, 7.7/10 IMDB, Theatrical Release, Directed by Nelson

Thalaivar performing in a full blown 'black-comedy' backdrop, may not be what most of the fans would have been prepared for. It might not tick all the check boxes of the greedy fans, especially when the onscreen mass elements are bartered with other industry's eminent names. Given all that, Jailer is sure to create a stir among the young mass, who wouldn't have experienced the ruckus of a brand called 'Super Star'. A new avatar of Rajini in the Quentin Tarantino's format takes time to sync in, but it quiet convincingly does, on repeated watch.

It's a rare phenomenon, when the fan base of an artist encompass a sea of audience, ranging from the 1950's and 60's born baby boomers and goes on to Gen X, Y, Z, up to today's teens, the Gen Alphas. It's a tight rope walk, choosing and executing a story that would be received well by all age groups and yet thread on newer paths attempting to hook on the prevailing pan-Indian fever, across industries.

Post Linga, the actor is trying his hand on 'never ventured before' genres. And he is seemingly surrendering to the new age directors that he chooses to work with, possibly either to continue ruling the box offices as a lead star or truly to succumb to his tantalizing passion for acting, both of which are commendable.

Black comedies work at different levels to different audience and this one is no exception. Stylized violence is a double-edged weapon unless it is backed by a premise that holds the audience through an effective narration. Lokesh's Vikram proved it saleable to Tamil audience, who had their fair share in making KGF, a 'popular culture'. It is a brave attempt by both Nelson and Rajinikanth, given the fierce fan-following of the actor and the mammoth expectation the audience would have had, post - 'not so popular' Beast.

The character of Rajini is inquisitively multidimensional, yet very much relatable. His ambitiously etched character is distinct, in spite of being a mixed bag of many roles that he had donned in his career's magnitude- naive yet powerful, vigilante yet revengeful, sadistic yet righteous. His 'revenge filled smile', during many of the overtly violent killings, for a given 'non-grey' character, is a new never seen facet of Thalaivar and is amusing to watch him perform with a stern stare. Bold decision it is, to launch the big actor, sans mundane song or fight or even a conflict and to present him coming out of a closed pooja door, in the opening shot.

The director paces the sequences with no breather whatsoever, in an amazingly continuous grind. Just when the 'grand dad combinations' with Rithu Rocks fame Rithvik https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wuaJnklgYnbJIeTVhPWug , puts a smile on the audience faces, the other facet of the hero's valour follows behind in a jiffy, taking a predictable heroic twist. And before one could inhale the serenity of the fantastic song, 'Rathamaree' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_gdEzlxKsg in the voice of Vishal Mishra, pronouncing the beautiful bouquet of simple Tamil words, written by Director Vignesh Shivan, there comes an absconding sequence, to snap the audience out of the peace from the song. Within a hour of screen time, we arrive at a convincing climax, leaving the audience with content, for a successful first chapter and in deep curiosity of what may follow.

A compelling narrative with ample incidents that complements the underlying strong story, might easily prove its worth. In Jailer, the solid story's momentum is often interrupted by sub-plots, such as the heist. Redin Kingsley & co, at times pose a risk of creating a hiatus in Thalaviar's onscreen time.

There are adequate conflicts in the main plot to captivate the audience and to craft a resolution effectively. But as the director chooses to detour, attempting to encompass few sub-sub-plots, focused on involving other prominent actors, the screenplay tiers the audience of denying Thalaivar's presence. On painting a larger portrait than what the director had intended to originally, the main crux loses it's due, at times, letting down the primary plot, in an otherwise tightly packed narrative.

Thalaivar's versatility has been fed to us through a cocktail of grey shaded for many years. The flashback of his Jailer days, tries hard to surpass and deliver a differently pitched invincible tone, but his previous grey roles, simply seem unconquerable. Nevertheless, the style phrases 'Aaoo, Saamne Aaoo' and ' Nahin Jamtha' flexes the audience's biceps in enthusiasm.

