Tamil Movies a bad influence?

Being a Tamilian, it's no wonder that I happen to watch Tamil films every now and then. Nevertheless, an email sent by a friend a few days back got me thinking about the influences of Tamil films in our lives, particularly in the lives of Tamilians in Malaysia.

You see, this friend of mine happen to read my previous posts on my blog and inquired if I'm getting paid for promoting VTV and Raavanan through them? Well, if that's true, then tamil film producers would be running at losses trying to pay each blogger for the so-called "promotion" of their films ;)

Of course, the sarcasm lying in his line of question could very well be noticed. Why the sarcasm, you may ask? This friend of mine (let's call him K, shall we?) happens to think that the Indians in Malaysia are suffering as they are influenced by Tamil films. In layman's terms, he's basically saying that Tamil films are the sole reason (or probably one of the main reasons) why Indians are in a dire state today (or are they?)

I have to agree with him on the fact that Tamilians are more fond of idolizing the stars as compared to other ethnics. Want a proof? Rajini in his 60's can still be accepted as a youthful hero (Sivaji The Boss anyone?) but the same cannot be said of Amitabh- well, even when he was playing the hero in Cheeni Kum, he was potrayed as a man of 64 years old...

How ironic that two actors of the same age group, each having their huge fan base, who grew up together as stars, and even attempted to enact the roles the other did in the original version (in their prime age),  be so similar and yet so distinctive in their choice of movies now? While one cannot be seen doing a youthful character, the other cannot be seen NOT doing youtful characters ;))

Well, whose fault is it that Rajini is donning the roles half his age today? The directors, the producers, the technicians or Rajini himself? If you ask me, it's the audience of course. It has to be remembered that movies are a money-making industry, just like any other businesses. Thus, more often that not, films are made to cater to the audience's taste. Very few has the guts to break away from the well ventured path, prefering to do something which hasn't be done before. Maniratnam for one, gave a diverse set of good film- Iruvar, Dilse, Kannathil Muthammittal to name a few. Nevertheless, all these films suffered a setback in collection, thus he has to resort to making commercially safe films (and compromising on creativity at the safe time) such as Alai Payuthey and Guru. While some might say Guru is a landmark as far as Hindi films are concerned, I seriously beg to differ. Maniratnam might not admit this, but for a man who did the emotionally sensitive Mouna Ragam and critically as well as technically acclaimed Nayagan, movies such as Guru are definitely a cakewalk for him. Probably the only hindrance he might have had in Guru is having to work with lame actors such as Abhishek and Aishwarya for the same. 

Movies like Iruvar, Dilse and Kannathil Muthammittal suffered financially at the box-office despite being good films

So where does this brings us back to? Does tamil films serve as a bad influence to the viewers? Again, I couldn't quite bring myself to agree to this. What are the elements of bad influences in tamil cinemas (which lacks in other regional films) that we can point out? The fact that it shows a huge dossage of criminal acts? Or that every other tamil films is filled with folk numbers with heroines dancing in skimpy clothes? Or the fact that heroism is at its pathetic state here? A big NO to the three options. Are we that naive to say criminal acts in films motivate viewers to do the same? Or do we see scantily dressed women dancing in street like how it's shown in the movies? Or do young men actually dress up as a Cock or utter punch dialogues, as does the heroes in the films? The idea is as laughable as projected in the films.

And what is the worst case scenario of films' influence in men? Maybe provoking the public to damage the theater chairs and screens if their "idol's" films are not screened on time, could be said as one. But if you ask me, the act can be credited more to the lack of anger-control management than to the untold interest in watching the particular film in the first place.

Otherwise, films have its share of advantages and disadvantages of its own. While certain films leaves us in awe of the way the film is projected, (if you've seen one shot of Iruvar, you know that it was definitely one of the best technically made films in India; for sample try this-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8EBPi3gWWE - take a look at how beautiful the up-close as well as the long angle shots were done for the scenes until 1.16, and mind you, this is just a pinch of what Maniratnam has done in the whole film!) certain films, on the other hand, do make us to rethink if we're giving the stars more than what they deserve (Barath's claim that his "Chinna Thalapathy" title is conferred by his fans might make us think who's the fooler of the two- the fans, for conferring such titles or the actor who shamelessly uses the same for the sake of publicity?)

How do you draw a balance between the good and bad of films? Simple, leave the bad films and promote good films- My guess is, if films like Kannathil Muttamittal, Anbe Sivam and Naan Kadavul have done well in the box-office, it would inevitably have resorted in more such path-breaking films to be produced in future. But nothing's of loss...yet. If anything, Tamil films seems to be treading the right path now and then. The fact that movies like Angaadi Theru has done a good business, while Sura is still struggling to make ends meet is a proof that the public is expecting more from the industry than run-of-the-mills kinda films. 

Things are definitely changing for good but whatever said and done, if Tamil films are said to be the mother of all sufferings faced by the Tamilians- well, I for one would highly object to it for sure. Sorry K, your point has failed to leave a mark in me!

Raavan- the countdown starts!

Ok, so the countdown for Ravana/ Raavanan has started. 14 more to go!Yeaaay! In any event, I know that it's a darn too late to talk about the music, nevertheless, what better way to start the Raavan topic than this. The following are my thoughts about Raavan music, which I posted in that yahoo group some time back. My views might have differ from the time this was written but that's a different issue altogether. For now, let's start the music!

