Madras Cafe - Movie Review

Starring : John Abraham, Nagris Fakhri,Prakash Belawade, Siddhartha Basu & Ajay Rathnam

Directed by Shoojit Sircar

Music by Shantanu Moitra

Release Date : August 23th 2013 (Not released in Tamil Nadu)

As I am writing this review, I had read that this movie has been pulled off from the UK screens due to protests from some Tamil organizations. Exactly two weeks back, I had a Bengali friend who after watching this movie, had texted me and told me she never knew that ethnic Tamils had suffered so much in Sri Lanka. Is that not testimonial to prove that this movie is not Anti-Tamil ? Being a Tamilian, I did not find anything offensive about Sri Lankan Tamils in this movie. This movie shows us a glimpse of what ethnic Tamils had to endure in Sri Lanka.There is nothing offensive said about the LTTE chief too. In fact, he has been shown in positive light - I was all ears to the dialogues being said in this movie, especially about him. Nagris who plays a British journalist in the movie, remarks about the Tamil outfit leader in the middle of the movie that she has not meet someone who is determined and focused as him and she adds that he would continue fighting till he achieves his goal and also, that he cannot be bought with money. I honestly don't understand what some Tamil outfits found offensive in this movie and barred its release. Let's call a spade a spade. Let those Tamil outfits remember that even the great legend and martyr "Bhagath Singh" was labelled a terrorist by the Britishers.To Hell with Freedom of Speech and Expression in our country. 

                          In India, it requires courage to make a political movie based on true events and we should applaud the creators of this movie for this sole reason, and they have taken a very sensitive issue, of which many Indians, apart from most Tamils, are even not aware of. The Srilankan Tamils issue has never been portrayed by Bollywood and I believe this would be the first time it has been handled by Bollywood. The film starts off with a disclaimer that it is merely a work of fiction. All the names have been changed (LTTE is called the LTF; Anna is the leader of LTF and this character is based on Prabhakar) but the events of this movie are clearly based on the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, which ultimately led to the assassination of our prime minister. In the movie, the plot moves along on excepted path and ends with the the assassination of a former prime minister. Major Vikram (John Abraham) is a RAW officer who is sent to Sri Lanka in a secret operation to broker peace in the country. The Indian government is shown taking sides and plans to supply arms to a particular Sri Lankan Tamil group, which is at loggerheads with the LTF, this is being done in order to capture Anna (Leader of the tamil outfit LTF - played by Ajay Ratnam) who is not ready to co-operate in the peace process and lay down arms as he is afraid that Sri Lankan government would butcher Tamil people after the Indian Army leaves the island. The Indian government wants to end the ethnic war by hook or by crook, and in the process prove it's regional supremacy but the operations go awry and get completely derailed due to some bloody betrayals. The LTF leader is targeted by the Indian Government, but he manages to escape, and emerges stronger. Then, the LTF leader eliminates all his rivals.

                 Vikram Singh does his role in the secret operations valiantly, making personal sacrifices, but fails when it matters most. But the story, is not about his character. This could well be John Abraham’s coming of age role. He looks wooden as always, but he fits in to the narrative quite aptly. Troubled, angry and helpless, frustrated yet committed to duty — he plays it all with maturity. Nargis Fakhri is not bad in her very small role as a foreign journalist. But the overall credit should go to the script, which manages such a complex plot. There are lots of Tamil dialogues in the movie and the actors speak proper Tamil (an oddity in a Hindi movie, Deepika Padukone - were you hearing?) which adds to the authenticity of the movie, given that they have chosen many small time Tamil actors in their cast. The movie has a big list of flaws and loses steam during the second half. This movie drags on during the later part of the second half and gets a tad melodramatic - it also confuses us during this phase. The climax - the assassination part is sure to bring about some nostalgia to people, who were around when the actual assassination took place. 

                          The film showcases that there are no true winners in a war and that the innocent civilians are always the ones who suffer the most. Sircar impressed everyone with "Vicky Donor" and he has again taken up a different genre and impressed us. The director is here to stay. This movie would not become a classic but it is definitely worth a watch. People like SRK should start thinking of making movies like this rather than dancing around in lungis !

What I feel 

My Rating - 6.75/10

Recommended movies which handle the same issue - The Terrorist, Cyanide and Kannathil Muthamittal

What the Internet says

• Reviewing for the Hindustan Times, Anupama Chopra wrote "Madras Café works as an effective portrait of the futility of war. Shoojit Sircar and his writers, Shubhendu Bhattacharya and Somnath Dey, ably illustrate why there are no winners here. Ideologies are marred by corruption and brutality. Death is inevitable and victories, pyrrhic."
• The Hindu praised director Sircar, saying "For long, Hindi films made us believe that it is only Pakistan that we have to deal with. Shoojit Sircar touches base with Sri Lanka and unravels the complex 'Tamil problem' as many living North of the Vindhyas call it. Keeping the jingoistic flavour aside, he plays the game of shadows as it is played with all its muck and grime."

