Posts Tagged ‘RajiniKanth’
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Two years ago I wrote an article about how Tamizh cinema is failing the Pan-India test and how their lack of promotions causes lack of visibility of their content. The want to have a largely successful Pan-India film also has compromised quality of the well known Tamizh masala films. Tamizh cinema is not alien to Pan-Indian success. The current YouTube generation do not realise how big of a hit movies like Roja and Bombay were. These were the days before people only cared about content and did not care about how much money the movies made.
There were also Shankar’s movies like Indian (Hindustani), Enthiran and 2.0 which were pan-India success stories. So in a way Tamizh cinema was the pioneer in Pan-Indian films. Not only movies Tamizh cinema also produced first pan-Indian stars. So this is not something Tamizh cinema should be concerned about as they have nothing to prove. Tamizh cinema was never known for high budget extravaganzas like how Telugu cinema always did. Yeah Tamizh industry made mindless action films as well but again those were rarely successful. The only kind of films which actually were successful were movies with decent story line or movies with some message like the ones S Shankar made.
Now with the pressure of making films which breaks the 1000 cr barrier, Tamizh cinema has forgotten what made them tick over the years. Nothing against movies like Kanguva which is a great attempt but again the want to make a highly successful film the industry is trying to manufacture films which is never going to work. To be frank except for Telugu cinema none of the other industries are able to make movies which continuously match their own success. Kannada industry which put itself on the map with KGF 1 & 2 could not make another film with the same success. I wouldn’t include Kantara with KGF as they are not the same kind of films.
If what we have seen over the past 2 years is any indication Tamizh cinema is more comfortable in generating good content without having to try too hard to impress the wide audience. The movies which were made for local audience without the intention of going pan-India are the movies which actually went across borders and was liked by everyone. This exactly has been the template of Malayalam cinema as well. They have been concentrating on good content and while they might have not made a 1000 cr film, they don’t seem to care about the same.
What Tamizh cinema has shown over the past 2 years is the same. The industry is more comfortable creating good content and not very adept in creating this big scale put together films which other industries are more capable of. Even the big star masala films which have been successful over the past couple of years have been different content with good film making. The only star who has been successful despite questionable content has been Thalapathy Vijay but that cannot be taken as the norm. Even Vijay has collaborated with good directors and has produced movies like Thuppaki, Kaththi and Leo over the last decade. Vijay has a huge fan base which makes his films kind of “content proof” if you want to call it that.
This year we have had brilliant films come out of Tamizh cinema and has been loved by everyone irrespective of the language they speak but again none of these films were large scale films. I am not saying the industry should not try to make films for box office success but again when Manirathnam or Shankar made those films in the 90’s they did not think that they are making a pan-Indian film. They made the films for Tamizh audience but the content took the films across India. The want to manufacture a film to appeal to larger audience will never work. The reason Telugu cinema is successful is because, that has been their strength over the years.
It is okay to be known as the industry which creates good content like Malayalam cinema rather than going for glory with half baked content in the name of pan-India. The success of movies of Meiazhagan, Vaazhai, Lubber Pandu, Maharaja, Amaran etc should tell the film makers as to what kind of films the audience is expecting. Tamizh cinema has always been experimental but again it has always been with a good story and film making. I hope we go back to the roots and make the kind of films we are known for and if that becomes pan-India success then that should be a bonus.
After Thalapathy Vijay announced that his next film will be his last due to his foray into politics, there have been lots of speculation about who the next Superstar in Tamizh cinema would be. Vijay himself in is speech mentioned passing on his baton to Sivakarthikeyan (SK) but again the discussions are still on. Lots of YouTube media channels have also had discussions to analyse as to who will take over and become the next superstar in the coming years.
The discussions are hot at the moment after the grand success of Amaran recently in theatres. Funnily enough Amaran isn’t the typical Tamizh superstar film. The speculation about SK becoming the next superstar is at it’s peak though after this success. The bane of Superstars in Tamizh cinema though is that once you become one your range and options in the commercial space decreases. Even though this is not the case with Malayalam cinema, Tamizh, Kannada and Telugu cinema superstars face this fate. For example Mammootty can remain superstar in Malayalam and still do movies like Kaathal, Peranbu, Nanpakal Nerathy Mayakkam kind of films but in other Southern industries superstars cannot do that.
Lets take Superstar Rajinikanth for example, he has been trying to branch out and make different kind of films but has not been that successful. His recent Vettaiyan was a different kind of film for the superstar but wasn’t that kindly received by the audience who wanted more mass which apparently was missing in the film. Technically if you see Tamil Cinema has only had 4 genuine superstars, MGR, Rajinikanth, Vijay and Ajith. I wouldn’t place Sivaji Ganesan, Kamal Hassan, Suriya, Vikram etc in that space as they never compromised on content and always did different films through their careers. If Vikram and Surya became superstars they wouldn’t have been able to do a Thangalaan or Jai Bhim respectively.
This is the reason I feel Tamizh cinema does not need another superstar. Sivakarthikeyan, Harish Kalyan. kavin etc who are the young stars of Tamizh industry have been dabbling with some different subjects in recent times which has been refreshing. For example SK’s Maveeran is the most original superhero movie in recent times and if he does graduate to become a superstar, he would not be able to do another film like that. Even though Vijay and Ajith have tried to branch out and do something different they still have to remain inside their superstar circle and cannot experiment too much. This kind of creates sameness in the type of content they are involved in. We cannot blame the stars of these states though as the audience themselves do not want to see them in movies which do not present them in larger than life characters.