Vinayakan T.K as Varman, does a gritty antagonist role. His idiosyncrasies, his twisted Malayalam dialect, his nicotine plaque teeth, his large brown-lensed eye-balls popping out in anger, seems scarily macho enough. But when the actor's convincing role faces the charisma of Rajinikanth and also is forced to heavy lift against few other cameos like Sivaraj and Mohanlal and Jackie Shroff, Vinayakan, sadly drains down to repetitive gawks.

Ramya Krishnan's role is pivotal in escalating the screenplay and in the revelation sequence where Rajini utters, 'Just push it' asking her to push the corpse off her lap, the prelude roar, is an ultimate 'Neelambari' reversal pay off. Vasanth Ravi's unfocused eyes, alienated affection, non-cohesive reactions, seems to have justified by the twisted climax. VTV Ganesh sponsors few laughs. But Yogi Babu marks his presence with some unapologetic humour with Thalaivar. The single dance move of Rajini, in the middle of the Tamannaah's sensuous number, just when it leaves the audience crave for more, Nelson resolutely denies and zooms out on the actor in an extremely long shot. Bravo on breaking decade old templates.

Anirudh's music elevates the screen presence of Thalaivar and the 'Jujubee' song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZnuFdUPIzE by Anirudh and Dhee stands out apart from the crowd's favorite 'Hukum' song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsjRNPrvq6U

The climax twist ends similar to the veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan's 'Thangapadhakam'. The chances that Rajini gives to his son, asking, if he has anything to confess to him, is novel, in connoting - 'To forgive is divine'. And the camera angle gets placed adjacent to the mountainous riverside, where Thalaivar ends up wiping off the blood from his spectacle, beautifully contrasts the 'Rathamaare' song's lyrics. The 'flick of the spectacle' which was the 'cue' for many mass moments in the movie, poetically winds up, the last time he flicks it, in 'detachment'.

 

'Anbulla' Rajinikanth with Latha Rajasekar

 'Anbulla' Rajinikanth with Latha Rajasekar

Being an extrovert, I bond with people and make friends easily. Among many friendship, some are special and some become very close to our hearts. One such special relationship of mine is with Sree Vasantha. I had known her for decades but my acquaintance with her blossomed into a 'mom-daughter' bond lately. Apart from our common interests and mutual admiration, she became my mentor and my guiding star in recent years. She made me see positives in any given situation and helped me make decisions when in dilemma.

Her proactive approach rubbed on my routines and I could see myself becoming even a better person than what I aspired to become. Her appreciations for my 'Go Getter' attitude, motivated me to achieve better. She knew my awe for Actor Rajinikanth as I had mentioned, how much the Super Star meant to me, ever since childhood.

On the 7th of August 2023, at 9am, she messaged me saying, a friend of her's Mr. Ashok, can arrange an exclusive meet with Rajini Sir, and asked me if I wanted to go. I was left speechless but replied her an instant 'yes'. I asked my husband and my daughter and both texted me in one word- 'GO'. I checked the availability of ticket and almost booked my ticket, but I questioned myself- 'Do I really want to meet Him? What am I even going to talk to the actor about- How ardent a fan I am ? How my eyes were all welled up watching the interval block in 'Kabali', where actress Sai Dhanshika howled in anguish, the word -'Appppaaaa' ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtNxQXUffgw ) or how I teared up every time I watched the climax of 'Mullum Malarum' where actress Shobha chooses her brother Rajini over the love of her life (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU629VRND6c ) or the fact that He is the sole reason I became a cinephile and ended up starting my movie blog.

How could I express Him that I am a huge fan of the way he wore his spectacles with style, in the song Aagaya Gangai from Dharma Yudham ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0G2WhCEVSw ) or how much I loved his romance with Radhika in the song, Unnaithane from Nallavanukku Nallavan ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIdAyBJUgT4 )

For reasons unknown, I was indecisive and spoke to Vasantha akka again. She insisted saying- Your family has given thumbs up for you to travel, this kind of exclusive meet may not be possible through any other source in future, flight tickets are readily available, accommodation in the ashram is also available and finally I should never ever regret for not utilizing this rare opportunity. She said these were the exact words of her father, when she herself was indecisive to be in the Ashram, during the last rites of Poojya Swamiji Dhayanad Saraswathi.

