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Some of you might have read a previous post of mine saying "Love stories"... Well... I do hate most love stories to be honest... And that's because I've never had the patience for that.

2 Love stories... or rather 2 Reel life love stories that I have enjoyed immensely are Alaipayuthey and Mayakkam Enna.

Alaipayuthey can be described as the more sedate movie of the two. Well, those who haven't seen this movie -  too bad, too sad, you've missed probably one of Tamil cinema's classic love stories. But some of us may have caught it as Saathiya in Hindi. Well, nothing can ever match an original.

Alaipayuthey is the story of Karthik (Madhavan) and Shakthi (Shalini) who are in love with each other and after their parents don't agree to get them married, they get married secretly, without their parents knowing. The movie showcases the love between the lead pair and what happens in their relationship - the stresses, the strains, the anger. The story weaves itself and is one beautiful movie to watch.

I know it's a bit of my mokka....

Mayakkam Enna - what do I say? One stunning movie featuring iron strong characters. Yamini (Richa Gangopadhyay) is one hell of a woman. Yamini spells out her love for Karthik (Dhanush) more than any other couple in any movie that has been made. The character has been portrayed as a woman with nerves and a mind of steel. She doesn't leave Karthik even when he's at his lowest, nearly what people would call mental. She stays with him and supports him in his perseverance to become a world class wildlife photographer. At the end of the movie, one can only say "Whatta Woman".


One thing about both movies is that how strong the pairs were in their relationship. At any point, either of the pairs could have broken off, but it took them a lot of courage and a lot of strength to stay and be there for each other.

And at this point, I am reminded of a couple of pairs I happen to know in real life. Both the pairs I know, I have known them over quite a period of time and I also happen to know how strong they were in their relationship. They wanted to get married only after obtaining their parents' consent and which they managed to. All the struggles that they had to go through... and finally its such a special thing when you get married to the person you love...

"Love doesn't come to everyone, but if you find the person you love, never ever let go of him/her..."

Alaipayuthey....

One LOVE story that I truly Love. Of course, I hate stupid love stories like "I hate luv storys". But, Alaipayuthey.. NEVER. Right from the moment I stepped out of the theater, I was thinking "what a love story.. so, is this what love is?" And I was just in 9th standard at that time.

11 years have rolled by since that Mani Ratnam masterpiece, so many movies have come and gone, so many love stories, told, forgotten and buried, but Alaipayuthey - has only managed to make me fall in love with it, all over again, every single time that I see the movie.



And it is only when I look back I suddenly realized -  11 years have gone by!!! Wow.. and it just seemed like yesterday night that I walked out of Devi theater after watching this.

I don't think I need to tell this movie's story now, as everyone would have watched it quite a few times - thanks to Sun Tv, Vijay Tv, etc. However, I must say, it is such a timeless classic, which has only been so enjoyable, that I have never been able to quit watching this movie.

Well, coming to the question - "What is love?" That's a very tough question to answer. Different people have different meanings. However, it will all come down to just that special someone, who can turn each of our lives up side down.

I guess I have run out of words to write about this movie and about love. I think I was better off just watching it for the billionth time and I am going back to continue it. I hope, I have performed an Inception on you to go watch the movie now. :)

Mani Matters...

It's so hard to write about a man who talks very less. However, I find it very compelling to write about one of the greatest directors in Indian cinema- Mani Ratnam.

Many of Mani Ratnam's movies have been top award winners, most notably Nayagan, Roja and Mouna Ragam. Mani Ratnam is credited with making some of the best movies that have come out in Tamil Cinema. However, he is also known for the dialogues which are so sparingly used in his movies. One thing that stands out his movies is the characterization of his actors. Some of his characters which have been created have become so etched in the memory, that it is very hard to forget Velu Naickar (Kamal Haasan in Nayagan), Surya (Rajini Kanth in Thalapathi), Devaraj (Mamooty in Thalapathi),Anjali (Shamili in Anjali), Karthik (Madhavan in Alaipayuthey), Inba (Madhavan in Ayitha Ezhuthu), Michael Vasanth (Surya in Ayitha Ezhuthu), Gurukant Desai (Abhishek Bachchan in Guru) and quite recently- Veerayya a.k.a. Veera (Vikram in Raavanan).

If there is one man who can make even a stone act it's Mani Ratnam. His performance as a director is overshadowed by the performance of Shamili, who played the role of an autistic child who is loved by her family, detested by her society earlier and later how the same society learns to like her and love her. Such stories do not come every day in Indian cinema and such stories are very very hard to direct.

There have also been some movies of his which have been critically acclaimed such as Bombay, which is based on the Mumbai riots of 1993. One other critically acclaimed movie is Iruvar- featuring Mohanlal and Prakashraj in lead roles, a story loosely based on the lives of Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister- Mr. M.G.Ramachandran and current Tamil Nadu Chief Minister- Mr. M. Karunanidhi. This movie did not make it big at the box office, however, it is known for the directorial brilliance showcased by Mani Ratnam. Probably one of the finest movies that Indian cinema has ever seen or known, for ages to come.

Some of his other efforts include the movies- Kannathil Muthamittal and Dil Se, which form the terrorism trilogy alongwith Roja. The 3 movies- Roja, Kannathil Muthamittal and Dil Se- focus on 3 of the Sub-continent's most violent areas. Roja- Kashmir, Kannathil- Sri Lanka and Dil Se- North East India. Mani Ratnam is also credited for the blockbuster romantic story- Alaipayuthey and for one other movie treading on political lines- Ayitha Ezhuthu (Yuva in Hindi).

Everyone has a peak and a crest. That goes the same for even Mani Ratnam. The latest position that Mani Ratnam has got himself into is that he has apparently forgotten how audiences receive movies in various parts of the country. Raavan and Raavanan (the tamil version of Raavan) was released simultaneously. Raavanan did better than its Hindi counterpart, thanks to some apparently better acting by Vikram, who plays the "title role". One flaw with the Mani Ratnam of recent times is that he is more intent on creating movies as bi-linguals and tri-linguals, mindless of who acts in the movie and how well a movie is accepted in each region. For example: Raavanan need not have been made as a tri-lingual. It seemed more of an effort to showcase Ash-Abhi on screen, after a good one in Guru. It must also be noted that there was a lot of effort for Raavan- the sets, the stunts, the entire crew which had put in months of hard work to make such a movie must be praised.

Adding to that is the legendary A.R. Rahman - Mani Ratnam combination. It has worked so well in the past but somehow failed to live up to expectations with the Tamil audio of Raavanan. It was so apparent that the lyrics was not given much of importance, as they were just made, or rather forced to suit the music that had already been created for Raavan.

Despite all those recent flaws, Mani Ratnam still remains one of THE BEST directors of all time. I know I am not even in the league, where I can critique his works, but still, as an admirer and an avid movie goer, all I can say is Mani Ratnam stands tall among his peers and contemporaries. Let's just hope his next one is far more successful and probably the best to come from him.