PANNAYAARUM PADMINIYUM – a Car, a Landlord and a Driver
Direction-Arun Kumar, Producer-M.R.Ganesh, Story/Screenplay-Arun Kumar
Cast- Vijay Sethupathi-Murugesan, Jayaprakash-Pannaiyar, Iyshwarya Rajesh-Malarvizhi, Neelima Rani,
Balasaravanan, Sneha (Cameo), Attakathi Dinesh (Cameo)
Music-Justin Prabhakaran, D.O.P-Gokul Benoy, Edit-A.Sreekar Prasad, Studio-Magicbox Films
Track list
1."Enga Ooru Vandi"-Lyrics-Justin Prabhakaran, Sung by-Akilesh, Allen, Gowtham,Haripriya,Anjana, Yazhini,Neyveli Sriram-05:14, 2."Onakkaga Poranthaenae"-Lyrics-Vaali, Sung By, Balaram, Sandhya, S.P.Charan, Anu Anand-04:52, 3."Kadhal Vandhaacho"-Lyrics-Justin Prabhakaran, Sung By-Karthik, Prashanthini-05:23, 4."Pesuraen Pesuraen"-Lyrics By-Vaali, Sung By- Justin Prabhakaran, Vairam, Pandiyamma, Thaayamma-04:31, 5."Enakkaaga Poranthaayae"-Lyrics By-Vaali, S.P.Charan, Anu Anand-03:41
The story, backdrop and setting (Screen play), the 1st & 2nd half- The film opens with a third party monologue explaining the usual ‘mundane’ nuances and back drop of the story. The story revolves around a ‘Pannaiyaar’ (the village landlord) a philanthropist, a naïve do-gooder, who believes in bringing new age technology to the locals (telephone, radio etc). The director refuses to disclose the period which is a very wise thing to do. The Pannaiyar is handed over an old vintage Premier Padmini car by his close friend and confidant to be kept in safe custody till his return after his visit to see his daughter and her family. The ‘Pannaiyar’ develops an instant and passionate liking for this car. From that moment on his whole life revolves around a single minded obsession for this car. The other love’s of his life being his wife and his daughter (not necessarily in that order). The ‘Pannaiyar’ hires a driver (Vijay Sethupathi) to chauffer him around. The car also becomes the sole property of the village. It is used as an ambulance, a tempo, a mortuary van, to cart groceries, dead bodies and even to deliver mail. The Pannaiyar his wife, driver and his man servant ‘Peedai’ are inseparables, their various antics forms the first half of this film and in fact the rest of this story. Along comes the Pannaiyar’s only daughter (Neelima) and her hen pecked husband. She uses her father’s misplaced and unconditional love for her and robs him of all his ‘valued’ materialistic possessions. The additional bonus (if it can be termed that) being the love story between ‘Murugeasn’ the hero and ‘Malarvizhi’ the heroine. Finally a young boy (5Rs in hand) with an (unexplained) obsession to sit in the front seat of the car is the ‘final’ puzzle in this 55KMPH film.
Acting: - Bala Saravanan ‘Peedai’ has performed well and within his limitations. He has not only fully understood his characterization but has played his part to the tee. The guy is a natural for this role. Though he does remind you of the lead actor in ‘Azhagarsamyin Kudarai’ his performance totally lessens the slack and lag in this film. His chemistry especially with V.S. really works. In my opinion ‘Bala’ is the fuel on which this Premier Padmini runs for 2 hours 32 mins.
Vijay Sethupathi as Murugesan, I think V.S. has to do some serious thinking of late about his stereo typed performances. He is a good performer but he has to learn to turn his negatives into positives. His expressions, body language and voice modulation has not improved an iota. He may be a great crowd puller as of now but very soon his present limitations will expose his inadequacies. The additional baggage saddled by the director on him is his pairing with the same ‘Rummy’ heroine in back to back films. This has further added to his woes in this film. Let’s hope he wakes up before it is too late, lest we lose a good actor.
