Seeing is believing !!!

That Four Letter Word is releasing this 23rd at Satyam Cinemas
I can give only two reasons for you to watch the film
1. If you've been a regular reader of Sudhish's blog, you'll know why
2. It has Zebra err ... Sunil from Evam

Wondering why i have put this video ?
Check out the entire video to find the reason ...

This is for all you guys who refused to believe when i showed the pic
This is for all you guys who laughed and snigered after seeing the pic
This is for all you guys who transfered the pic on net for your own gratification
This is for all you guys who cropped me out of the pic
THIS IS FOR ALL YOU GUYS ...

Am having the last laugh ! : )

Thanks to Sudhish for letting me use the link

Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu - On a deeper thought

Somehow i felt i had missed out on something in my review of Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu. The movie released pretty late amid huge expectations, and when it released it was taken by a storm. The night show at Melody theatre proved to be great ambience for watching this movie. I somehow dint like this movie as much as Kaakha Kaakha but watching it again and again (thanks to DVD) i started liking the movie although i still hate some scenes in it. Reading my own review, i felt it lacked something, so i ve rewritten it and you can find it here.

Shuru ho gayi, MAMU !!!

I somehow missed out Lage Raho Munna Bhai when it hit the screens and i never got an oppurtunity to watch it until recently when my cousin got me the movie in a pirated pen drive (when pirated VCDs and DVDs exist, why not pen drive - its actually easier to use than a VCD or DVD). Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. was the only hindi movie which made me laugh like never before, and i feel the tamil remake was in no way as good as the hindi original.

With a lot of expectation and after a splendid review by everyone, i finally watched the movie. If you expect the movie to be as good the first part, you are for a surprise, the sequel is infact much better, although the presence of humour is lesser than the first part, the script is very strong and the movie is entirely based on the power of the script. With the success of Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., the director Rajkumar Hirani had to make Lage Raho Munna Bhai with a lot of pressure and he has actually done a great job.

A lot of sequels came under production at the time Lage Raho Munna Bhai was in the making and newspapers carried reports saying no movie can ever beat the original, but Rajkumar Hirani has made it false and has given a bigger hit. If Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. was a fun filled family entertainer, Lage Raho Munna Bhai is a fun filled and thought filled family entertainer, two in one ! The success of Lage Raho Munna Bhai has kicked off a new trend in the film industry and making sequels has become the buzz word.

Sanjay Dutt (Munna Bhai) has given his career's best performance in Lage Raho Munna Bhai, and his man friday Arshad Warsi (Circuit) is in no way lagging behind. These two after giving a splendid performance in Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. are back with a bang. They have a terrific sense of humour and timing. Am still happy that Shah Rukh Khan was unable to take up the movie (although he is my favorite) because Sanjay Dutt goes perfectly into the shoes of a Mumbai thug, with his local accent and is way of pulling down Boman Irani makes everyone roll on the floor laughing.

Boman Irani (Lucky Singh) has also given yet another commendable performance in Lage Raho Munna Bhai. Boman with his laughing therapy in Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. had even the audience in laughter and as a shrewd builder in Lage Raho Munna Bhai he has gone a step further.

Vidya Balan (Janvi) is dam pretty. She doesn't play any big part in the film but suits Sanjay Dutt perfectly. The old men staying with Vidya Balan have done an impressive job.

The story revolves around a local thug Sanjay Dutt who is in love with the radio jockey Vidya Balan and is all the time hooked to the radio listening to her. As usual he cheats in a competition and wins a chance to be a part of Vidya's show on Gandhi Jayanthi. To impress her, he reads about Gandhiji and his philosophies and his way of life. Slowly without his own knowledge, he cultivates Gandhiism in him and he slowly captures the heart of everyone in the city with his Gandhiism which he started preaching through the radio in his 'apun hai naa !' stye. He captures the heart of everyone, everyone except Boman Irani and how Sanjay uses Gandhiism to teach a lesson to Boman forms the rest of the story.

The movie although less in humour than the previous one is high on values. The way the director has taken up to give a story on Gandhiism is simply superb. The movie has retained the same crew to an extent. Songs are placed at the apt spots and every song relates a story rather than the run around the trees concept. Technically the movie is pretty decent.

A serious subject is told on a lighter vein and has gone down well with the audience and this one too is a cult classic like its predecessor.

Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu - Showcase of technical brilliance

The much hyped about film of recent times Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu should have hit the screens long back but various factors delayed it which infact created all the more hype for the film. More than anything the movie had Kamalhassan in the lead and to top it all he plays a police officer, what more would a fan expect considering the fact that its been a long time since Kamalhassan made a serious film after Virumaandi. Not to forget, the movie is directed by Gautham Menon who is one of the most successful directors of recent times. He has proved how well he can handle love and action through his previous films Minnale and Kaakha Kaakha.

The movie released when i was busy with my college project and before i could watch the movie i was bombarded with mixed responses about the film, but that cannot stop me from watching a Kamalhassan + Gautham Menon combo.

This movie has one of the best intro scenes of Kamalhassan. The way Kamalhassan is shown as a police officer, his body language, his dialects, it simply rocks. To add more spice, Kamalhassan carries an attitude which many actors have been unable to portray in their police films. As usual the police officer in this movie is also honest and pays a heavy price for his honesty and sincerity, here the price happens to be Kamalinee Mukherjee, Kamalhassan's wife. But after this the story is full of twists and turns and U turns.

Prakash Raj comes on screen for just about ten minutes but remains in your mind all through the film. A commendable work by this veteran, the way he tries to maintain his might when his daughter is missing is an excellent example, the way he breaks down on seeing his daughter's corpse is one scene that's enough to show his acting prowess.

