127 Hours is Stunning Cinema!!

Movie - 127 Hours (English)

Director - Danny Boyle

Producers - Christian Colson, Danny Boyle

Cast - James Franco

Original Score - AR Rahman

Cinematography - Anthony Dod Mantle, Enrique Chediak

Screenplay - Simon Beaufoy, Danny Boyle

I dont usually review English/Foreign movies that I see because I dont feel comfortable doing them somehow. But after seeing 127 Hours, I had to write what I felt about the movie. First of all, let me admit that I completely loved Slumdog Millionaire as Hollywood's take on our 70s masala cinema. (It is a different question whether it deserved the Oscars or not, but it still was a great movie). I am yet to see Boyle's earlier work Trainspotting and I've heard only awesome things about it. So I was eagerly expecting 127 Hours and another major reason for that being that AR Rahman was collaborating with Boyle a second time around and anything with the name AR Rahman on the credits gets me excited. 

Now to get into the movie. By the time it released in India, I had already known the story of the movie which is inspired by the life of real-life mountain climber Aron Ralston, who became trapped by a boulder in Robbers Roost, Utah, for more than five days in 2003 before amputating his arm with a dull knife. Boyle & Beaufoy wrote their screenplay based on Ralston autobiography Between a Rock & a Hard Place. So I was perfectly aware of the almost all the events that would happen in the movie before going in to watch it. Yet, I had my eyes glued on to the screen for the entire length of the movie and Danny Boyle & team made me experience such thrill, emotions and tension despite almost the entire action of the movie taking place at a single spot where the main lead couldnt even move from his place. Boyle described it as an 'action movie where the guy cannot move' and no words can describe this movie better than that. James Franco lives the role of Aaron Ralston. 90% of the movie features him and him alone and the camera goes so close to the actor to capture every minute detail of his reactions to the terrible situation that he is in. Only an extraordinary actor can perform those emotions with utmost precision and detail that Franco has managed to portray. Watch out for the scene where he imitates a radio interview with himself and of course, the climax where you sitting in the hall would feel the exact same pain that he goes through during those scenes. Terrific performance to say the least. Anthony Dod Mantle & Enrique Chediak capture every minute emotion that Ralston goes through with all the detail through their extraordinary cinematography. And Boyle & Beaufoy give ample scope for them in their screenplay to show how Ralston seems like a minute & insignificant insect inside those huge canyons. Simon Beaufoy & Boyle adapted Ralston's autobiography which is as close to what happened in real life (according to Ralston) as it can be in a documentary, but yet makes the movie an extremely dramatic experience. Even though you can predict the course of events, the screenplay is structured in such a way that even those predictable events become hugely interesting to watch. The flash backs and retrospects are juxtaposed very effectively into the narrative. Both the pauses and the leaps in the narrative come at the right time which makes the screenplay very interesting.  And last but not the least, our man Rahman!! There is nothing new which I can say about his brilliance which I havent already said. In a movie like this, the scope for music is enormous. Rahman realizes the enormous potential of the narrative and gives a stunning score which gives equal space for silence as it does for his brilliant music. He is nominated yet again in two musical categories for his work in this film. He faces severe competition from The Social Network & Inception in the original score category, but I must say that his work is definitely as good as the brilliant work by the respective composers in those two movies. His song 'If I Rise' featuring Dido & himself plays out just before the gruesome climax and has an extremely elevating effect. And 'Acid Darbari' plays out during another crucial scene in the movie and has a tremendous impact along with the kind of visuals Boyle has shot for it. 

On the whole, Boyle's 127 Hours is a stunning cinematic experience that can be enjoyed best in movie halls, not on torrent prints. You need to be really involved with the experience and watching the movie in a hall indeed gives you that impact of being closely involved with Ralston's experience. And of course, 127 Hours is definitely not for the weak hearted. I am a person who gets quite nauseous when I see a lot of blood, and the climax of this movie would've made me faint if it had been in any other context. But after seeing the entire experience of Ralston, I kept my eyes wide open even during the most disturbing of scenes. Such was the effect of the movie. People contemplating suicide, should see this movie just before they plan to do it. A change of mind is guaranteed. So, do not waste any more time and go watch this movie immediately in the nearest movie hall!!

P.S. - This is the first time I'm writing about an English film, so the writing might seem very amateurish. So please excuse me. :)  And of course, no rating for this one. You can assume the rating from how much I loved the movie. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY A.R.RAHMAN!!

Happy Birthday to the man, the legend and God to many, including me - A.R.Rahman.