She got me convinced and I rushed to book my flight tickets. Another close to my heart friend Anjugam, a regular visitor to the Ashram, volunteered to join me, just to give me company. But later when a good friend of mine Narmadha, who had been longing to visit Dhayanand Saraswathi Ashram in Rishikesh, ever since she missed the trip with our group a few years back, decided to join me, Anju asked us to carry on.

We reached the ashram and a day later, at 4pm Thalaivar was schedule to arrive. A black Mahindra SUV arrived and Mr. Ashok called me to come to the spot where the car had stopped. Rain was pouring but I rushed out of my room even without taking my umbrella and asked my friend to lock the room behind and join me. By then, the actor had gotten out of the car and was contemplating which way to move, as there were too many instructions from people around Him.

I had halted nearly 5 ft away from Thalaivar, from where I got the first glimpse of my Idol in person- my childhood hero, my very own 'Anbulla Rajinikanth', my Super Star. 'Thalaivar' was carefully looking down and watching his step, as the floor was way too slippery, while Mr. Ashok was holding the umbrella for Him.

And just when He was trying to climb down the two steps, He slightly turned his head, to look at the fascinated onlooker - 'Me'. His eyes met mine, and before I could realize what had just happened, He smiled big, saying a 'Hello' and nodding in acknowledgment. The Super Star, the greatest of all times, just said a 'Humble Hello' to me, just to me, not even knowing who I was. And there I stood frozen, with the biggest smile of my lifetime, so big that my lips couldn't possibly stretch any wider and Thalaivar walked past me, to enter his room.

I could hear these ARR strings- 'Idhu podum enakku, Idhu podhume, ver enna vendum' in my ears and the pouring rains complemented my childhood nostalgia. By now Narmadha had brought me my umbrella and we sat in the corridor.

After that we saw Him walk the corridor in rain, to pay his respect to two Swamijis at the ashram and a brief moment later, I got a call from Mr. Ashok asking me and my friend to come to meet Rajini sir. I had rehearsed this a million times while on flight, but I was completely blank as I was climbing up the stairs to meet Him.

The moment I had a glace of Thalaivar sitting in changed clothes, a white round necked kurtha and a dhothi, I significantly felt a spiritual energy surrounding that small balcony and I was all emotional. He welcomed me with a welcoming smile, he acknowledged me and showed me the seat opposite to him, to sit down. I sat on the edge of the chair, gazing at Thalaivar. I introduced myself and my family. Told him the dean of the hospital he was admitted in, and the doctor who accompanied him abroad, were my Husband Dr. Rajasekar's classmates from Stanley. He exclaimed with a polite smile.

I showed the pictures of his Bangalore Race Course Flat's neighbors, who were the grandparents of a bestie of My daughter Aashika Sekar at Oxford University. He remembered Mr. Parthasarathy and his wife Indrama. When I told Him they both were no more, he was taken aback. I then showed Him their grandson's picture, which was taken with Thalaivar in His Bangalore residence and He was pleased to see the little boy.

I went on to show a video of a trained Hindustani singer, singing 'Baja Govindham', and told Him that the little lad He was seen hugging in the previous photo, has grown up to become this fantastic singer with a PhD in Deep Learning from Oxford. He seemed mightily pleased. I also showed the young man's picture with my daughter and He asked me how old they both were. When I said they were 28, he said, the little lad must have been 8 years old, when that picture was taken. I was jumping with joy on the inside and out, pinching myself and felt like yelling to the world, I really am 'making casual talks' to the 'Super Star'.

Then Mr. Ashok told Rajini Sir, that I am a crazy fan of the actor and that is when I realized, I had been talking to Talaivar in English all this time. I screamed in Tamil, 'Oh my God, why am I even talking to you in English', and Thalaivar laughed big, looking at my expressions. Then I sat down in the chair in front of him, and of all the million things I could have told him to justify my staunch fandom to him, I chose to tell this- 'Rajini Sir, I used to dream about you very often. You would come in disguise and buy me a pen and a pencil for my examination. I would frantically search for it before going to my exam, not realizing it was just a dream'. Just when I was cursing myself for spurting out this absurd story of mine to Thalaivar, I saw the look on His face. I presumed He had realized the naivety in my narration, and He gave an 'aww' smile towards me.

