Recently I have seen a movie called Paradise streaming on Amazon Prime directed by Prasanna Vithanage. The film is set during the period of Srilanka’s economic crisis (2022). Paradise begins like one of those Mani Ratnam ones along the lines of Bombay or Roja but soon switches gears moving into an entirely different territory. Roshan Mathew and Darshana Rajendran play a married couple, they are in Srilanka to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary fully aware of the political turmoil. They chose this place as they thought it would be less expensive.
The place of their home stay fits the title of Paradise perfectly given the coziness of their surroundings. Initially the viewers are given the impression of them being the perfect couple however a theft changes everything. Cell phones and laptops have been stolen. Roshan Mathew’s Keshav is terribly upset understandably too as the laptop contained all the material of his new project. He files a police complaint and also threatens Seargent Bandara (Mahendra Perera) that he would report to the Indian High Commissioner if the thieves aren’t caught along with getting back the stolen items. The police bring in the possible suspects acting very fast, but this only adds fuel to the already volatile situation in that area. Everything goes out of control for both the police and the couple. This is the story in brief.
Through the runtime of 1 hour and 34 minutes Prasanna Vithanage touches upon some important aspects without big speeches. For example, he makes viewers understand the socio-political happenings of Srilanka through dialogues about shortage of essential items along with the conversations of the supporting characters like Shyam Fernando who plays the tour guide. The movie also makes a strong statement on police brutality without any explicit scenes. In the movie some poor workers are accused of theft leading to severe beatings. One of them die in police custody.
Finally, the director also talks about how tourists should be more sensitive to the socio-political environment of the country they are in. The initial frustration of Keshav is definitely understandable but at some point, realization should have been there about how he is putting the lives of both himself and the wife at stake. Keshav shouldn’t have let himself get carried away in the wave of arrogance. Although Darshana Rajendran’s Amritha is more sensitive than Keshav she should have been firmer in making the husband understand what he is doing isn’t right.
Performances wise both Roshan Mathew and Darshana do justice to their respective parts. Darshana adds a lot of vibrancy with her charming nature. Sure, there are times where Amritha’s empathetic nature just seems to be an add on to compensate for Keshav’s insensitive behavior. However, Darshana does do a wonderful job as the movie’s conscience. Roshan Mathew also does a splendid job in portraying the desperation of Keshav particularly the mood swings. Keshav is someone who gives the impression of being all powerful when he is actually just another visitor, and the actor does a swell job in bringing out that. Throughs his lens cinematographer Rajeev Ravi expertly captures both the vibrant landscape and the looming dread.
An overview of South Indian filmmakers who tried their luck in Hindi cinema with varying degrees of success.
In the last few years, more South Indian film directors have been working with Bollywood stars. We have seen Prabhudeva directing the likes of Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar and Atlee directing the Bollywood Badshah Shah Rukh Khan in the recent blockbuster hit Jawan.
Not that this trend didn’t exist earlier; both Bapu and K Viswanath had directed nine films each in the 1980s and 1990s. Filmmaker K Viswanath remade his own classic Swathi Muthyam (1986) as Eeshwar (1989) with Anil Kapoor.
K Raghavendra Rao also directed quite a few Hindi films — all were remakes of his Telugu movies. He debuted in Bollywood with Nishana (1980) starring Jeetendra and Poonam Dhillon. It was a remake of the Telugu movie Vetagadu (1979).
However, Jeetender-Sridevi’s Himmatwala (1983) helped Rao make a mark for himself in Hindi cinema. It, again, was a remake of the Telugu flick Ooriki Monagadu (1981).
Raghavendra Rao followed it up with films like Tohfa (1984), Masterji (1985), Suhaagan (1986), and Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa (2001), to mention a few.
In the later years, Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma carved their niche in Bollywood.
Following are some prominent South Indian film directors who went North starting from recent times to slightly old:
Atlee
Atlee has established his credibility as a successful commercial director in a short period. His stories always have shades of other films, particularly the hangover of Shankar’s films.
But Atlee has mastered the art of mixing all the elements in the right proportion with strong political and social touches. A good example of this is his Hindi debut Jawan starring Shah Rukh Khan which has already become a bigger blockbuster than Pathaan (2023).