Top 10 Songs of The Year - Tamil

Its that time of the year where you make lists of what was good and bad in the year gone by. And lets start with a top 10 songs list, this time in Tamil. There were several chartbusters this year and here are the 10 best songs among them. 

10. Yaar Intha Penthaan (Boss Engira Bhaskaran)

Music - Yuvan Shankar Raja
Lyrics - Na. Muthukumar
Singer - Haricharan
Featuring - Arya, Nayanthara, Santhanam
Director - Rajesh

A lovely number from the hilarious Boss Engira Bhaskaran, this song had Arya falling in love with  a gorgeous Nayanthara over the course of his brother's weddings with loads of light moments. Yuvan Shankar Raja's music, and lyrics by Na Muthukumar together created a memorable melody. 

9. Naan Pogiren (Naanayam)

Music - James Vasanthan

Lyrics - Thamarai

Singers - SP Balasubramaniam, KS Chitra

Featuring - Prasanna, Ramya Raj

Director - Shakti S Raj

Every time the legends SPB and Chitra sing a duet together, it is magical. 'Naan Pogiren Mele Mele' from Naanayam was no exception. Composed by James Vasanthan who gave the smash hit Subramaniyapuram and the lovely Pasanga, this beautiful melody had SPB and Chitra at their romantic best. The lyrics was by Thamarai who is an expert at writing romantic songs and she didnt let us down in this one also. The song had beautiful visuals as well, and featured the talented Prasanna and newcomer Ramya Raj. 

8. Pookkal Pookkum Tharunam (Madharasappattinam)

Music - GV Prakash Kumar

Lyrics - Na Muthukumar

Singers - Roopkumar Rathod, Harini, Andreah Jeremiah

Featuring - Arya, Amy Jackson

Director - Vijay

A beautifully composed melody which takes us back to the British era, this song can almost be called a haunting melody, with its chorus part being the best. It had amazing vocals by veteran singers Roopkumar Rathod, Harini and the young and talented Andreah. The English portions sung by Andreah were similar to that of Vasundhara Das's portions in Lagaan's O Rey Chhori in both the composition and visuals. The lovely chemistry between Arya and the ethereally beautiful Amy Jackson romancing around the glorious old Madras, also worked wonders for the song. 

7. En Kaadhal Solla (Paiyya)

Music - Yuvan Shankar Raja

Lyrics - Na Muthukumar

Singers - Yuvan Shankar Raja, Tanvi

Featuring - Karthi, Tamannah

Director - Lingusamy

Another chartbuster from Paiyya, another Yuvan song, with the composer being the singer himself. Again featuring Karthi falling in love with Tamannah, this song had an irresistible hook in the part which goes 'Un azhagaale'. Tanvi was also part of this song giving backing vocals. Cinematographer Madhie captured Tamannah's beauty in all possible ways on one side and Karthi longing for her on the other side. 

6. Aval Appadi Ondrum Azhagillai (Angaadi Theru)

Music - Vijay Antony

Lyrics - Na. Muthukumar

Singers - Vineeth Sreenivasan, Ranjith

Featuring - Mahesh, Anjali, Pandi

Director - Vasanthabalan

One of the best movies of the year, Angaadi Theru had 2 composers giving music for the film - GV Prakash Kumar and Vijay Antony. While GV Prakash composed 4 songs for the movie, Vijay Antony did 2. And it was Vijay's Aval Appadi Ondrum which became the biggest hit in the soundtrack. Multi-talented Malayalam singer Vineeth Sreenivasan got his big break in Tamil with this beautiful song which celebrated love. Ranjith also made his presence felt with Vineeth behind the mike. The visuals had the young and fresh faces like Mahesh, Anjali, Pandi and others experiencing love for the first time, during their working hours at a terrible workplace. The movie also had another beautiful song composed by GV Prakash  and sung by Naresh Iyer, Haricharan and Shreya Ghoshal called 'Un Perai Sollumbothu' which was also very popular. 

5. Thuli Thuli Thuli Mazhaiyaay Vandhaale (Paiyya)

Music - Yuvan Shankar Raja

Lyrics - Na. Muthukumar

Singer - Haricharan

Featuring - Karthi, Tamannah, Sonia

Director - Lingusamy

Another fantastic song from Paiyya, which was also its most popular song. A beautiful melody rendered by Haricharan, this song had Karthi searching for Tamannah all over Bangalore city. Tamil movies are seldom shot at Bangalore, so the locations and visuals from garden city were refreshing. Again, Yuvan was able to give a great hook to the song in its chorus portions which makes it click instantly. The song is still as popular as it was during the movie's release. 

