A period drama set during the pre-independence era is not something you come across every day in Tamil cinema. Director Vijay knows how to present it on the silver screen with the right combination of stunning picturisation and beautiful romance. The movie, if not anything else, is a treat for the eyes.

Credit has to be given to art director Selvakumar, who has done a spectacular job in recreating the ambience of the yesteryear Chennai – if not highly authentically – at least convincingly. There are the English ballrooms, dhobi ghana, the Central station, buildings of the Raj era, and what not – yet the camera pans across all of them seamlessly, and quite impressively – thanks to cinematographer Nirav Shah. The boating scenes on Coovum river will definitely enthrall every Chennaiite.

The director has to be appreciated for a simple storyline, told in an eloquent way, yet not straying away into non-issues, and delivering what is promised. The pre-independence era is just used as a back drop, and it is good that comic looking Gandhi or Nehru or Kamaraj don’t make appearances just for the heck of it. Highly appreciable for a first of its kind!

The girl Amy Jackson looks beautiful – convincing as the English Governor’s daughter. Does she have a slight Indian feel about her, or is it the director’s hand? Anyway, what is expected of her – she has delivered quite well. Arya could have been more expressive. He appears to have a plastic look right from the start of the movie to the last. VMC Haneefa (late) has succeeded in giving a few light moments. Other actors play their given roles by  the book.

Historic and technical flaws are abundant in the movie. For example, I don’t think the English had such a hostile attitude towards the natives right before the independance.  Things changed since the second world war, and the English were losing grip already. In such a situation, it does not seem logical how can would want to build a golf course, and that too dislodging natives from their land. The background score is another setback. It is too loud, and distracts you away from the narration a lot of times. I would still overlook things like these. It is supposed to be a feel good movie, and succeeds at that.

Finally, you cannot help noticing how similar the movie is to Titanic, except that it happens on land, in Chennai. And, the director should be credited for giving a simple and nice climax, without too much drama or emotions. It goes well with the premise.

Overall, you feel satisfied having watched one of the better movies of our times, and one that would set a new trend for more to follow.

My rating: 3.5/5

Related posts:

1. Shravanabelagola – a paradise of peace
2. The Dhaba on Dr.Radhakrishnan Salai

The nude man stands 17 meters tall. You are no more taller than his feet. As you look up at this face, you see nothing but the face and the blue sky. You cannot help getting a feeling of peace and harmony. The man standing at the top of the hill lived here a thousand years back. As you stand today atop the same hill, looking at the plains below, you feel elated, you feel serene. The valley looks beautiful as the sun plays a game with you lighting up patches of the fields below, taking along your eyes across as the clouds move. You just never want to leave the hill, when you are at the top of Vindhyagiri.

A simple 3 hour journey from Bangalore takes you to this 1000 year old Jain temple atop a hill – Shravanabelagola. A calm and peaceful place – this place is best remembered for its 17 meter high giant monolith statue of Raja Bahubali – famously known as Gomateshwara.

Inscriptions in the temple and various other Jain inscriptions across Karnataka date this temple back to 983 AD, built by a Ganga king. The giant statue stands tall above the temple roof, and can be seen around 5 kms from the hill. It is a delight for the eye. Even more amazing is the Mahamastakabisheka - a grand ceremony of bathing the Gommateshwara with milk, honey, sandal, and an array of other items. This takes place only once in 12 years – a must watch.

There are two hills in Shravanabelagola – the Vindhyagiri hill, which houses the colossus of Gommateshwara, and the Chandragiri hill – a smaller hill nearby, which where a number of age-old Jain Basadis are present. A trip to Shravanabelagola is incomplete without visiting both of the pair of hills.

The route from Bangalore is simple.

Bangalore – Magadi – Kunigal – Bellur cross – Hirisave – Shravanabelagola.

As I always say in my articles, take the Magadi road from Bangalore instead of the Tumkur road. This saves on time, and gives you butter smooth roads all through the journey.

The road from Hirisave to Shravanabelagola is a nicely paved village road with coconut groves all around, giving you a pleasant experience as you drive along. If traveling by bus, take a bus to Chanrayapatna from Bangalore. From here, a number of buses, share autos and jeeps are available to reach Shravanabelagola.

Travel tips:

• Neat and clean rest rooms are available at the bottom of the hill.
• You are expected to climb the hill bare footed. Socks are available for sale to fight the scorching heat in summers.
• Take my word for it – do not skip the other hill – Chandragiri. It is as beautiful as the bigger one.
• Jain eateries serving vegetarian lunch are present around the hill. If you need variety, you will have to drive up to Hassan.
• There is a coffee day around 35 kms before Shravanabelagola when you go from Bangalore – A nice place to relax over a cup of coffee.
• The complex closes by 6 pm in the evening. So, hurry up.