Shah Rukh has done mass films in the past too. But Atlee’s presentation of the actor is something that’s never seen before.
What also makes Jawan such a monstrous hit is the rousing manner in which Atlee dealt with several problems plaguing our society. The director’s conviction is such that the viewers don’t mind the not-so-subtle treatment.
Not surprisingly, Atlee has become a hot-shot director with whom many actors would want to work. There are already rumours of Atlee doing a film with the National Award winner Allu Arjun.
Prabhudeva
Before foraying into Hindi Cinema Prabhudeva directed two Telugu films — Siddharth-Trisha’s Nuvvostante Nenoddantana (2005) and Prabhas-Trisha’s Pournami (2006). The first one did well at the box office and the second one got critical acclaim.
Prabhudeva
Before foraying into Hindi Cinema Prabhudeva directed two Telugu films — Siddharth-Trisha’s Nuvvostante Nenoddantana (2005) and Prabhas-Trisha’s Pournami (2006). The first one did well at the box office and the second one got critical acclaim.
In 2012, Prabhudeva teamed up with Akshay Kumar for Rowdy Rathore, another remake. This time, it was the super-hit Telugu Film Vikramarkudu (2006) featuring Ravi Teja in a dual role. Rowdy Rathore went on to gross more than that of Wanted.
Post-Rowdy Rathore, Prabhudeva delivered movies that have largely missed the mark. The likes of R… Rajkumar (2013) were moderate successes, but his style of loud filmmaking has gone past its expiry date.
AR Murugadoss
AR Murugadoss is one of those filmmakers who want to entertain and enlighten.
Suriya-starrer Ghajini (Tamil, 2008) is a significant film in his career. Compared to his other works, Ghajini is cut from a different cloth as there is nothing political about it. It is a revenge drama revolving around a protagonist who suffers from a certain kind of amnesia due to a severe head injury.
Murugadoss remade the film in Hindi with the same name and with Aamir Khan as the protagonist. We all know how big a hit it is — more than the original. This was because of his skilful direction and also Aamir Khan’s dedication.
The director’s second Hindi film was also a remake of his own Tamil film Thuppaki (2012).
Akshay Kumar played Vijay Thalapathy’s role in Holiday: A Solider is Never Off Duty (2014). It was also a commercial success, but Thuppaki was more entertaining.
Puskhar-Gayatri
The duo of Puskhar-Gayatri remade their own Tamil film Vikram Vedha (2017) into Hindi in 2022 with Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan. What made Vikram Vedha a cut above the usual cop versus gangster drama was the moral ambiguities analysed through the Vikram and Betaal analogy.
A striking aspect of the Hindi remake was the more messy and flamboyant way in which Hrithik Roshan was presented as Vedha. This added a different dimension along with the Lucknow setting.
The Hindi Vikram Vedha wasn’t a box-office success, but Hrithik’s performance was vastly appreciated in terms of how he made Vedha his own.
Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Sandeep Reddy Vanga has already become a much-talked-about director despite making only two films — Vijay Deverakonda-starrer Arjun Reddy (Telugu, 2017) and its Hindi remake Kabir Singh (2019).
Kabir Singh starring Shahid Kapoor was a huge hit but the uproar was also equally big.
Now, he is making a straight Hindi film Animal with Ranbir Kapoor. There is a lot of curiosity and intrigue about this movie because of the title and also the violent depiction of the protagonist in the earlier one.
Gowtam Tinnanuri
Gowtam Tinnanuri made his Telugu film directorial debut with Malli Raava (2017). But it was Jersey (2019) starring actor Nani that made Gowtam a successful director.
This sports drama won a lot of acclaim along with commercial success. In the year 2021, it won several national awards which include Best Director and Best Actor as well.
Gowtam tried to recreate the same magic with Shahid with a nearly identical storyline except for setting it in Chandigarh.
The Hindi Jersey had some good reviews but suffered on account of the remake fatigue. The Punjabi setting also didn’t add any new dimension to the story.
In short, Shahid Kapoor’s strategy of getting another remake hit bombed badly.