4. Usure Poguthey (Raavanan)

Music - AR Rahman

Lyrics - Vairamuthu

Singers - Karthik
Featuring - Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
Director - Mani Ratnam

The visually spectacular song, had many legends coming together. Mani Ratnam, AR Rahman, Santosh Sivan & Vairamuthu along with Vikram, Aishwarya Rai and the superbly talented Karthik as the singer. And as an end result, we get a stunning song, both visually and aurally. Karthik's rendition of this song deserves nothing short of a National Award. Rahman's experimental tune worked wonders, so did the soulful lyrics by Vairamuthu. The visual of Aishwarya Rai falling off a branch of a huge tree is sure to stay with you forever. The song had mesmerizing visuals by ace cinematographer Santosh Sivan in the lush forests near the Athirappilly waterfalls in Kerala. This song was perhaps the best portion of Mani Ratnam's Raavanan which received mixed reviews upon release. The song also had a Hindi version which had some great lyrics by the legend Gulzar. 

3. Neela Vaanam (Man Madan Ambu)

Music - Devi Sri Prasad

Singers - Kamal Haasan, Priya Hemesh

Lyrics - Kamal Haasan

Featuring - Kamal Haasan, Caroline

Director - KS Ravikumar

An absolutely brilliant song penned by Kamal Haasan & composed by Devi Sri Prasad, this beautiful track from Man Madan Ambu shows tells a tragic love story in reverse. Shot innovatively where all the action is going in reverse, except for Kamal's singing, which is perfectly in sync, this beautiful song stands out because of Kamal Haasan's soulful rendition, perhaps his 2nd best work as a singer in a non-Ilaiyaraaja song (the best would surely be Anbe Sivam). The song comes at a very important point in the movie and is definitely one of the highlights of the movie. This has to be Devi Sri Prasad's career best composition. 

2. Kilimanjaro, Kaadhal Anukkal, Irumbile Oru Iruthayam (Enthiran)

Music - AR Rahman

Lyrics - Pa.Vijay, Vairamuthu, Madhan Karky

Singers - Javed Ali, Chinmayi, Vijay Prakash, Shreya Ghoshal, AR Rahman, Lady Kash n Krissy

Featuring - Superstar Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Director - Shankar

It is difficult to pick one song from the blockbuster soundtrack of the all time hit Enthiran. Hence I've picked 3 songs which are almost equally good and put them together at the second position. Kilimanjaro was shot at the breathtakingly beautiful Macchu Picchu and had Superstar and Ash grooving to Rahman's tune. Chinmayi's groovy rendition is the highlight of this song which has an addictive 'Aaha Aaha' chorus portion. Kaadhal Anukkal was a beautiful and breezy romantic melody shot at another breathtaking location in Brazil. Superstar and Ash looked their best and Vijay Prakash and Shreya Ghoshal together brought magic in the song. Irumbile Oru Iruthayam was an insanely addictive song with some funky and futuristic lyrics by Vairamuthu's son Madhan Karky. AR Rahman sang for the Superstar while lady rappers Kash n Krissy brought in a whole lot of freshness through their rap for a super-hot Aishwarya Rai. Shankar's epic visuals, Rahman's extraordinarily catchy music and the great vocals from all the singers made these songs also go down as part of history along with the film. 

1. Mannippaya, Aaromale, Hossana, Omana Penne, Anbil Avan (Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya)

Music - AR Rahman

Lyrics - Thamarai

Singers - Shreya Ghoshal, AR Rahman, Alphons Joseph, Vijay Prakash, Blaaze, Suzanne, Benny Dayal, Kalyani Menon, Devan & Chinmayi

Featuring - Silambarasan, Trisha

Director - Gautham Vasudev Menon

Another AR Rahman album from which it is difficult to pick one track as the best. Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya would certainly be up there as one of the best albums by AR Rahman ever. The maverick composer teamed up with ace director Gautham Menon for the first time and what we got was magical. Mannippaaya was a haunting melody by the wonderful Shreya Ghoshal and AR Rahman himself. Aaromale, an unusual soft rock track which had Malayalam lyrics by Kaithapram and vocals by Malayalam composer Alphons Joseph is the best composition in the album and became a cult song immediately. Vijay Prakash, Blaaze, Suzanne made Hosanna a heavenly experience. It feels like Benny Dayal was getting as much joy as his listeners while singing the beautiful Omana Penne along with veteran singer Kalyani Menon who pitches in some Malayalam lines. And the incredible fusion of both carnatic and western music comes alive in the wedding song Anbil Avan with energetic vocals by Devan and Chinmayi. The songs were used perfectly in the movie which had extraordinary cinematography by Manoj Paramahamsa and terrific performances by Simbu and Trisha. VTV is definitely the album of the year. 