Jayaprakash, as the Pannaiyaar has essayed a different role this time around. This is indeed a refreshing change to his usual ‘bad man or boss man characterization’. He has tried a few different things especially subtle variations to his body language. Other than Peedai and Tulasi his performance deserves a mention this time around. He has brought out the ‘naïve’ quality of the character quite well. He has also played an ideal foil to his counterpart in the emotive scenes. He has ably managed to break the hitherto traditional dark skinned, bare bodied, burly looking, gold chained, Jari dhoti clad ‘Tamil film-Pannaiyar Syndrome’ quite effectively. He still remains a bit rigid and standoffish in his performance which he must consciously try to avoid.
Tulasi as Pannaiyar’s wife really helps move this film to a certain extent. She has performed naturally without resorting to histrionics and melodrama though at times her diction and accent does not match her character in the film.
Neelima as the Pannaiyars daughter does her bit and her presence is more a boon than a bane.
Ishwaryaa Rajesh, as Malarvizhi has literally no role to play in this film. The less said the better. She has the talent but she should be less desperate and wait for good roles to come her way and not jump into any band wagon which comes along.
Cameo: - Sneha (Why?) The baby (a bigger WHY?) Attakathi Dinesh- adequate.
Finally the Premier Padmini remains an inanimate object throughout this film. You are at times left wondering as to why so many people are drawn to this car!
Director: - Should be complimented for attempting to foray into a relatively un- tapped area especially by Tamil film directors. He has scripted a story line which is rather refreshing and bold. His screen play has worked most times but at times falters. The humour, quips and banters have manages to keep the viewers in good spirits more often than not. The negatives being that the director has let the film drift in the middle. The film meanders slowly and finally concludes making one feel good but still wanting, deprived and let down even though it’s a fairly decent attempt by a first time director. He should now work hard and hone his directional skills to perfection in his next.
D.O.P:- His camera work and lighting work has been fairly adequate but the biggest let down being the lack of variety in the choice of locations. I wonder if this inadequacy was due to lack of finance or imagination or a bit of both.
Music: - The back ground score was pretty decent most times. The lyrics of a couple of songs (especially of the late Vali) were good though none of the songs could be termed as chart busters.
Edit: - The usage of the proverbial edit ‘scissor’ to cut around 25 mins would have really helped the cause of this film. Highlight: - Malarvizhi and V.S. arguing (montage)
The one’s that worked 1) ‘Peedai’ alias ‘Peruchali’s’ “negative” characterization (though not in the real sense) along with his performance simply stands out in this film. 2) The screen play and most of the humorous dialogues compensated for the stretch and drag parts of the film. 3) The emotion quotient between the Pannaiyaar and his wife was adequate and refreshing. 4) Director appears to reveal and painstakingly makes the viewer believe that the climax may end in tragedy/melodrama. 5) The director once again fools you in believing of a dramatic turnaround as the M.T.R. bus makes a speed entry but nothing really happens. 6) Children’s fascination for the car (popularly referred as a ‘pleasure’ in villages) brought out well 7) Feeling of Insecurity portrayed by V.S.8) Chellamal’s performance.9) No gore, violence, ‘adiyal’s’ and Arivaal’s.10) No mushy and badly placed love songs in Cochin, London and Spain etc.