Daniel Balaji comes as a psycho path killer - arrogant, cruel and merciless. He has tried desperately to show up as an excellent actor but has not been able to reach expectations, his performance in Kaakha Kaakha was much better. The way Daniel Balaji along with his friend goes on a killing spree evokes hatred among the viewers which proves that Gautham Menon has sketched the character with perfection to the core.

Jyothika has found a neat role in this film. She plays the opposite to a matured Kamalhassan, and surprisingly Jyothika doesn't look a way too young for Kamalhassan, infact they make a nice pair in this film.

Gautham Menon is again at his best. Minnale introduced him as a director while Kaakha Kaakha gave him the much required break in the industry. Now Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu cannot be said to have take Gautham Menon to the next level because, although the movie has all required elements, there has been a slight mis judgement in packaging. By interval, the audience knew who the culprit was, the only suspense left was how Kamalhassan was going to get them behind bars. Even the reason for Daniel Balaji and his friend to become a psycho path is the ususal lust-taken-over-senses drama. But this script must have been a close-to-heart one of Gautham Menon as it shows the dedication of a director in making it as a movie.

Technical brilliance

The movie can proudly call itself the most technically brilliant film till date. Shot on Super 35 by Ravi Varman and edited by none other than Antony, the movie speaks volumes about the works of its technicians. On the audio note, Harris Jayaraj and Gautham Menon combo strikes a hatrick. Thanks to the MP3 and FM boom, all songs of Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu was available 24*7 in one channel or the other. Paartha mudhal naale and Manjal veyil are the best among the five songs in this movie. The song Sikki mukki nerupe could have been more marketable if it had the lyrics entirely in english, for the kind of music Harris Jayaraj had given and the way Antony had edited it, the song should have been a chart buster. The song if it was in english would have been a kick ass response to both Bollywood and Hollywood, might have even become a trend in the following films. The re recording and back ground score makes the movie all the more intersting.

Gautham Menon seems to be obsessed with his Kaakha Kaakha that there are some traces of Kaakha Kaakha on Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu. The movie is claimed to be the second one of a police film trilogy following Kaakha Kaakha. If Kaakha Kaakha was an episode in a police officers's life, Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu is another episode in a police officer's life. The movie despite a late release and mixed response is slowly gaining momentum. The best film of 2006 award given to Vettaiyadu Villaiyadu gives the movie the much required support and confidence.

Happy b'day Rahman

Happy birthday !

You are truly awesome ... From Roja to Guru, you've captured the hearts of everyone ...

Waiting for the audio launch of Sivaji ...

Waiting to see people go gaga about Sivaji's music ...

Waiting to see history created in the sale of CD's ... Don't disappoint us ...

Here is my 10 favourite songs of A.R.Rahman ... Its absolutely impossible for anyone to list only 10 songs of A.R.Rahman as their favourite, so here are the 10 songs of A.R.Rahman which tops the list of my all time favourite ...

Nila Kaaykirathu (Indira)

Roobaroo (Rang De Basanti)

Netru illadha maatram (Pudiya mugam)

Minnale ne (May maadham)

Pachai nirame (Alaipayuthey)

Kannai katti kolladhey (Iruvar)

Dil se re (Dil Se)

Putham puthu bhoomi (Thiruda thiruda)

Desh mere (The legend of Bhagat Singh)

En kaadhale (Duet)

These songs have been lifting my spirits most of the time ... Rahman surely does have a magic in his music which transports the listeners to their own world ... One more thing -

Rahman + Vaali = Mind blowing

Rahman + Vairamuthu = Makes-me-forget-the-world

Rahman + Vairamuthu + My Superstar = Super dooper hit

Veyil - Shankar dares a sun bath

Who else other than Shankar would produce a movie which has Pasupathy in the lead role. No doubt Pasupathy is a good actor but in this charisma driven tamil cinema, no other producer would bet his money on Pasupathy. Shankar's S Pictures has produced Veyil, with Pasupathy as the main lead, directed by Vasanthabalan whose first film Album was an average grosser.

Vasanthabalan's Veyil revolves around the life of a boy who runs away from home after being beaten up badly by his father, this boy grows and returns home almost after 20 years. What happens when he returns forms the rest of the story. Pasupathy after proving his talents in Kuthupatarai has been waiting for this big break in cinema, although he has shown his face in about half a dozen films, Veyil is the first film to show him as the lead artist and bring him to limelight and Pasupathy seems to have made full use of it.

Bharath happens to be the younger brother of Pasupathy and is the good-boy-at-home type and is loved by his parents. Bharath has been graduating slowly in films, he shows a markable difference in his journey from Boys to Veyil. Bharath does not have a big role in the film, he falls in love with Bhavana and their love scenes doesn't seem to impress us either and its not meant to as well because the movie is revolving around a more serious note called relationship.

Pasupathy being a big fan of MGR finds job in a cinema hall and grows up there. Debutant Priyanka is his love interest, they find the cinema hall a nice and convenient place to make love. Shriya has found her a descent role in this movie as the childhood crush of Pasupathy and she has used it well to portray her best. Music by G.V.Prakash makes you disbeleive that its the work of a debutant. Cinematography of the title song is worth a mention, cinematography and art direction has played an important part in this movie.

In an industry where cinema is most of the time formula driven, movies like Veyil breaks the rules and strikes a chord with the audience. Producers like Shankar who give total freedom to the directors should be encouraged. Vasanthabalan had proved that a grippy story line and excellent performers can do wonders to cinema.