So the clear winner is AR Rahman with his 2 albums and one track topping the charts. Yuvan Shankar Raja closely follows suit with the blockbuster soundtrack of Paiyya and the song from Boss Engira Bhaskaran. He also had other major hits in the form of Goa, Naan Mahaan Alla, Kaadhal Solla Vanthen, Thillalangadi, Baana Kathadi, etc. GV Prakash impressed with wonderful songs from Madharasappattinam, Angadi Theru, Aayirathil Oruvan and more recently, Va Quarter Cutting. Devi Sri Prasad continued his home run with the hit tracks of Singam and has Man Madan Ambu lined up next. Mani Sharma's Suraa had some hit tracks as well. Maestor Ilaiyaraaja's music is supposed to be the soul of Mysskin's Nandhala (I havent seen the film or heard the songs yet). Tracks like the spoofy Oh Maha Zeeya from Thamizh Padam and Vaada Vaada Paiyya from Kacheri Aarambam were also very popular. 


So that was my list of the top 10 songs in Tamil this year. The lists in Hindi and Malayalam are coming up next. 

Jhootha Hi Sahi - A light-hearted, enjoyable rom-com.

Movie - Jhootha Hi Sahi (Hindi)

Director - Abbas Tyrewala

Producers - Madhu Mantena, Abbas Tyrewala

Cast - John Abraham, Pakhi, Raghu Ram, R Madhavan, Manasi Scott, Alishka Varde, Anaitha Nair, Prashant Chawla, Omar Khan, George Young, Nandana Sen

Music - AR Rahman

Cinematography - Manoj Lobo

Story, Screenplay - Pakhi, Abbas Tyrewala

Dialogues - Abbas Tyrewala

Release Date - 22nd October 2010

This movie has been getting unanimously negative reviews from almost all the critics ranging from Taran Adarsh to Khalid Mohammed. But you know what, I really enjoyed this film. Its nowhere as brilliant as the director's first film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. (Maybe because he didnt have Aamir Khan keeping a watch on each and every aspect of the film.) But yea, it still is an enjoyable watch, much better than the Anjaana Anjaanis and We Are Families. It is heavily inspired by the world's favourite sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and almost 70% of the film is based on conversations between the leading man, his friends and the leading lady. And it has an absolutely beautiful soundtrack by AR Rahman who is in top form. The movie is the second installment in Abbas Tyrewala's 3 part series on love and friendship. 

The movie tells the story of Siddharth (John Abraham, brilliant), a nerdy guy who works along with a couple of his friends at an Indian book store 'Kaagaz Ke Phool' in London. His world comprises of his weird and quirky friends circle -  the Pakistani siblings Omar (Raghu Ram, killer), Aaliya (Alishka Varde, lovely); the gay co-owner of the bookstore Amit (Omar Khan), who has a crush on Uday (Prashant Chawla); Aaliya's boyfriend Nick (George Young) and his airhostess girlfriend Kruthika aka Kuttika (Manasi Scott, fiery). Sid's landline number gets mistaken for a suicide helpline as part of a mix-up and eventually he volunteers to council people who're contemplating suicide, through the hotline. One one such instance, he gets a call from Mishka [from the video store :P] (Pakhi) who wants to commit suicide because her boyfriend Kabir (R Madhavan) dumped her for another girl. Sid starts talking to her and gradually makes her life better, but stays as a voice without a face. But falls for her when he sees her in person. And in a series of lies, he helps Mishka as her friend on phone and also tries to woo her as the real Siddharth. What happens next forms the story of Jhootha Hi Sahi. 

The story written by the leading lady Pakhi is as predictable as it can get. But the movie is full of enjoyable moments - mostly interactions & conversations between John & friends and John & Pakhi, which makes it very enjoyable. It doesnt have the charm and the wit of Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. But still manages to impress you. The entire setting and characters remind you of FRIENDS in almost every scene. But I feel, thats a very good inspiration as those scenes worked very well for me. 

One thing I dont understand is that why did this movie have to be set in London? It wouldnt have made any difference if it was set in Mumbai or any other Indian city. The characters speak mostly in Hindi (as opposed to similar Hindi movies). Other than the fact that London looks great and they might be offering subsidies for film shoots, there's no requirement for this film to be shot in London. Abbas Tyrewala made a name for himself through Jaane Tu and automatically his next film has a bigger budget and foreign locations. Thats not such a great thing, especially when there's no point in setting the film abroad. How many Indians would try committing Suicide in London? And out of them how many would speak Hindi? And out of them how many would call a suicide hotline before dying? Such basic errors are not taken care of in the movie. But yea, we can forgive him for that. 