The one’s I found wanting 1) the death of the original owner – Why no telephone call (added dialogue to say that the telephone was out of order, seems to be an afterthought). Even a letter (by snail mail) or telegram would have served the purpose especially when the owner trusted the ‘Pannaiyaar’ with property documents. 2) Lack of a petrol bunk in the area may be excused but at the least a storage tank would have helped, after all a car cannot run on air! 3) The boy’s uncontrolled urge to sit in the front seat and ‘Peedai’s’ demand of 5Rs. 4) for the nth time another instant love at first sight scene 4) the funeral scene stretched unnecessarily. 5) Single location (almost) throughout the film, a few more location changes would have helped 6) the love between V.S and A somehow fails to evoke any feeling of romance 7) Aishwaryaa and to a lesser extent Vijay Sethupathi were wasted by the director. In the sense any reasonably good actor would have been adequate to essay their characters. 8) It is the same case with the hero’s father and mother, both characters totally unnecessary. 9) The lone kid’s obsession for the car looked as if it was a climax worked back word. 10) Finally a ‘Pannaiyar’ who spends all his time at home, eating, gargling, brushing his teeth, loving his wife, molly cuddling his daughter, cleaning and looking after his car somehow makes a fortune to remodel his house, get a new car etc! (Must have made a fortune in the stock market/real estate).11) the young boy after 20 years is now a young man, Pannaiyar and his wife has aged too but lo! Behold! Murugesan and Malarvizhi remain as young as ever.
Finally to conclude a short film’s content can seldom be stretched to last the duration of a 2hr24 mins feature film. This film is another example of such an attempt. It would serve this film better if it is trimmed by about 25mins.
Some likeable lines & shots:- 1) Tractor & Cycle race 2) The Buffalo Lick 3) Corpse on top 4) Peedai & mechanic 5) Peedai & bus driver/conductor 6) Peedai and the blacksmith 7) J.P & wife (bedside & outside) 8) J.P. & V.S. learning driving.9) Peedai & V.S. arguing about owner-driver relationship.
Left right & Centre: -
The man to my left: - ‘Fairly ok film, worth watching with your family’.
The man on my right:-’ It is nice to sit on a swing and gently swing to the gentle breeze for the first few minutes but after sometime though it still feels nice it becomes rather monotonous ’. Is this true? I wonder!
Centre: - ‘The viewers were thoroughly enjoying the humour and the light hearted quips and banters, especially those of ‘peedai’.
Bottom Line: - a quote “A film is – or should be – more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what’s behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later?” – Stanley Kubrick
Until next time,
Director Haricharan
Chennai
7/2/2014
Direction-Arun Kumar, Producer-M.R.Ganesh, Story/Screenplay-Arun Kumar
Cast- Vijay Sethupathi-Murugesan, Jayaprakash-Pannaiyar, Iyshwarya Rajesh-Malarvizhi, Neelima Rani,
Balasaravanan, Sneha (Cameo), Attakathi Dinesh (Cameo)
Music-Justin Prabhakaran, D.O.P-Gokul Benoy, Edit-A.Sreekar Prasad, Studio-Magicbox Films
Track list
1."Enga Ooru Vandi"-Lyrics-Justin Prabhakaran, Sung by-Akilesh, Allen, Gowtham,Haripriya,Anjana, Yazhini,Neyveli Sriram-05:14, 2."Onakkaga Poranthaenae"-Lyrics-Vaali, Sung By, Balaram, Sandhya, S.P.Charan, Anu Anand-04:52, 3."Kadhal Vandhaacho"-Lyrics-Justin Prabhakaran, Sung By-Karthik, Prashanthini-05:23, 4."Pesuraen Pesuraen"-Lyrics By-Vaali, Sung By- Justin Prabhakaran, Vairam, Pandiyamma, Thaayamma-04:31, 5."Enakkaaga Poranthaayae"-Lyrics By-Vaali, S.P.Charan, Anu Anand-03:41
The story, backdrop and setting (Screen play), the 1st & 2nd half- The film opens with a third party monologue explaining the usual ‘mundane’ nuances and back drop of the story. The story revolves around a ‘Pannaiyaar’ (the village landlord) a philanthropist, a naïve do-gooder, who believes in bringing new age technology to the locals (telephone, radio etc). The director refuses to disclose the period which is a very wise thing to do. The Pannaiyar is handed over an old vintage Premier Padmini car by his close friend and confidant to be kept in safe custody till his return after his visit to see his daughter and her family. The ‘Pannaiyar’ develops an instant and passionate liking for this car. From that moment on his whole life revolves around a single minded obsession for this car. The other love’s of his life being his wife and his daughter (not necessarily in that order). The ‘Pannaiyar’ hires a driver (Vijay Sethupathi) to chauffer him around. The car also becomes the sole property of the village. It is used as an ambulance, a tempo, a mortuary van, to cart groceries, dead bodies and even to deliver mail. The Pannaiyar his wife, driver and his man servant ‘Peedai’ are inseparables, their various antics forms the first half of this film and in fact the rest of this story. Along comes the Pannaiyar’s only daughter (Neelima) and her hen pecked husband. She uses her father’s misplaced and unconditional love for her and robs him of all his ‘valued’ materialistic possessions. The additional bonus (if it can be termed that) being the love story between ‘Murugeasn’ the hero and ‘Malarvizhi’ the heroine. Finally a young boy (5Rs in hand) with an (unexplained) obsession to sit in the front seat of the car is the ‘final’ puzzle in this 55KMPH film.