Ashok ji said to Thalaivar, that I have come from Salem, just to meet Rajini Sir and I am staying in the Ashram as well. Thalaivar, turned towards me to ask, 'Oh, that's very nice. How long are you staying?' And there I was replying him in a sad tone, that I was scheduled to leave the next day morning. In all that excitement, my inner voice screamed in manipulation, trying to convince me to stay a couple of days more, but my inner conscious warned me that I shouldn't get greedy and Thalaivar's longing for solitude shouldn't be jeopardized and indeed should be respected.

Looking at my quiet friend, He asked if we wanted a photo with Him and I jumped saying I would like to take a selfie. He said yes and I prepped myself and clicked the first one. But looking at the messy hair from the wind and the rain, I requested him one more and said- 'Let me adjust my short hair, like how you used to do stylishly, in the movies' and He burst into laughter. Then he posed with me for two more selfies.

Ashok ji tried taking pictures of me and my friend, with Thalaivar. Again, I said, I would like to stand next to Him and not next to my friend. He was amused and pulled me to the other side with another favorite laugh of his.

His grip was super tight and God, He was so warm, that I was puzzled if He even ran a temperature. I had this biggest smile of my lifetime, yet again. We thanked Him for his time and took His blessing before we climbed down the stair.

As I was climbing down, my gratitude for Vasantha ka grew many folds for making my dream come true and Ashok ji for choosing the right time, as there were VIPs scheduled to meet Thalaivar that evening. Weirdly I felt that I had interacted with him earlier. The warmth of the actor was very familiar, his smile, his acknowledgments, his soft voice. Oh yeah! My bald dad, five years older than the actor, with his short silver hair and affectionate eyes. It's him. That's the similarity that let me be me - my own hyper animated-self, around the legend, without inhibitions of any sort.

As I climbed down, all I could think of was - God, bless this man with longevity, abundant good health and peace. When I came home to Salem, my friend Malu mocked me saying, now Thalaivar would be everywhere, on all my social media profiles and wallpapers. Yes, He is omnipresent, for his fans like me, I said to myself.

Having a friend like Narmadha to accompany, who was not an avid movie goer, was a boon, as she didn't get competitive in taking selfies or pictures with Thalaivar. All she did was accompany me and bless me such lovely pictures, which would be in my memory and on my screensavers forever. God bless her.

We both spent our evening at the 5.30pm pooja and aarthi. My mind was calm and content - Just like Thalaivar's. The next day we tried chanting Rudhram in the 5.30am pooja, performed our Sangalpam and Biksha. Ashok ji dropped us in the airport after a quick Prasad at the Ashram. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face till I reached home, to meet My husband and narrated it all to him. 

When I reached home my dad had dressed himself in a white Kurta and asked me how he looked. I quickly realized he was imitating Rajini and when he asked me, 'won't you want to take a picture with me?' my eyes welled up and I quickly hugged him. We both recreated my picture with Thalaivar, except this time it was with my first hero - Appa.

                                                        

Maaveeran

 Maaveeran

2023, Tamil, Theatrical Release, 7.6/10 IMDb, Directed by Madonne Ashwin

An organically made comical vehicle, that duly capsules social responsibility. An analogical premise, tools efficiently to awaken the inner 'vigilante-self' through interesting plot points. The strength lies in its child friendly satires, registering in young minds the 'need to voice against' the malice of corrupt officials.

The premise is a run of the mill kind, that attempts to reiterate the perils of corruption, that claims the lives of innocents. But the film stands tall as the director confronts the mundanity in his premise, through an unconventional hook- a comic series character's voiceover.