Now, over to some pictures…

Gomateshwara in the clouds

The temple

Stairs leading up to the temple

Raja Bahubali

Top of the hill

The second hill - Chandragiri

A view from the top

Related posts:

1. A trip to Somnathpura, Talakad and Shivanasamudram
2. The day we were chased by an elephant…
3. Madharasapattinam – A Review

There are no rocks, no hills, no greenery, no nothing! Absolute barren stretches all along. All of the long road, for the next 3 kms is visible right from here, and there is no sign of life. As the cab travels along the totally nondescript, long and straight road, bordered with nothing, you can’t help but doze off into dreams of wandering in lonely deserts in search of food and water, with strange lizards and cruel cacti looking on. The sun glares at your face, and you wonder what brought you here, of all places.

That will be how you can describe the journey in most parts of the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh. The journey to Belum caves was nothing different either. Approximately 275 kms from Bangalore, in the Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh lie the longest caves in the plains of India – the Belum caves.

In no man’s land, these caves pop up suddenly out of nowhere. Actually, they don’t even pop up. They are completely underground. Even when you purchase the entry ticket for this natural wonder, you would just be wondering where the caves are. Then as you enter the caves and move further, you realize slowly, they were right beneath your feet!

The caves are a natural formation of limestone deposits that cause interesting structures over the passage of time – a process that takes millions of years. Stalactite and Stalagmite formations can be found here. A completely underground passage way, large chambers and wonderful rock formations have been formed here, which is the reason for the tourist attraction.

These caves are the second longest in India (the longest ones measuring about 22 kms are Krem Liat Prah in the Jaintia hills of Meghalaya). As there is a lot of information about these caves on the net, I will just give you some travel tips.

• The caves are totally worth the visit. If you are somewhere around the region in Andhra, definitely make it a point to visit here.

• The total walk inside the caves is around 2 kms. It is hot (Outside air is pumped inside using compressors. Still you feel the heat). You will sweat like hell. Carry a towel to wipe yourself out. It is absolutely necessary.

• It is not advisable to drive here. Because, you might doze off as I had already mentioned. There is absolutely nothing scenic on the highway. You can see the road as far as your eyes can reach, and you can see nothing! Take a cab!

• Guides are available at the entrance. They take Rs.10. Hire one of them. One, they carry a torch to show you the way. Two, they tell you a lot of stories about the caves.

• Some places in the caves need some acrobatics to reach. Sometime you might have to crawl. Not too frightening. It might be difficult for the aged.

• There is no accommodation near the caves. You have to stay at Anantapur or Kurnool. Nandyal is also a nice place to stay. The caves are about 75 kms from Nandyal. Food is served in a small restaurant near the caves. Don’t expect too much – simple, tasty Andhra meals are served.

Now, over to the pics…

Entrance to the caves

Vinoth, Rahul and Karthik

A game of hands

Rahul, the devil

Near a man-made fountain

Details on the ceiling

Vinoth looking on

A secret passage

Details on the ceiling

Karthik posing

An underground chamber

Buddha statue outside on the plains

Karthik falling in

Enjoy maadi…!

Related posts:

1. A trip to Somnathpura, Talakad and Shivanasamudram
2. The day we were chased by an elephant…

Lumiere is Bangalore’s newest (and the only as far as I know) organic restaurant. It is located at Doddanakkundi on the Outer Ring Road connecting KR Puram and Marathahalli. Look out for the decorative ‘Jalsa’ restaurant as you drive by, and Lumiere is right next to ‘Jalsa’. The restaurant is on the fourth floor of a narrow building. The basement parking lot was very narrow and could hold around 5 cars, thats all. However, the restaurant itself is quite spacious and well decorated.

Ambience

The ambience in the restaurant is quite refreshing. The decor has been tastefully done with an elegant stairs leading up to the next level being the center of attraction in the restaurant. There was enough lighting, and to fight the noon-time scorching heat of Bangalore, they had pedestal fans all over. This was definitely an eyesore, as you don’t want to see tens of plastic-looking fans all over the place spoiling the feel of the decor. But they have chosen fans in lieu of AC to be environment friendly it seems. There was also an air cooler next to our table, which was causing more discomfort than anything else. The seating was reasonably comfortable, and the there were large table mats that could hold all of your cutlery, plus some juice glasses. There were some paintings on the wall, and carnatic music was being played in the speakers. Overall, an interesting ambience.