Let me be honest…I mean really honest with you guys. I’ll begin by telling you what happen on the day I bought this album…The moment I got out of the store after purchasing the album, the sky opened up and start flooding the whole town. You may say that it’s God’s way of showering blessing, but why does it have to happen at a time when I didn’t have my umbrella around? I ran to my car as fast as I can and guess what?…I couldn’t find my car keys! (it was stuck inside my handbag with my hundred other things…well, whoever said that a lady’s handbag contains almost everything under the sun wasn’t kidding themselves. My handbag had almost all…except my dumb car keys :((  ) As luck would have it, there wasn’t a shelter nearby, thus, I had to open my handbag in the middle of the road, drenching myself and the hundred other stuff I was talking about, in the process of finding the keys!

So, yeah, I finally found the keys, got in to the car and just at that point, some nutcracker had to double-park his car beside mine! Well, after a short dispute and many honks later, I managed to get my car out. Now, here’s the moment I was waiting for, the excitement of listening to ARR’s album for the first time!

 

Beera Beera with Vijay Prakash’s strong vocals set the ball rolling. Karthik came in next with Behne De, followed by Thok de killi, Ranjha Ranjha, Killi re and Kata Kata and…well, that’s it. Wait a minute…that’s it? I haven’t even begun to enjoy any of them yet :(  For the first time, I found that I didn’t have any thoughts about ARR’s album…not even a negative one…I was feeling almost indifferent and I didn’t like the feeling at all. Hating an album is one thing, but indifferent? If only this day could get worse.

So, I started playing them again from the beginning. By then, I reached the Montessori where my 3 years old nephew studies. I picked him up and was just about to replace Raavan with Thomas & Friends soundtracks (despite months of cajoling him to listen to ARR, I must say that I’ve failed to break my nephew’s “relationship” with Thomas & Friends soundtracks) when a “miracle” occurred. No, there was no signs of snow falling (that would have been a disaster, not a miracle ;) )…it was my nephew swaying his body to the beats of Beera Beera. Hey, were the beats there the first time around? I abandoned all thoughts of changing the cd. Instead, I hiked up the volume and both of us started to sway together this time around. Beera Beera has the grandeur presentation with Vijay Prakash’s solid voice giving a wonderful rural touch to it. In fact, the name Beera is so addictive that by the end of the song, both my nephew and me kept singing Beera Beera from the top of our lungs! (well, it was really more like “screaming” than “singing” actually but who cares?) And the beats, wow! I’ve always maintained that ARR provides the best percussion sounds…and time and again, he proves me right. Beera Beera is definitely a wonderful start to the album. 

Behne De followed thereafter. Undoubtedly, this has one of the best prelude ever…there is something so mystifying in the prelude that you just can’t wait to hear what ARR has to offer. And with Karthik giving his best (as always), you can never be wrong in classifying this as the best number in the album. God knows why National Award has eluded Karthik for so long. This guy deserves it and more…

On the whole, Behne De grants such a spellbinding experience! I’m left speechless…And my nephew? Well he’s too busy staring at the cute chick in the car beside ours to notice this number. Oh well, one day he’ll learn to appreciate ARR’s music.

Then comes Thok de killi…there’s something so modern yet rustic in this number. Again the percussion takes full control of the song that my nephew started jumping on his seat again…if only I was not driving, I would have joined him too. The sudden increase in the tempo coupled with Sukhwinder’s amazing vocals just leaves you asking for more.

Rekha Bharadwaj and Javed Ali came next with the seductive Ranjha Ranjha. I have to admit. I never liked Rekha’s voice. Yeah, I know…I might be alone in this, but still, I never liked her voice…til Ranjha Ranjha happened. In fact, her voice is so captivating that she completely overshadowed Javed Ali’s performance here. Great going Rekha, you just got yourself another fan on the list!

And there’s also Khilli re, a typical Shreya Ghosal kinda number. But this time around, ARR ropes in the sweet Reena Bhardwaj (is she related to Rekha by any chance?). And I must say, she did great justice to this song. The song has a soothing effect, coupled with Reena’s melodious voice. And I was mighty impressed with the first interlude…so much so that I can almost imagine Aishwarya gracefully performing her Bharatanatyam to it.

And finally ARR brings in Kata kata. Like Beera Beera, Kata Kata too were given a majestic look, all thanks to the grand orchestration and vibrant voices in the form of Ila Arun, Sapna Awasthi and Kunal Ganjawala.  There is a festive and celebratory feel to the number which makes you want to hear it over and over again.

As an album, Raavan is a definite treat to the ears. It’s so wonderfully woven that they all fit together while still managing to be distinctive at the same time. And with wonderful picturisations (which we can fearlessly expect from Maniratnam & team), this would definitely turn out to be “picture-perfect”. 

And yes, what was the biggest lesson I’ve learned from this experience?. ..Never hear to ARR’s new album when you’re in a ghastly mood!

Oh yeah, wanna know what happened to my nephew? He didn’t want to leave the car when we reached home so we decided to go for another round of drive while listening to Raavan…over and over again.