Vishnu Vardhan
Tamil director Vishnu Vardhan made his Hindi debut with Vikram Batra’s biopic Shershaah (2021). He was appreciated for not making the flick overtly jingoistic and showing a certain restraint.
Vishnu Vardhan’s directorial skills particularly come out in the second half when the war drama sets in.
Shershaah had a direct OTT release, but it should have been ideally released in theatres.
Not surprisingly, Siddarth Malhotra got some good reviews for his performance as Vikram Batra.
Now, let’s go to the slightly older ones Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma.
Mani Ratnam
Before the film Dil Se (1998), made directly in Hindi, Mani Ratnam was already a known face in the North, thanks to Roja(1992) and Bombay (1995) dubbed in Hindi.
Dil Se was the third one in the trilogy of Roja and Bombay as this film also had the backdrop of insurgency.
Over the years, the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer has acquired a cult of its own thanks to AR Rahman‘s scintillating music coupled with the intense performances of Shah Rukh Khan and Manisha Koirala.
After a long gap, Mani Ratnam simultaneously shot Aayutha Ezhutu (2004) in Tamil and Yuva (2004) in Hindi. Yuva was a significant game changer for Abhishek Bachchan before Guru (2007) and Sarkar (2005) happened. In Yuva, Abhishek Bachchan was brilliant as a ruffian with political ambitions.
After Dil Se, Guru was Mani Ratnam’s second straight Hindi film. The film was loosely based on the industrial tycoon Dhirubhai Ambani. It won critical appreciation along with good money. It is easily the most memorable solo outing of Abhishek Bachchan.
However, their next collaboration Raavan (2010) turned out to be a disaster of epic proportions. Despite a solid storyline, the movie turned out to be a cringe-fest both in acting and direction.
Ram Gopal Varma
Ram Gopal Varma scored a sixer with his debut Hindi film Satya (1998), a cult classic. It was the start of many more movies dealing with organised crime and the nexus between politicians and the underworld.
The film focuses on the life of an immigrant Satya (JD Chakravarthy) who visits Mumbai in search of a job. He gets drawn to the underworld by the gangster Bhiku Mhatre (Manoj Bajpai).
Satya gave birth to a lot of new talent, the chief among them being Manoj Bajpai and Saurabh Shukla. Their characters are remembered more than the lead hero.
It was followed by an equally successful Company (2002). The film was loosely based on the fallout between Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Rajan. Vivek Oberoi made a very promising debut as Chandrakant aka Chandu.
In both films, Varma was successful in humanising gangsters instead of painting them as cardboard cuts with no nuances.
He added more feathers to his cap with Sarkar (2005) and Sarkar Raj (2008). In these movies, the director combined Godfather (1972, 1974 & 1990) elements with that of Balasaheb Thackeray. Both the flick had the perfect mix of style and substance.
Ram Gopal Varma also directed the romantic-comedy Rangeela (1995) with Aamir Khan and Urmila.
Romance is the last thing that viewers associate Varma with. But to the director’s credit, he did pull off an enjoyable watch which also was a satire on the film industry.
But in the recent past, the filmmaker has been making one embarrassing movie after another. Sadly, the viewers are now more interested in what controversial remarks he would make rather than his works.
Priyadarshan
There was a period when Priyadarshan was a successful director in Hindi as well. Most of his Hindi films are remakes of his Tamil and Malayalam movies. But the director, more often than not, hit a jackpot.
He debuted in Hindi cinema with Muskurahat, a comedy-drama, which was a remake of his Malayalam film Kilukkam (1991).
Priyardarshan was a major reason behind the emergence of Akshay Kumar as a comic actor. In fact, many of Priyardarshan’s Hindi films featured Akshay Kumar.
The filmmaker delivered many flicks that have been both critically acclaimed and commercially successful. He delivered a good number of superhits like Gardish (1993), Virasat (1997), Hera Pheri (2000), Hungama (2003), Hulchul (2004), Malamaal Weekly (2006), Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007), and Rangrezz (2013).
However, things have been going downhill, of late, with Priyadarshan not being able to reinvent himself. A good example of this is Hungama 2 (2021) which was released on Disney+Hotstar. It opened to negative reviews.
Well, this list is not exhaustive. I am sure many more South Indian film directors have done movies in Hindi earlier too. But Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan is the latest and the most significant film in this trend.