Food

We had booked the lunch buffet. There is a difference in price for the vegetarian and the non-vegetarian buffets, and this is really appreciable. We were served beetroot-ginger juice as a welcome drink, which was surprisingly tasty. The chicken clear soup was ok, and there were wheat breads and bread sticks and accompaniments. The main non-vegetarian dishes were Fish manchurian, fish masala, Chicken schezwan, and a chicken gravy. The fish dishes were refreshingly good and tasty, especially the fish masala.

Chicken pulav was good, but tasted more like chicken fried rice. There was something called ‘herb rice’ on the vegetarian side, which was nice. The veg noodles left a lot to be desired. I tried only the lady’s finger with salt and pepper from the vegetarian side, which was okayish. The desserts were nothing extraordinary. There was some kind of khoa sweet, rice kheer and fruits salad. We washed it off with a cool saunf sharbat, which I had for the first time, and found it surprisingly nice.

I don’t know if the ‘organic’ tag of the restaurant made any difference to the taste of the food. Nevertheless, the food was fresh and tasty. Even items which I do not normally enjoy were good enough in this restaurant. The best part is, they update their lunch menu everyday in their website. Full marks to this. In summary, the food was above average.

Service

This was the best part of the experience. The service was really good. The waiters were all prompt and at their heels to cater to the customers. The used plates were being cleared in no time, and the water glasses were being refilled even before you know it. Also, they answered all our questions on the food items patiently. I would rate the service excellent.

Verdict

Organic food is a new upmarket concept that is catching up in the big cities. Still organic food is rare and quite expensive too. However, this restaurant is priced reasonably (Rs.375 for non-veg, and Rs.300 for veg buffet), and the quality of the food, ambience, service are all good. Parking at peak hours could be the only setback. Overall the restaurant is worth trying – you might actually find the ‘organic’ part interesting after all.

Rating: 3.5/5

View Larger Map

Related posts:

1. The Dhaba on Dr.Radhakrishnan Salai
2. The day we were chased by an elephant…
3. A trip to Somnathpura, Talakad and Shivanasamudram

After several minutes of walking (it should have been 60 minutes), and definitey covering a lot more than 3 kms, we reached a place that somewhat resembled a railway station. A steep climb up from the road took us to our planned starting point – the Donigal railway station. It was 4 am, and it was pitch dark. The station guards were asleep in the rooms, and we did not want to wake them up. We knew that trekking on a functional railway line was illegal, and were pretty apprehensive that they would drive us away from the station. Silently we tip toed to about a 100 yards away from the station entrance and sat down on the platform for the day light to start peeping out, so that we could start our walk on the tracks.

After about an hour, we started. Walking on a railway track is by no means child’s play. It is difficult, it is painful, and it is dangerous. One wrong step, and you would instantly fall down and bang your face into the concrete sleepers. We had to keep all our torch lights on while walking. The width of the sleepers was in such a way that the middle of our feet started paining slowly. Nevertheless, we knew we had to cover 18 kms of such track-walking, and we were prepared. We had to reach Yedakumari – our destination station by noon so that we could make it before dark to the highway. So, we continued our walk in the dark for the next 3 kms or so. That is when we reached the first bridge.

The railway track to Mangalore passes through some of the most picturesque hills of the western ghats. The train pulls up through these ghats chug-chugging along the bridges and tunnels. The whole stretch of the railway line passes through a number of such bridges and tunnels. Walking on these bridges is supposed to be the most thrilling part of this trek. You are high up in the hills, walking on the bridge, with ground at more than a 100 ft below your feet. You have nothing to hold on to, and one wrong step could leave you hurling down to the valley below. You have to be really careful and alert. And the tunnels are another story. If the train comes through when you are walking inside a tunnel, all you can do is wedge yourself in the small 4 ft space in between the speeding train and the tunnel wall, as the train brushes past your face. It is a shaky experience.

But we did not get to experience all the thrill. A metal sheet had been laid all through the length of the bridges, and it took away half the fun already. Walking on these metal sheeted bridges was a piece of cake. Contrast it with the earlier situation where you had to cross planks that were a foot and a half apart, and a couple of hundred feet high in the air. This track was previously abandoned, and train movement started here only in 2005. Around 3 to 4 trains pass through this route every day, most of them goods carriers. Since some repair work is going on in these tracks all the time, the railways decided to lay these metal sheets so that the workers can walk through the bridges easily without fear.

After walking for around 7 kms, we sat down to have breakfast. One of us had brought nice puliyogare, and the hunger made us lick it down to the last morsel. One thing I have to mention is, all along the route, a number of railway workers keep working on repairing the tracks. The kids in these groups keep asking you for biscuit packets. It would be a nice idea to keep some biscuit packets to give these kids.