Acting: - Bala Saravanan ‘Peedai’ has performed well and within his limitations. He has not only fully understood his characterization but has played his part to the tee. The guy is a natural for this role. Though he does remind you of the lead actor in ‘Azhagarsamyin Kudarai’ his performance totally lessens the slack and lag in this film. His chemistry especially with V.S. really works. In my opinion ‘Bala’ is the fuel on which this Premier Padmini runs for 2 hours 32 mins.
Vijay Sethupathi as Murugesan, I think V.S. has to do some serious thinking of late about his stereo typed performances. He is a good performer but he has to learn to turn his negatives into positives. His expressions, body language and voice modulation has not improved an iota. He may be a great crowd puller as of now but very soon his present limitations will expose his inadequacies. The additional baggage saddled by the director on him is his pairing with the same ‘Rummy’ heroine in back to back films. This has further added to his woes in this film. Let’s hope he wakes up before it is too late, lest we lose a good actor.
Jayaprakash, as the Pannaiyaar has essayed a different role this time around. This is indeed a refreshing change to his usual ‘bad man or boss man characterization’. He has tried a few different things especially subtle variations to his body language. Other than Peedai and Tulasi his performance deserves a mention this time around. He has brought out the ‘naïve’ quality of the character quite well. He has also played an ideal foil to his counterpart in the emotive scenes. He has ably managed to break the hitherto traditional dark skinned, bare bodied, burly looking, gold chained, Jari dhoti clad ‘Tamil film-Pannaiyar Syndrome’ quite effectively. He still remains a bit rigid and standoffish in his performance which he must consciously try to avoid.
Tulasi as Pannaiyar’s wife really helps move this film to a certain extent. She has performed naturally without resorting to histrionics and melodrama though at times her diction and accent does not match her character in the film.
Neelima as the Pannaiyars daughter does her bit and her presence is more a boon than a bane.
Ishwaryaa Rajesh, as Malarvizhi has literally no role to play in this film. The less said the better. She has the talent but she should be less desperate and wait for good roles to come her way and not jump into any band wagon which comes along.
Cameo: - Sneha (Why?) The baby (a bigger WHY?) Attakathi Dinesh- adequate.
Finally the Premier Padmini remains an inanimate object throughout this film. You are at times left wondering as to why so many people are drawn to this car!
Director: - Should be complimented for attempting to foray into a relatively un- tapped area especially by Tamil film directors. He has scripted a story line which is rather refreshing and bold. His screen play has worked most times but at times falters. The humour, quips and banters have manages to keep the viewers in good spirits more often than not. The negatives being that the director has let the film drift in the middle. The film meanders slowly and finally concludes making one feel good but still wanting, deprived and let down even though it’s a fairly decent attempt by a first time director. He should now work hard and hone his directional skills to perfection in his next.
D.O.P:- His camera work and lighting work has been fairly adequate but the biggest let down being the lack of variety in the choice of locations. I wonder if this inadequacy was due to lack of finance or imagination or a bit of both.