In spite of the flaws director Mani Ratnam deserves credit for bringing alive a relatively unknown part of history
PS 2(Tamil) 3 out of 5
Starcast: Vikram, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Jayaram, Rehman, Trisha and others
Direction and screenplay: Mani Ratnam
Additional screenplay: B. Jeyamohan and Elango Kumaravel
Story: Kalki Krishnamurthy
Based on: Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki Krishnamurthy
Producers: Mani Ratnam and Subaskaran Allirajah
Production companies: Madras Talkies and Lyca productions
Genre: Historical drama
Running time: 2 hours and 45 minutes
Kalki Krishnamurthy’s novel on the Chola dynasty is considered to be a significant part of Tamil literature. The novel Ponniyin Selvan was also serialized in the weekly editions of a Tamil magazine. PS-1 (Ponniyin Selvan) was Mani Ratnam’s dream project which finally came alive in 2022. Not surprisingly PS-1 worked more in the Tamil belt given the nativity factor. The film had a mixed response in other languages particularly the Hindi market.
It did decently well in Telugu also but in Hindi the film didn’t attract many eyeballs. A big shortcoming of PS-1 was its convoluted screenplay coupled with the addition of too many subplots. There were also some editing lags.
Hence the anticipation around PS-2 was not the same as SS Rajamouli’s Bahubaali 2. However a Mani Ratnam directorial always garners attention even though the director has not been in his best form of late.
The second part begins at the exact point where the first part ended. The Cholas led by Arunmozhi Varman aka Ponniyin Selvan (Jayam Ravi), brother of Chola king Aditya Karikaludu and Vallavaraiyan Vandhiyadevudu (Karthi) are fighting with Pandyas in the sea. While fighting they fall into the waters. Fortunately, they are saved by a mute woman Mandakini (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in a double role). Later Arunmozhi gets treated by the Buddha monks in Sri Lanka. At the same time a conspiracy is taking place. Nandini (again Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) along with the Pandyas is planning to eradicate the Chola dynasty. There are also some Chola chieftains who want to make Madhuranthakudu (Rehman) the Chola king by dethroning Aditya Karikaludu (Vikram).
The rest of the film deals with how the power struggle maps out. And also who is Mandakini and what is her connection with Nandini? Do Arunmozhi and Vallavaraiyan Vandhiyadevudu return to the Chola kingdom? And lastly, who gains the upper hand- Cholas or Pandyas?
First and foremost – the screenplay of PS-2 is a definite improvement over the first part. Mani Ratnam does a good job in connecting all the loose ends and coming up with satisfactory answers.
Some of the twists and turns do catch the viewers unaware. A particular mention must be made of the Nandini’s back story.
The dramatic scenes in PS-2 have also been far better written. A good example of that is the love hate relation between Aditya Karikaludu and Nandini. Vikram and Aishwarya don’t have many scenes together, but the intensity is very much palpable in the brief encounters that they have. There is an important sequence late in the second half featuring the two. This scene does pierce the audience’s heart thanks to the direction and also the performances of Vikram and Aishwarya. Vikram in particular is brilliant with certain unhingedness.
Vikram and Aishwarya do not have many scenes together, but the intensity is very much palpable
As Nandini Aishwarya does a good job in bringing out the dilemmas that her character goes through. Nandini isn’t very likeable person but at the same time you don’t hate her completely either. It also does help that Nandini has a certain charm about her which Aishwarya portrays effortlessly. As Mandakini though she does fall short majorly due to the way the character has been written.
As Nandini Aishwarya Rai Bachchan does a very good job in bringing out the dilemmas that her character goes through.
The romantic scenes between Karthi and Trisha’s Kundavai have a classic Mani Ratnam stamp. There is a scene in the island where Karthi’s character is blindfolded, and subtle romance follows between the two.
Karthi and Trisha romance
As Vandhiyadevudu Karthi continues from where he left off in the first part. He not only provides entertainment with his antics, but also shows his all-round capability in the more emotional scenes. Jayam Ravi brings out the required authority. He commands our attention with his mere presence.