Along the path, there were steep hills in some places, lining the track, and they had put metal meshes to keep the rocks from falling into the track. Rajesh displayed his monkeying skills by climbing up one of these meshes and posing for the camera.

As the day progressed, it was getting hotter and hotter, and the pain in our feet was tending to unbearable. We were looking for some kind of water source so that we could cool our heels. Soon we found one. A stream flowing through the ghats was good enough for us to jump into immediately. We played in the water for around an hour. The water was chill, and the stream was deep at places. But we had been to a lot of such streams in our treks, that we found no problem with it. The pain in our feet reduced a little, and we regained some of the energy lost due to dehydration. I should say that everyone doing this trek should carry at least 2 litres of water. That is what saved our day.

We had lunch at a small elevated place along the track. I had prepared nice tomato thokku the previous night in Bangalore, and carried it along. We had a feast on readymade chappatis and tomato thokku. A few packets of MTR ready-to-eat sambar rice packets also helped. Re-energised after the lunch, we started walking again.

As we were nearing the Yedakumari station, some of the railway offiicials who were inspecting the tracks stopped us to ask why we were walking on the tracks. They said we could be arrested for tresspassing on railway property. We had to blabber this and that, to escape from them. They warned us, and told us not to walk on the tracks. We sheepishly nodded our heads, and continued once they left. After walking 18 long kms, we finally reached the Yedakumari station, where a new shock awaited us.

By the time we reached Yedakumari, we were all panting and gasping. Our feet were completely sore and it pained like we could not keep another step ahead. We asked the guard in the station how to reach the highway from there. Shock! He asked us to walk another 4 kms, where we would get a forest path on the right. We had to walk into the forest from here, to reach the highway.

Swearing and cursing, we started walking again. This last 4 kms was the most painful of the whole trek. When we reached Yedakumari station, we had thought the trek was over, all the pain was over. But when we were told to walk another 4 kms, our spirits died away instantly. What a pain! Finally when we all made it to the start of this forest path, we could no longer stand. We all sat down to rest. There was hardly any energy left in us for the day. We were wondering aloud how we were going to make it through the forest to the highway, when our saviors appeared.

A jeep magically appeared on the forest path. It was some railway jeep, which was supplying gas cylinders for welding the joints in the tracks. We just casually asked the driver how far it was to the highway. He said 7 kms, and through the jungle, with elephants moving around. What??? We had expected the walk to be 1-2 kms, but never imagined it would be 7 kms. We were shell shocked. Then came the relief. The jeep guy offered to take us down to the highway. He said, it was dangerous to walk through the forest, and asked us if we wanted to hop into the jeep, so that he would drop us in Sakleshpur. We immediately jumped into the idea. What a relief that was!

Later we learnt that the jeep came there only once in 15 days. I don’t know if it was mere coincidence, or something else that the jeep came to the right place to pick us up at the right time of the day, as though it was waiting to carry us only. It was a long and bumpy ride to Sakleshpur. We had to cross a river in the middle, and the Mahindra jeep effortlessly accomplished the task. We also saw a lot of elephant dung along the forest path. In about an hour, we were in Sakleshpur bus stand.

That night, we stayed in a hotel in Sakleshpur, and the next morning, climbed a rustic and bumpy bus to Bangalore, with a whole lot of memories about an unforgettable and painful trek on the tracks.

You can take a look at the trail for this trek here. It has been mapped at TripNaksha

Related posts:

1. The day we were chased by an elephant…
2. A trip to Somnathpura, Talakad and Shivanasamudram

The probability of a remix song becoming sooper-dooper hit heavily depends on how popular and peppy the original was, how much the music director has kept his ambitions out of the remix, and how much the female in the remix shows her skin. Taking into consideration all of these environmental variables, I have made this list.

Disclaimer: This list is a reflection of how much I enjoy when each of these songs is played on TV, and should not be construed that I am being judgemental about the composition.

10. Yemperu Meenakumari from Kandasamy

The highlight of this song does not lie in the kulukkal movements of Mumaith Khan, or the sensationalism exhibited by her pierced tongue, but instead, it lies in the amazing free style body-shaking and hand-swinging movements of the half-naked old man along with her in the bus. If not for him, the song would not have been such an instant hit in all the patties and thotties of Tamilnadu.

9. Thottaal poo malarum from New

Care should be exercised while watching this song. The best option would be to use the turn-off-video button in your TV in case it is available. For the damned souls whose TV does not have this valuable switch, be ready to watch the King of torture S.J.Suryah who will continue to haunt your dreams long after the visuals are over.