John Abraham is excellent as the Clark Kent-ish Siddharth. This is perhaps his career best performance. He doesnt depend on his good looks and body-shody to carry off the character. And his comic timing is quite good (like we saw in Dostana earlier). He is definitely the best thing about the movie. Pakhi looks much older than her character and she doesnt have the conventional Hindi film heroine look. There is something cute about her, but one cant fully digest her as the leading lady of the film. Especially a girl whom everyone has a crush on. Her acting is pretty decent, but she lacks an effervescent screen presence which is so badly required for such a role. (Why didnt he cast Genelia again??). Raghu Ram sheds his ruthless Television image and plays Omar wonderfully. He's one strong reason why you should watch this film. Alishka Varde, the cute-as-a-button girl from Jaane Tu plays Raghu's pregnant-but-unwed sister wonderfully. R Madhavan is royally wasted in a ridiculous role and he sports a horrible beard as well. The others in the cast also perform their parts effectively. There are voice-cameos by Imran Khan, Riteish Deshmukh and Abhishek Bachchan over the phone as well. A shameless gimmick, but it actually works. 

The movie may also remind you of the SRK starrer Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi at certain points where John simultaneously handles Mishka as two different persons. But yea, JHS is a lot better than RNBDJ. The conversations and interactions between the characters are the life of the film. The film would have fallen flat with its awfully weak storyline otherwise. Not so long ago, another film on suicide came (read Anjaana Anjaani) and people actually wanted to commit suicide after seeing it. But this one, makes you feel good. (At least I did). There are Indo-Pak jokes made and there's the cliched gay angle also (but its handled well thankfully). The climax where the hero breaks the law, runs to the heroine and seals their love, is there in this one too. But is not half as good as it was in Jaane Tu. The novelty and quirkiness in handling such quirky scenes in Jaane Tu is sorely missed here. 

Music by AR Rahman is heavenly. This is his best soundtrack this year after Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya (Tamil). The movie opens with Rahman's favourite track from the movie 'Moonlight' in the wonderful voice of Vijay Yesudas. 'Hello Hello' and 'Cry Cry' are very good while 'Pam Para' is shot ordinarily. There's also a beautiful female version of 'Moonlight' in the background score of the film (rumored to be sung by Dido). The best track from the album 'Do Nishaaniyaan' shows the progress of Sid & Mishka's relationship. Sadly, the beautiful 'Call Me Dil' doesnt find a place in the movie. Another beautiful Rahman song wasted. 'Mayya Yashoda' is a superb party track which actually tells a story through its lyrics. The background score of the movie is equally wonderful and leaves a huge impact. The themes of Moonlight, Do Nishaaniyan and Call Me Dil sound wonderful as parts of the background score. Manoj Lobo captures some beautiful visuals of London (but havent we seen it all before?). But he leaves an impression with his work during the indoor sequences. (which means, almost 80% of the film.)

All in all, Jhootha Hi Sahi is not great cinema. But its a light-hearted, enjoyable romantic comedy which you can spend time watching along with your friends and/or girlfriend. Much better than many Hindi movies made in similar genres in recent times. It is not anywhere close to the director's brilliant debut, but is very good nonetheless. It has John Abraham in an earnest avatar giving his career-best performance, the deadly Raghu Ram as John's best friend and an effective supporting cast. It also has one of AR Rahman's best soundtracks in recent years. And I can say without doubt that I had a great time watching this movie. 

Rating - 3/5

Gaana badiya, Video ghatiya!!

Have been thinking about writing a post on this topic for a long time now. There are so many songs in our films which are absolutely brilliant, but are ruined by terrible and embarrassing visuals on screen. This is a post compiling such songs from Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam. And the most number of such instances has occurred to songs by the country's most prolific composer AR Rahman. 

1. Rehna Tu (Delhi 6 - Hindi) 

Now, this had to top the list. It is certainly a crime if you cant do justice to one of AR Rahman's all-time best compositions. A masterpiece in all means, be it music, lyrics, vocals or orchestration, this song could have done wonders for the movie. But one gets shocked when this song plays out in the movie. It has visuals of Rishi Kapoor taking Abhishek Bachchan to his snooker parlour, them playing snooker and chilling with a couple of beers. Now, is that a way to shoot such a marvellous piece of music?? Especially when the director is someone who did wonders with Rahman's songs on screen in Rang De Basanti? I was heartbroken to see such a beautiful song go wasted in such a situation. I can never forgive Rakeysh Mehra for this sin. 