While the audience is happy to see SK now in a realistic portrayal of Major Mukund Varadharajan in Amaran, they may not be able to see him such roles if he were to become a superstar. With superstardom the budgets increase and the content takes a hit at most times. The movies might collect a lot but again it will not mean it is good cinema. Luckily so far in Tamizh cinema the current superstars have managed to dance around their superstardom to do some different roles which is due to their collaboration with some fantastic young directors but it is not the case all the time. This is the reason I do not want to see another superstar in Tamizh cinema. These young actors should take Vijay Sethupathy as an example and work towards becoming the stars who value the content and do not fear dabbling with different roles. Vikram is an example as well as he can still do a Deiva Thirumagal and Thangalaan without having to worry about his market. If you are a superstar I don’t think you can do that.
For the sake of the betterment of Tamizh cinema, I hope the young actors remain the stars they are and continue to give us fresh subjects and original content like they have been doing over the past few years. I don’t think there needs to be a desperate attempt to create another superstar in Tamizh cinema unless we can treat superstardom like how Malayalam cinema does.
Endhiran was awesome!!
Posted on: October 4, 2010
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Super Star Rajinikanth gives one of the most compelling performances in the recent times in Endhiran/Robot
I was able to catch Super Stars Endhiran over the weekend and it was a mind blowing experience. It was fantastic that the movie release in the city I reside as not many Tamil movies make their way to the theatres here. We were anyways prepared to drive couple of hours to watch the movie in Chicago if need be. We reached the theatre about 30 minutes prior to the screening and once we entered the movie hall realized that we were about 20 minutes too late as all the seats were already taken.
We were left with only the front row but fortunately just before the movie began we were able to grab couple of seats in the second row. Thank god for that as the first row seats would have left me and my wife with terrible neck pain. So after that was sorted out, the movie began to a full house with the fans screaming when Thalaivar’s name appeared on the screen. The movie was surrounded with great hype as it was touted as the most expensive movie in India and also brought together Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai for the first time on Silver Screen.
The movie totally lived up to its billing and we had a blast watching the same. Our Thalaivar’s performance as the scientist and the “Robot” Chitti was fantastic and the visual effects were stunning to say the least. After a long time Rajini was able to play a character with negative shades in a movie and his performance was simply amazing at that. Aishwarya Rai did her part well and so did the rest of the cast but this movie was all about Rajini and Shankar. Even the Oscar winner A R Rahman had to take a back seat.
First of all Shankar has to be appreciated for attempting something of such a magnitude and for making it work big time. It’s all good to have lots of money to play with but to make it work is completely a different thing. Shankar has achieved the same with flying colors. The last 20-25 minutes of the movie left us all speechless with the special effects. Shankar has definitely pushed the bar as far as Indian movies go. I am not sure if anyone can ever surpass the extravaganza that is Endhiran/Robot.
Well this piece will not be complete without a word on the brilliant performance by Rajinikanth. It takes a huge courage for a super star like Rajini to act in a movie which has the script and the director at the helm. At no point in the movie did you feel that this was a Rajini movie. After a long time we saw Rajini the actor take over Rajini the super star. Rajini for sure has earned himself more fans through this movie. His performance as the Robot was special and his subdued performance as the scientist suited the character brilliantly. All in all brilliant movie and will be a milestone in Super Star’s already glittering career. As the Super Star himself said at the audio launch, “Endhiran is not a movie but a cinematic experience”.
I am not sure how Shankar or Rajinikanth are ever going to surpass this in the future. People are going to expect a huge deal from the director in his future projects and I am not sure how he is going to beat this success. Sivaji was big but Endhiran is bigger and for sure is going to smash all box office records across India. Leaving all the minor negatives aside, this is one Indian movie to be proud of. The criticism that the movie is tad long and is inspired from many Hollywood flicks is something I don’t agree with. Every director while making movies in such a magnitude goes overboard sometimes which is acceptable.
Every ambitious movie made around the world can be accused of being a tad long and there are always few scenes which could have been done without. As far as the claims about the movie lacking logic, it does not hold water in a Sci-Fi fantasy flicks. What can be logical about a movie which begins as an imagination in the first place? What was logical about a matrix or an Avatar for that matter? When you start a movie as a fantasy the directors imagination takes over and his creative instinct drive the movie, so the sudden requirement of logic in a Sci-Fi movie is laughable to say the least.
The there are the claims that we have seen it all in the Hollywood movies already is something again should not be held against the director. Hollywood has been making Sci-Fi genre for over 40 years now, so any movie made in that genre is for sure going to resemble one of them. That should not take away anything from Shankar for making one of the best movies technically from India. Just compare this with other Indian movies and tell me how many directors have ever thought of attempting anything even remotely close? The movie is a brilliant attempt and needs to be encouraged for the excellent vision of the director and for the compelling performance from our own superstar.
Endhiran trailer rocks!!
Posted on: August 2, 2010
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Finally the long awaited Endhiran audio release took place in a grand manner in Malaysia yesterday. Lots of prominent Kollywood stars graced the occasion and the most important part of the evening was that the official Endhiran trailer was screened at the function. The trailer was breathtaking and the visuals in the trailers were amazing. Aishwarya Rai Bachan and Rajini combo was looking cool on screen. Aishwarya was looking much better than in Ravana/Ravanan.
It seems like a movie which will be different to the other Rajini movies and I am very much looking forward to its release. Our Super Star as the scientist was rocking and looks very young. Good news for us fans is that the movie will grace the theaters in September. I am sure that this movie will be a major hit and will be another feather in the cap of Rajini/Shankar/Rahman combination.
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