The crux points towards the quality-compromised government housing schemes, which are unsafe to be dwelled in. It pretty much rhymes with the news such as https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/poor-construction-272-flats-for-urban-poor-in-agra-to-be-razed/articleshow/74215217.cms. The article shouts out at poorly built housing complexes being razed to ground, after due inspection by independent bodies.

The film cleverly threads in its stipulated path never attempting to venture into the 'mass appealing' heroic kind, kudos to its lead Sivakarthikeyan, a mass-hero aspirant himself. He becomes a true hero, by not bending the character traits to fit his bill, which might have enabled him climb the ladder further, eyeing those top positions in the industry. To the contrary, it is the hero's lack of courage that the movie rides on, often hinted as 'learn to adjust'.

The 'hero myth' pattern of Joseph Campbell's, a common template for stories involving a hero who goes on an adventure. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero%27s_journey. It broadly falls into three main areas - departure, initiation and return. Majority of movies has these three component but a director gets to decide on his narratology. He also gets his screenplay done on the fact how human perception are affected by his narrative structure. By tweaking the time spent on each of the stages, we get newer versions of any given 'Hero's Journey'

Here, Madonne Ashwin ticks all criterion of the Hero's Journey through his lead role Sathya, played by Sivakarthikeyan. Refusing to retaliate, Sathya obliges to move to a poorly built government housing scheme. He refuses the call through a supernatural aid, a mentoring voice in this case, but crosses the threshold after considerable ordeal and there is a death of the mentor- Sathya no longer hears the voice of the comic series hero. He then battles with the antagonist, the politician and refuses to return without the ultimate reward. He finally is the master of two worlds, his people's and the mass's.

The 2021 Minnal Murali https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnal_Murali tweaked the template of Superman franchise to capture two super powers of commoners in the South Indian village, making it organically inclusive to it's audience. Similar is Maaveeran to the Tamil audience, which doesn't house larger than life super powers, but a simple metaphorical 'Voice', that recalls excerpts from the Hero's comical script to guide him to proactively solve the problems of his people. While former was true to its genre, the later boundaries itself to stay closer to entertaining the younger audience, through a non-preachy tone.

The voice that Sathya hears is the comical hero that he has created for the newspaper column. It is a metaphor representing the inner voice in every human, that echoes against injustice to people around us, but never uttered louder, ever. And Vijay Sethupathi, as the Maaveeran comic's narrator, dubs beautifully in a stern voice, adding more power to the hero's character and the comedy in the screenplay. Shivakarthikeyan, convincingly portrays the fear filled common-man's role through his body language and expressions. From a inhabitant who hesitates to speak his mind and learns to adjust with what is throw at him and his family, he finally transforms to a true vigilante who exposes the evil minister.

The actor's coordination with the voice from above, is almost schizophrenic. Makes one roar in laughter with Sathya's combinations with Yogi babu's character, who plays a mason. The satire constantly reiterates the difficulties of the families who live in uncertainty. Director Mysskin playing the fraudster minister Jeyakodi, nails the role of a wrath filled pea-brained. Mysskin is on the roll as an actor, playing such engaging characters. The simple role of a villain, gets three dimensional with his drilling eyes and resilient body language, and he successfully manages to deliver it all with a dash of comedy here and there.

Saritha plays Sivakarthikeyan's mom, a pivotal role, for it is her character, that accelerates the story. Her voice is a 'magic carpet' that transports the audience to the 80's, to reminisce the classic roles that she had donned in her 45 years long, acting career.

Aditi Shankar playing Nilla, the editor at the newspaper for which Siva offers his outsourcing artist services. She does play a key role. However convincing she might have been, the story couldn't accommodate more of her, sadly.

The hero's decisive crisis ends victorious, he returns back to his artist job at the newspaper, transformed. Again, the director follows the Hero's Journey to a 'T'. Sathya transforms, after a mundane climax that involves him rescuing a little girl from the collapsing apartments.

Learning not to live the life that someone has thrown at you might be a catchy mass one liner, but, the success of the venture, is the fact that the actor Sivakarthikeyan, gave enough space to the director, so Madonne Ashwin, could tell a tale, that he dreamt to.