2. Veera Veera (Raavanan - Tamil)

Mani Ratnam, who is considered to be one of the best directors in India, and THE best when it comes to picturizing songs, makes a shocking entry to this list with this song. Another fabulous composition by Rahman royally wasted during the title sequence of the movie. This song could have made a fantastic introduction and  theme song for the Raavanan character that Vikram played. Mani Ratnam himself wrote lyrics for this song and yet ended up doing injustice to it. The song looked great in trailers, but when the movie came, it was played only during the title graphics which had stills of Vikram and his different faces. Even a small montage sequence with visuals of Vikram and his activities could have done wonders since this was such an amazing song. Never expected Mani Ratnam to do injustice to a song, that too an AR Rahman song. 

3. Ezhu Swarangalum (Chiriyo Chiri - Malayalam)

This song is one of master composer Raveendran's best compositions, utilizing the full potential of the magical voice of KJ Yesudas. Deeply rooted in classical Carnatic music, this song could have had a grand picturisation in its video. An extremely tough song to sing, this song is also famous for the drastic variations in pitching within the same sentence. But sadly, what we see in the video is a rugged looking Balachandra Menon, looking every bit like a goonda singing this song as casually as he is singing some nursery rhyme. And when the heroine dreams about him, he appears in similar costumes and does a 'madakkikuthu' (the act of folding and unfolding the mundu/dhoti - every Malayali's favorite pastime) and you cant help but feel sad thinking what this song could have been. Balachandra Menon himself expressed grief recently that he ruined this song completely in its visualization when he directed the movie in 1982. It still stands an embarassment to one of the greatest songs ever made in Malayalam film music. 

4. Theekkuruviyaay (Kangalal Kaidhu Sei - Tamil)

Another AR Rahman masterpiece wasted. The song is picturized like its in some big-budget soft porn movie. Something totally unacceptable from a director of Bharathiraja's stature. Bad sets, random foreign locations, gawdy costumes, weird choreography, disastrous editing, a funny looking hero and an awkward Priyamani make matters worse. A little known fact about this song is that veteran Malayalam composer Johnson sang the chorus portions of this song while the lead vocals were by Mukesh and Harini. The whole album has some great songs but they have horrible videos, out of which this has to be the worst. 

5. Mayiliragae (Anbe Aaruyire - Tamil)

Looks like this list is gonna be full of AR Rahman songs alone. Another wonderful song, disastrously picturized. With the beautiful vocals of Madhushree and Naresh Iyer, Mayiliragae is one of the best romantic songs Rahman has done in this decade. But the video has the super-good looking [:P] hero SJ Suryah with the Simran look-alike Nila, in florescent blue costumes,  doing random things inside a graphically created temple, palace and such other places. Other than bearing SJ Suryah (which itself is an enormous task), you have to endure the horrible graphics. Even the skin show by Nila doesnt help the terrible video. There are other great songs in the movie with bad videos too, like - Anbe Aaruyire, Tharugiray and Thazhuvuthu Nazhuvuthu. 

6. Marudhaani (Sakkarakkatti - Tamil)

Yet another AR Rahman song murdered. [:(] This time from an epic disaster called Sakkarakkatti. Vocals again by Madhushree, along with AR Rahman himself. A beautiful song about heartbreak, the song has visuals of the hero walking and has computer generated asteroids striking the mountains where he is walking, tornados following him and what not. I felt like weeping seeing the atrocity the director and the CG artists did to this beautiful song. The horrible acting by the hero and heroine dont help either. This movie would be an embarrassment for AR Rahman. And an insult to his talent and the hard work he put in for the movie. I hope this is the last AR Rahman song in this list. 

7. Neeyoru Puzhayaay (Thilakkam - Malayalam)

A sensuous, romantic melody with out of the world vocals by Jayachandran, this song was out of place in the movie itself. In the movie, Dileep plays a mad man and Kavya plays his childhood friend. This song appears randomly in between a lot of hilarious comedy sequences. So such a song looked totally out of place in a movie like that. It should have been given to some pure, romantic movie (such movies hardly come in Malayalam though). And then, in the video, Dileep and Kavya walk around random locations in some hill station. And what were nuns, burqa-clad women, Muslim men, Sardarjis and Buddhist monks doing walking around them? There's even a shot of a water droplet falling on the bald head of a monk. :O And halfway through the song, Dileep comes wearing shades along with a violet kurta. Kavya's costumes are marginally better than Dileep's. They have decent chemistry between each other but this song needed something else. Thankfully the actor wasnt lip-syncing the song. 