As Vandhiyadevudu Karthi successfully takes off from where he left in the first partJayaram Ravi brings out the required authority
Technically PS- 2 is as rich as the first one. The production design by Aparna Thota Tharani is fantastic. The production design enhances the work of the cinematographer Ravi Varma. He does a good job in showcasing the scale of the film through his lens. The VFX department also does a fair job.
Coming to the shortcomings PS 2 feels super stretchy as the first part. The run time of 2 hours and 50 minutes does feel quite long more so with the severely underwhelming battle scenes. The battle scenes have been rather clumsily staged and doesn’t provide the viewers with any high.
The portions featuring Jayaram is reduced to a stock comic character. Even the likes of Prakash Raj and Sarath Kumar suffer on the account of ineffective characterizations.
The film has also got some unnecessary slow mo. moments and close up shots that end up irritating the audiences more than giving an extra edge.
In spite of these flaws Maniratnam deserves credit for exploring a relatively unknown part of history on pan India screen. And in this he is aided by some good performances along with the technical team.
The genre of big scale epics has seen a huge revival thanks to filmmakers like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, SS Rajamouli and even Ashutosh Gowariker to an extent. The likes of Bajirao Mastani, Bahubali 1 and 2 and Jodha Akbar have created a deep impact in the audiences mind. With Ponniyin Selvan Part 1 legendary director Mani Ratnam attempts a genre which he has never done in the past. For those who are not aware the movie is based on a novel by the same name. Since I have not read the novel I will be purely judging the movie as a standalone piece.
Ponniyin Selvan tries to be a gripping combination of thrills, intrigue and emotions. However, in its effort to be plot heavy the film ends up being neither here nor there, particularly for the Telugu and Hindi audiences.
The story is majorly centered on the character of Vanthiyathevan (Karthi) he is entrusted by Aditya Karikaaludu (Vikram) with the task of delivering important messages to Karikaaludu’s father and sister (Prakash Raj and Trisha respectively). As per the messages plans are being laid out by princely kings to bring down the Chola Empire. Vanithiyathevan’s duty is to find out what are the evil plans and who are hell bent on tarnishing the glory of the Chola Empire. Aishwarya Rai plays princess Nandini. Nandini is someone who comes with a mysterious past, this mysterious past is connected to Karikaaludu. Other important characters include Jayam Ravi as Ponniyin Selvan.
What follows is a complex drama that is hard to keep up with.
One of the few redeeming factors of PS-1 is some of the performances starting with Karthi. The actor is a delight to watch whenever he is on screen. His comic timing and the general energy that he brings to the screen is something that uplifts the film at many places. His interactions with both Aishwarya and Trisha bring a smile to your face.
Vikram as Karikaaludu has less screen time but the actor’s intense performance is a treat to watch. Jayram Ravi makes his entry in the second half but the actor makes his presence amply felt.
Both Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Trisha look like million bucks thanks to director Mani Ratnam and the costumes by Eka Lakhani. Mani Ratnam along with Sanjay Leela Bhansali are one of those few directors who best understand how to use Aishwarya. Here too Mani Ratnam casts her smartly as the enigmatic queen with her own secrets.
Cinematography by Ravi Varman also goes perfectly with the requirement of the film. He does a good job in showing the grandeur of Cholas through his lens. The production design by Thota Tharrani also adds to the richness of the frames.
The biggest issue with Ponnin Selvan- 1 is the numerous subplots integrated into the story by the director. Too many things are happening simultaneously and as a result it is difficult to catch up the plot.
The film is also filled with many characters that don’t make any impact whatsoever. Perfect examples of these are ones played by Prakash Raj, Sarat Kumar and Rehman.
The film’s editing is also subpar as the drama moves at a very slow pace, particularly in the second half. Some of the scenes are way too lengthy. A perfect example of this is the climax where Karthi and Jayam Ravi take upon some villains. The fight scene happens in a ship with thundering rain as a backdrop. It is definitely jaw dropping but this action block goes on way too long. Because of this the cliff hanger at the end doesn’t really make an impact.
Music by AR Rahman is pleasant but nothing spectacular. It is nowhere close to their previous associations.
Final word: Watch PS-1 if you are a fan of Mani Ratnam or you like slow paced historical dramas. The rest can give it a skip.
