"Naan Kadavul" - words that director Bala has himself uttered through the movie. He can very well be considered the God of tamil cinema, one of the Gods atleast, speaking from a polytheistic point of view. The movie is most certainly a masterpiece, a masterpiece restrained by the Censor board. Rarely do you see an audacious movie in Tamil cinema these days, with the hero appearing on screen for less than 30 minutes and creating such an impact. Arya has been patient during the making of the movie for 3 years and rightly so. A very powerful character, needless to say.
This is not a movie for the "god-fearing", the ones who take offense in blasphemy. Because this movie is blasphemy at its very best. Movies like Anbe Sivam and Periyaar were subtle when it came to cursing God, but Bala makes no bones about it. He is so supremely confident of the movie and its theme that a line from one of the characters explicitly cursing the creator received an applause from the audience. That was heart-warming, to say the least, for a non-believer. I was for a moment dumbstruck, just as everyone in the hall must have been. If there was one thing the censor board did right, it was not blanking out those words, purely for the impact it creates.
The movie is about two elements - the mind of an Agori, and the pitiful world of disabled beggars, who are thrust into the world. The mind of an Agori is the mysterious part of the movie. The real life of an Agori is gruesome and is not for the faint-hearted. So it is justifiable that the real Agori is not shown(eating corpses), but it's questionable why even the concept is not mentioned. Is cannibalism so taboo a topic in Indian cinema? Arya had the potential to be an even more powerful character, akin to Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the lambs(where he too had a very short screen time). This is one reason why you feel the impact at the end of the movie is not all that hard-hitting as it was expected before the release. All we are shown are Arya's hysterics and his chanting of mantras. One is baffled by how such a character could exist. The answers are not provided, and even if they were provided, they would go over the head for an average viewer like me, who has neither read the Vedas nor ever had dope.
Coming to the other element of the movie, the world of poor disabled people, who are thrust into begging by a cruel underworld lord(the villain character - he's cruelly brilliant). Bala deserves to be thoroughly commended for assembling such a cast for this section. The amount of research that should have gone into the lives of these people is unfathomable. Some of the visuals are disturbing, however just like a typical Bala movie, comedy is one of the key aspects that make this movie an entertainer. Even with such pitiable characters, the only reason you would shed tears in the movie is because you're laughing so hard at the jokes they crack. One particular boy, especially steals the show. Guess he was Bala's favourite. Terrific dialogue and sense of timing throughout the movie. Pooja as the blind girl has played her part well and has even acted, but for some reason she doesn't create a lasting impact - for one, her Tamil is terrible and she just doesn't fit the image.
The music by Maestro Illayaraja jells so well with the movie. The old songs that appear in the movie(Kannai Nambadhey, Kadavul yaen kallaanan?) are also well-picked. Camerawork by Arthur Wilson is stunning. The way he has captured the scenes in Kasi and picturised the stunts adds tremendous value to the visual appeal of the movie. Talking of stunts, Super Subbarayan proves he's the genius. It is said that some of the actors were really hurt badly during the filming. No wonder Arya's attacks looked so natural.
Any movie-buff would certainly be satisfied by the cinematic and thematic elements of the movie. The movie's reach would be across all classes, and except for the comedy track, the movie can be universally understood. Comparisons with Slumdog Millionaire are natural, but unwarranted. Though this movie also talks about the life of beggars, the underlying reason for showing it in this movie is about the pointlessness of the existence of a God. "Naan Kadavul" will stand in Tamil movie history as the most daringly blasphemous movie ever made, and I have no reason to doubt our chief minister would ensure this movie bags all the awards it deserves.
Jai Bala-nath!!!
This is not a movie for the "god-fearing", the ones who take offense in blasphemy. Because this movie is blasphemy at its very best. Movies like Anbe Sivam and Periyaar were subtle when it came to cursing God, but Bala makes no bones about it. He is so supremely confident of the movie and its theme that a line from one of the characters explicitly cursing the creator received an applause from the audience. That was heart-warming, to say the least, for a non-believer. I was for a moment dumbstruck, just as everyone in the hall must have been. If there was one thing the censor board did right, it was not blanking out those words, purely for the impact it creates.
The movie is about two elements - the mind of an Agori, and the pitiful world of disabled beggars, who are thrust into the world. The mind of an Agori is the mysterious part of the movie. The real life of an Agori is gruesome and is not for the faint-hearted. So it is justifiable that the real Agori is not shown(eating corpses), but it's questionable why even the concept is not mentioned. Is cannibalism so taboo a topic in Indian cinema? Arya had the potential to be an even more powerful character, akin to Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the lambs(where he too had a very short screen time). This is one reason why you feel the impact at the end of the movie is not all that hard-hitting as it was expected before the release. All we are shown are Arya's hysterics and his chanting of mantras. One is baffled by how such a character could exist. The answers are not provided, and even if they were provided, they would go over the head for an average viewer like me, who has neither read the Vedas nor ever had dope.
Coming to the other element of the movie, the world of poor disabled people, who are thrust into begging by a cruel underworld lord(the villain character - he's cruelly brilliant). Bala deserves to be thoroughly commended for assembling such a cast for this section. The amount of research that should have gone into the lives of these people is unfathomable. Some of the visuals are disturbing, however just like a typical Bala movie, comedy is one of the key aspects that make this movie an entertainer. Even with such pitiable characters, the only reason you would shed tears in the movie is because you're laughing so hard at the jokes they crack. One particular boy, especially steals the show. Guess he was Bala's favourite. Terrific dialogue and sense of timing throughout the movie. Pooja as the blind girl has played her part well and has even acted, but for some reason she doesn't create a lasting impact - for one, her Tamil is terrible and she just doesn't fit the image.
The music by Maestro Illayaraja jells so well with the movie. The old songs that appear in the movie(Kannai Nambadhey, Kadavul yaen kallaanan?) are also well-picked. Camerawork by Arthur Wilson is stunning. The way he has captured the scenes in Kasi and picturised the stunts adds tremendous value to the visual appeal of the movie. Talking of stunts, Super Subbarayan proves he's the genius. It is said that some of the actors were really hurt badly during the filming. No wonder Arya's attacks looked so natural.
Any movie-buff would certainly be satisfied by the cinematic and thematic elements of the movie. The movie's reach would be across all classes, and except for the comedy track, the movie can be universally understood. Comparisons with Slumdog Millionaire are natural, but unwarranted. Though this movie also talks about the life of beggars, the underlying reason for showing it in this movie is about the pointlessness of the existence of a God. "Naan Kadavul" will stand in Tamil movie history as the most daringly blasphemous movie ever made, and I have no reason to doubt our chief minister would ensure this movie bags all the awards it deserves.
Jai Bala-nath!!!