8. Maambullikkaavil (Katha Parayumbol - Malayalam)

A beautiful song composed by M Jayachandran and sung by Vineeth Sreenivasan and Shwetha, this song showed a movie within a movie. One glance at Mammootty in that hideous wig would put you off instantly. I'm clueless as to why such a handsome person like him would even agree to wear such a wig in such a nice song. Not jut one, but all wigs worn by him in this song are disastrous. Only a certain part where he comes in his Pazhassiraja look is watchable in this song. Even the North Indian model looks out of place in such a song. The costumes are bad as well. A bad video of a great song in a great film. 

9. Ariyathe Ariyathe (Ravanaprabhu - Malayalam)

After Mammootty, its Mohanlal's song which makes an entry into this list because of the hideous costumes and wigs he sported in the song. One of the most beautiful romantic tracks ever created in Malayalam, Ariyathe Ariyathe had a terrible video where Vasundhara Das was dressed as different princesses and Mohanlal as different emperors. It had horrible clothes, weird back-up dancers and bad art direction. Vasundhara Das had a single expression throughout, but still managed to look cute. Mohanlal appeared in embarrassingly bad costumes, the worst one being the one resembling Alexander (or whomever it was supposed to be), and looked like he was very uncomfortable as well. . Only towards the end, he comes in a normal attire and thats the only good part in the video of this song. A shame to Mohanlal who makes even the worst songs worthwhile with his performance alone. 

10. Maalai Neram (Aayirathil Oruvan - Tamil)

I think the worst fate for a song among this entire list would have been for this song. It never got picturised itself. The music of Aayirathil Oruvan released some 5-6 months before the movie released. And the track that was unanimously loved by everyone was Maalai Neram sung by Andrea. Perhaps GV Prakash's best song ever, this song deserved a lovely video. The movie, a confused epic, had no place for this song in it. I have no idea why such a beautiful song which is totally irrelevant to the subject of the movie was even composed for it. Otherwise, GV Prakash could have given this beautiful song to some other better movie. Andrea's voice is haunting and so is the song. I sincerely hope they allow some other director to take this song in his movie for a good situation as it has not yet appeared on the big screen. 

Thats a list I could compile as of now. Suggest more such songs if you can think of any. :) 

Endhiran - The Robot

Movie - Endhiran - The Robot (Tamil) 

Director - Shankar

Producer - Kalanithi Maran

Cast - Superstar Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa

Music - AR Rahman

Cinematography - Rathnavelu

Production Design - Sabu Cyril

Editing - Anthony

Sound Design - Resul Pookutty

Action - Peter Hein

SFX - Stan Winston Studios

Story, Screenplay - Shankar

Dialogues - Sujatha, Shankar, Karky

Release Date - 1st October 2010

A Rajnikanth movie without his spectacular entry, without a self-celebratory introduction song, without punch dialogues and without any of the usual trappings of Rajnikanth movie. Such an instance has never happened for more than 25 years now. This is just one of the impossible things that Shankar achieves through his magnum opus called Endhiran – The Robot. Conceived by him around 10 years back, Shankar went through a lot of hurdles to get this man v/s machine dream project on floors. After the tremendous success of Sivaji – The Boss, Shankar decided to team up with Rajnikanth once again for his most ambitious project  and soon he had Kalanithi Maran and Sun Pictures backing him up with a budget of over Rs.160 crores. And after being in production for around 3 years, Endhiran has finally released sending the millions of fans of Rajnikanth into a frenzy. 

Dr.Vaseegaran (Rajnikanth), after 10 years of hard work, creates an android Chitti (Rajnikanth again - Speed 1 Terabyte, Memory 1 Zeta byte) whom he wishes to use as a replacement to soldiers in the Indian Army. But the committee headed by Dr.Bohra (Danny Denzongpa), Vasi's mentor denies approval to the robot stating that it does not have human emotions and feelings and thus it can be misused by anyone quite easily. Vasi feels dejected by this and sets upon an extremely difficult task of instilling human emotions in Chitti. But when he finally succeeds in that enormous task, things go out of control. Chitti falls in love with Sana (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan), Vasi's long-time girlfriend, thus creating a love triangle between the three. Sana rejects Chitti's proposal and this develops into a grand man versus machine spectacle.