Hand-Picked Trivia

• The film was initially titled Jaffna after the northern Sri Lankan city.It was renamed Madras Cafe, as the plot to kill Rajiv Gandhi was hatched at the cafe.The original location of the cafe is not specified in the film.
• “If I would have gone with this script to anyone else, they would have rejected it because of the kind of sensitivity the subject has. I don’t want to name them, but three of them have already done it. Nobody was ready to produce the film... it’s very daring of John Abraham and Viacom 18 Motion Pictures to back up this project,” director Sircar told the press after the release of the film

Thanga Meengal Movie Review

                    

Thanga Meengal

Direction : Ram

Music Director : Yuvan Shankar Raja

Cinematography: Arbhindu Saraa

Cast: Ram, Sadhana, Rohini and Sally

                          After watching 'Katrathu Tamizh', I had become a fan of director 'Ram' and I had been awaiting his next release for the last five years. Ram's second venture 'Thanga Meengal' has remained in the cans for quite a long time, and finally now, it has seen the light of the day. This movie is about the relationship between a near jobless father Kalyani (Ram) and his young daughter Chellamma. Kalyani simply adores his daughter, and he would go to any lengths to make her smile. But Kalyani does not have any steady income and he is dependent on his father . Chellamma is a slow learner, and is very often rebuked at school, by few teachers. Chellamma is shown to be very inquisitive and keeps bugging everyone with loads of questions.Chellama is obsessed with a particular fantasy involving 'Thanga Meengal' (Gold Fishes)

                                 The first half is brilliant. All the characters are quite strong, be it Kalyani's wife,or 'Rohini' who plays his mother. The conversations that Chellamma has with her friend, Nityashree who stays next door are simply amazing and realistic. The girl who plays Nityashree is adorable. Padmapriya plays a cameo as a teacher in Chellamma's school and her role is quite limited. However, there are few questions left unanswered about her, particularly when Kalyani goes to meet her at her house. Ram seems to be a natural when it comes to acting, and plays the role of an impractical man with his own set of principles, to near perfection in the first half. However, he goes overboard on his emotions during the second half - which does not go well. Kalyani is forced to leave his daughter and wife in search of a job and the rest of the story deals with the family's turmoils. The director has subtly made digs at our educational system and he has also mocked the manner, in which some private schools function. 

                                               The second half is slow and starts to try your patience before we start seeing some action.The climax is heart whelming and it is sure to strike a chord with everyone. The subtle justification for the title at the very end is apt.The movie is a treat for the eyes, and you are sure to fall in love with the village that Chellamma lives in;the village is very scenic.  The camera work in this movie is outstanding and enhances the beauty of the village. Yuvan's music is a big plus to this movie and the already popular 'Ananda Yazhai' is a visual treat, with some superb and innovative visualization. Kudos to Ram and the producer, Gautham menon for giving us an offbeat product with no commercial elements. Ram proves his talent yet again. The film has many flaws, but the final product is good. There are some scenes which test your patience and there are some outstanding scenes, which really touches your heart. 

                      Sadhana who plays chellama is an excellent find and she has literally lived her character - an award winning performance for sure. Tamil movies mostly, be it Mani ratnam's movies of the yore, or some recent movies had always given us artificial child characters - there have been many exceptions to this case,say the movie 'Pasanga' was an exception, where children were shown as 'children'. Ram has successfully achieved the same in this movie, given that it is a herculean task to make a child act. 

           On the whole, compared to the recent trash that the Tamil industry has been showering upon us, this movie is good and a definite watch. This movie is a very brave attempt and is quite brilliant at points, though it is let down in the second half by its screenplay and few over dramatic scenes, it stands tall with the help of some well etched and strong characters.

What I feel

My rating - 6.75/10

What the Internet says 

According to Indiaglitz, "Ram deserves a special mention for his direction cum acting, with only two movies he has proved his mettle and Kollywood needs more directors like him no doubt."

Prashanth Reddy of Desimartini wrote, "It ["Thanga Meengal"] sets out to genuinely win our affections but manages to do that only on certain rare occasions. Save for a couple of strong scenes, the film is otherwise a mawkish puppy which keeps coming back to lick your heart. And in case you were wondering, it doesn't pack even half of the emotional punch of 'Katradhu Tamizh'."

M Suganth of The Times of India wrote, "Thanga Meenkal shares many of Kattradhu Tamizh's film's strengths and flaws. It is a well-intentioned effort, strikingly shot, and held together by persuasive performances. At the same time, it is also relentlessly grim and bludgeons you into submitting to the point of view of the film maker, and by the time it ends, makes you believe you have personally gone through the ordeals of the film's characters."