Minsara Kanavu-A review
Rajalakshmi Viswanathan
I am posting this on behalf of my friend Shankar.
Please direct all flames to:
shankar.va...@uslum.mail.abb.com
Minsara Kanavu - A Tamil Film Review
"If I can't grab the attention of the audience within the first five
minutes, my film has positively bombed" - Alfred Hitchcock
On a snowy Saturday afternoon, I was enticed by the bill-board at the local
Hindi film theater: "Iruvar" (previously named as "Anandam") by Mani Ratnam:
just went in.
Arvind Swamy has just returned from US and as any other foreign returnee in
a Tamil film, he spoke at length in English (this stretch of dialogue was
lengthier than all the other opportunities put together for his role). After
breezing through a song shot in snow-capped mountains involving lots of
nice-looking girls (I was beginning to see great possibilities!), Arvind
visits a Ooty convent and runs amuck in the LH sanctum-sanctorum in his
attempts to meet his childhood sweetheart .
Possibly, the director was one of those who always wanted to become the only
watchman in a LH but due to some unforeseen twist of fate, ended up in the
present occupation. For a while, everything looks upbeat and sunny. Any
moment you are warming up for a dream song, but the director gets the better
of you again!
The pleasant looking heroine suddenly wants to become a nun (what the
hell?); it seems she always wanted to be one & renounce the pleasures of the
world for the sake of service. However, this backroom briefing is not
sufficiently stressed earlier when you get to see the heroine "as scantily
clad as censorly possible" bubbling with enthusiasm and promising the good
things yet to come. Arvind, understandably, is crushed and wants to restore
her interest back into life (meaning towards him).
By this time, I was almost certain that Mani is not the director of the film
or else I would be Bill Clinton! So, I turned to the neighbor who was
devouring it all and asked him who the director was.
"Rajiv Menon".
"No, I am asking about the director".
"Rajiv Menon". And he made it audibly clear that he does not care for my
inquisitive company.
Suddenly Prabhu Deva is on the scene as a slick hair-dresser and he becomes
the "friend, philosopher, and misguide" for Arvind and starts helping him in
his unrewarding passes at the girl. No, he is not dancing yet & yes, he is
going to. They take the well-beaten path of wooing the heroine (established
since the days Tamil film became "talkie"). After an attempted suicide scene
(and how I wished it would come true!), you begin to smell popcorn.
Intermission comes as a welcome relief. Now, I gather more data about the
movie (Minsara Kanavu, for the unenlightened) and the heroine (Kajol) and
also that "Iruvar" is scheduled for a later day screening! I had to admit:
"so many people have given me so many rides so far, but heck, this is
different".
When the order is restored again, the film steadies itself to the pitch of a
Malayalam art film from the golden era (to give an illustration [with my
limited faculties ofcourse] to those who have not been subjected to seeing
one, imagine somebody starting to cycle on a 10 mile stretch road; the
camera captures every minute of the action from one angle!).
Deva, in his attempts to bring Kajol's attention to Arvind, takes to liking
her himself (who might not be for that matter?!) and is torn apart in a
friend-turned-foe syndrome. He is shown to be taking all sorts of liberties
with Kajol (later justified as kind of dream sequences). Kajol also
reciprocates the sentiments. You begin to wonder if this might not be
another of those "classic" equilateral ones. The thrust on the musical
talent of Kajol gets amplified and due to her, Prabhu Deva and his friends
get a chance to cut a disc.
However, since we are approaching the 12th reel, the director is forced to
take some urgent steps & he remembers about the "B" & "C" centers,
particularly the Madurai audience. So he lets Kajol to take an extended bath
in a waterfall (blame it on Sridhar: he started it all in "Vennira Adai";
Jayalalitha was the trend-setter and ever since, the time-tested tradition
of portraying a first-time heroine in similar backgrounds is being
religiously upheld by subsequent crops of Tamil movie directors!).
Arvind tries to take advantage of Kajol at the end of it, and tells her
about his love for her and his actions based on Deva's advises. Kajol is
shocked about Deva's treachery, decides to opt out of the audition, ignores
Arvind, and is suddenly reminded about her unfulfilled wish of becoming a
nun (yes, we are still continuing to watch!) and takes the first train out
of the town. Somehow, Prabhu Deva gets the wind of the news, and after
riding in a motor bike through Egmore station, manages to cling outside
Kajol's compartment. The train speeds up and both the parties settle for a
lengthy discussion. About the time they reach Kollidam bridge (which is just
about 200 km from Madras), Prabhu Deva, futile with his argument, loses his
grip and falls into the river. He is badly hurt and Arvind plays the part of
a good nurse. For Kajol, life moves on and she arrives at the convent to
begin training for a nun.
Prabhu Deva's other friends fill in Arvind with what has happened; Arvind
changes his mind and is ready to gift-away his childhood sweetheart (as if
womenfolk are freely traded commodity!).
On the day Kajol is scheduled to become a nun, Prabhu Deva comes out of his
coma, and Arvind gives a dash back to the convent in horrid rain and manages
to convince Kajol about the chastity of pure love, etc. Prabhu Deva & Kajol
marry and live happily hereafter.
Don't miss the concluding scene (for three reasons):
1. The director, failed in his attempts to convert Kajol as a nun,
converts Arvind Swamy into a father (or do you call him a brother?).
Hail Hitler!
2. Kajol is shown without the makeup: I would have gladly joined Arvind
Swamy! Children, who were keeping silent so far, suddenly remembered their
role in a quiet cinema hall and promptly let out screams!
3. AVM with its "50 years of Tamil Cinema" logo.
Out of the hall, I could recollect couple of songs [music and background
score by Rahman]: "Anbenra...(a solo choir song); "Strawberry..." (a group
song); "Vennilaa..."(a duet). Also the money I spent on the movie!
If you are naive enough to ask about how they could possibly justify the
title, "what's in a name anyway?"!
- Shankar Vaidyanathan
email: shankar.va...@uslum.mail.abb.com