It requires a man of amazing vision and imagination to even think that such a script can be pulled off in our country. There are ample moments in Endhiran which makes you want to say hats off to the vision of its director Shankar and his amazing technical crew. And unlike any other sci-fi/superhero film made in India (particularly in Hindi), this film actually has a plot, a wonderful one at that. Even though the film is about advanced robotics and science, Shankar narrates it in such a way that each and every one watching the film would understand every bit of what is going on in the movie. The late writer Sujatha's contribution to the screenplay is very evident in the way such complex themes are brought out with utmost simplicity. Dialogues by Shankar, Sujatha and Karky are simple, yet powerful. It's a movie for the masses, the classes and for all age groups from 6 to 60 and above. Perhaps one of the most entertaining movies ever made in the country, Endhiran is sure to break all collection records (if it hasn't already) in the weeks to come. 

Superstar Rajnikanth is deadlier than ever, playing three different roles with equal flourish. He plays the non-violent Dr.Vasi with a certain sophisticated dignity, Chitti with an irresistibly lovable charm and Chitti- Upgraded Version 2.0 as the devil incarnate. Rajnikanth looks 20 years younger and it is hard to imagine any other actor playing any of the three roles in this movie. He plays hero, comedian, dancer, fighter, savior and evil, all in the same movie and is nothing short of a treat to watch. Devoid of any of his usual gimmicks and style statements, he still manages to mesmerize his fans. And the final 30 minutes of the movie reminds us of the Rajni of the early 80s, and these portions have to be seen to be believed. The acting caliber of Rajnikanth has been utilized after a long long time. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan looks stunning for most portions of the film. Even though she plays arm-candy for all the Rajnis, she has a striking presence throughout the movie. She looks absolutely gorgeous in the songs and gives a decent performance as well. Danny Denzongpa gives an elegant performance as the evil Dr.Bohra and is a welcome relief from the usual Tamil villains. (The only issue is the out-of-sync dubbing done for him). Santhanam and Karunas are merely there and are not able to match up to Rajnikanth's impeccable comic timing. Malayalam actors Kalabhavan Mani and the late Cochin Haneefa come in one-scene cameos.

Each and every technical aspect of this film is top-notch. Be it the cinematography, production design, make-up, costumes, action, editing or special effects - each department is handled by the bests of the Indian and International film industries. Rathnavelu captures the movie in all its magnanimity and his work really comes into its own during the song sequences like 'Kaadhal Anukkal' and 'Kilimanjaro'. Sabu Cyril deserves nothing short of a National Award for his highly imaginative and futuristic production design and art works. Anthony could have used his scissors a little more in the second half, but still has done a tremendous job. Resul Pookkutty's sound design proves that he is capable of winning more Academy Awards. Action by Yuen Voo Ping and Peter Hein is unbelievably good. The sequence in the local train and the whole climax portions were fantastic. Special effects by Stan Winston Studios (who have worked on Terminator, Iron Man and Avatar) are the best that Indian Cinema has ever seen. The SFX team and the action team have done some extraordinary work in the final 30 minutes of the film making it a visual spectacle, which you can watch only with bated breath.

AR Rahman's music was declared a chartbuster on its release day itself. Shot in true Shankar style, the songs alone are worth the money you spend on your ticket. 'Kaadhal Anukkal' and 'Kilimanjaro' shows never-before-seen stunning locations like Macchu Picchu, shot in all their glory. Whereas 'Arima Arima' and 'Irumbile' has been shot on futuristic sets with imaginative costumes. The mandatory SP Balasubramaniam title song comes in a toned down, yet appealing version and 'Boom Boom Robo Da' and 'Chitti Dance Showcase' are excuses for Chitti to entertain us shamelessly. Choreography by Prabhu Deva, Raju Sundaram and others is excellent and suits the style of Rajnikanth. Vairamuthu and his son Madhan Karky write lyrics that complement the theme of the movie very well. The background score did not come up to usual Rahman-Shankar standards, but was still very good. The 2.0 theme track was killer. 

You can be sure of one thing while watching Endhiran. Such a movie has never come before on the Indian screen and it will take a long time for another such movie to come out as well. It is a spectacle which you can miss only at your own risk. If Sivaji was a Rajni film directed by Shankar, Endhiran is a Shankar film, utilizing both Rajni - the actor and Rajni - the superstar. Shankar with his amazing vision has shown us that nothing is impossible if you dare to dream. Ably supported by the best producers this movie could have ever got, Sun Pictures, this movie is sure to be a milestone in Indian Cinema. Move over Superman, Batman and Spiderman, we have Chitti - The Robot!! Shankar, Rajnikanth, Kalanithi Maran and the entire team can be proud. DOT!!

Rating - 4.5/5


(Previously published on nowrunning.com - http://www.nowrunning.com/movie/5775/tamil/endhiran-the-robot/2750/review.htm)