Music: - The back ground score was pretty decent most times. The lyrics of a couple of songs (especially of the late Vali) were good though none of the songs could be termed as chart busters.
Edit: - The usage of the proverbial edit ‘scissor’ to cut around 25 mins would have really helped the cause of this film. Highlight: - Malarvizhi and V.S. arguing (montage)
The one’s that worked 1) ‘Peedai’ alias ‘Peruchali’s’ “negative” characterization (though not in the real sense) along with his performance simply stands out in this film. 2) The screen play and most of the humorous dialogues compensated for the stretch and drag parts of the film. 3) The emotion quotient between the Pannaiyaar and his wife was adequate and refreshing. 4) Director appears to reveal and painstakingly makes the viewer believe that the climax may end in tragedy/melodrama. 5) The director once again fools you in believing of a dramatic turnaround as the M.T.R. bus makes a speed entry but nothing really happens. 6) Children’s fascination for the car (popularly referred as a ‘pleasure’ in villages) brought out well 7) Feeling of Insecurity portrayed by V.S.8) Chellamal’s performance.9) No gore, violence, ‘adiyal’s’ and Arivaal’s.10) No mushy and badly placed love songs in Cochin, London and Spain etc.
The one’s I found wanting 1) the death of the original owner – Why no telephone call (added dialogue to say that the telephone was out of order, seems to be an afterthought). Even a letter (by snail mail) or telegram would have served the purpose especially when the owner trusted the ‘Pannaiyaar’ with property documents. 2) Lack of a petrol bunk in the area may be excused but at the least a storage tank would have helped, after all a car cannot run on air! 3) The boy’s uncontrolled urge to sit in the front seat and ‘Peedai’s’ demand of 5Rs. 4) for the nth time another instant love at first sight scene 4) the funeral scene stretched unnecessarily. 5) Single location (almost) throughout the film, a few more location changes would have helped 6) the love between V.S and A somehow fails to evoke any feeling of romance 7) Aishwaryaa and to a lesser extent Vijay Sethupathi were wasted by the director. In the sense any reasonably good actor would have been adequate to essay their characters. 8) It is the same case with the hero’s father and mother, both characters totally unnecessary. 9) The lone kid’s obsession for the car looked as if it was a climax worked back word. 10) Finally a ‘Pannaiyar’ who spends all his time at home, eating, gargling, brushing his teeth, loving his wife, molly cuddling his daughter, cleaning and looking after his car somehow makes a fortune to remodel his house, get a new car etc! (Must have made a fortune in the stock market/real estate).11) the young boy after 20 years is now a young man, Pannaiyar and his wife has aged too but lo! Behold! Murugesan and Malarvizhi remain as young as ever.
Finally to conclude a short film’s content can seldom be stretched to last the duration of a 2hr24 mins feature film. This film is another example of such an attempt. It would serve this film better if it is trimmed by about 25mins.
Some likeable lines & shots:- 1) Tractor & Cycle race 2) The Buffalo Lick 3) Corpse on top 4) Peedai & mechanic 5) Peedai & bus driver/conductor 6) Peedai and the blacksmith 7) J.P & wife (bedside & outside) 8) J.P. & V.S. learning driving.9) Peedai & V.S. arguing about owner-driver relationship.
Left right & Centre: -
The man to my left: - ‘Fairly ok film, worth watching with your family’.
The man on my right:-’ It is nice to sit on a swing and gently swing to the gentle breeze for the first few minutes but after sometime though it still feels nice it becomes rather monotonous ’. Is this true? I wonder!
Centre: - ‘The viewers were thoroughly enjoying the humour and the light hearted quips and banters, especially those of ‘peedai’.
Bottom Line: - a quote “A film is – or should be – more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what’s behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later?” – Stanley Kubrick
Until next time,
Director Haricharan
Chennai
7/2/2014
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