8. Yeh Aatha Aathorama Vaariya from Malaikottai

A remix that survives only on the peppiness of the original! Whether she wears a Benares pattu or mini skirt, I don’t understand why Priyamani looks like she has just got out of bed and jumped into the stage to dance. The less said about the hero, the better.

7. Ponmagal Vandhaal from Azhagiya Tamil Magan

Does Shriya look like she has an Eclairs chocolate stuffed into her cheek, or is it just me? Anyway, a neat composition, rendered magical by Asslam’s voice. The music blends with the voice perfectly. A rare Sivaji Ganesan remix!

6. Vachikava unnai mattum nenjukulle from Silambattam

Though Simbu comes back with his serial-set background reused in all of his movies for budget purposes, and repeats his painfully familiar and hysterical ’sit down, stand up, twist leg, move side’ exercise routine once more, the magic and peppiness of thalaivar’s song makes us want to listen to this remix composition again and again. Also it is a consolation that Yuvan Shankar Raja has kept his hands away from the ’sprinkle-some-out-of-the-world-beats’ button, which has paid off.

5. Ennadi Muniyamma un kannula maiyee from Vaathiyar

A song immortalized by T.K.S.Natarajan’s voice, has been neatly remixed by Imaan. I have never watched the video of this song, but listened to the audio umpteen times, and it holds the magic of the original. I guess this is the only hit song in the album.

4. Thee pidikka thee pidikka from Arindhum Ariyaamalum

“Kaamamum kobamum ullam nirambave.. Kaalamum sella madinthidavo…” – when yesteryear superstar MKT Bhagavathar sang this harmless song 70 years back (!!!) little would he have imagined a skimpily clothed chick making out with a ruffian guy at the backseat of a car, in the backdrop of his song, interspersed with dance movements similar to pulling up your loose trousers. Listen to the original here.

3. Madai thiranthu paayum nadhi alai naan from Vallavan (Yogi B)

Though not a film song, this remix from Yogi B created ripples. It could be heard everywhere from Nair chaaya shop to Bangalore-Chennai video coach. Yogi B introduced hip hop to Tamil, and used an evergreen Ilayaraja composition to his advantage. Calling rap ‘Sollisai’ in Tamil is interesting too. One of the better made packages in remix genre.

2. Ennama kannu sowkiyama from Thiruvilaiyaadal Aarambam

It is strange that one of thalaivar’s most remembered duets is with Satyaraj (a guy!). The remix had enough nakkals and naiyaandies in it that it has overshadowed the original itself. Also, the contrast between Dhanush and Prakashraj is greater than the pair in the original, that the duel of words between them in the song sounds more convincing. One of my favorites from Imaan.

1. Engeyum eppodhum sangeetham santhosham from Polladhavan

The clear winner. Surprisingly, again starring Dhanush, and Yogi B. Music by G.V.Prakash. One of the few songs where Ramya looks hot. The clear winner here is SPB’s voice. Prakash has recreated the magic of the eighties. As Yogi B promises at the beginning of the song, they bring back the classic Kannadasan-MSV-SPB composition in a fine way, retaining the party spirit of the song.

There is still a whole bunch of interesting songs out there. With almost all music directors giving remixes these days, I hope there will be more remix-rains pouring in coming days.

Enjoy some candid photos of couples from my Goa trip…

The sea of Love

Romance on the beach

A long beach-walk

Let’s hold hands dear…

Enjoy maadi…

Dell

My PC broke down one fine day, and I decided to make my long term dream to own my first laptop come true. But hell broke loose from the day I ordered the laptop. (Yes, I ordered it, because DELL does not sell it off the shelf. And, I wanted a Studio 14 with Core2duo and with the maximum RAM memory they can stuff in, which was not going to be available off the shelf anyway). Coming back to hell, the laptop I ordered on Jan 4 did not come to me even after Feb 4.

Life came to a standstill, similar to traffic in Bangalore, which grew to insurmountable magnitudes, all the pleasures of life seemed to hopelessly drain into Ulsoor lake and I had to spend several sleepless nights in pain and anguish in this one month, because I had no PC. Finally, Brahma, the unworshipped god, decided to heed to my prayers and voiced a curse that Dell should give me an Intel Core i3 laptop instead of the Core2Duo I had ordered, and Dell had no other option but to execute the order of the one above. Dell gave me a wonderful looking laptop, and exported me to my ’second life’. Phew!

Marriage

I was admiring the sheer beauty and awesomeness of my new laptop, when I felt a sharp excruciating pain at the back of my neck. I groaned in agony, and reached out my hand to the back of my neck to feel what caused the pain. It was a bite – an insect bite – to put it in comfortable words – a bug bite. Then it dawned upon me. I had been bitten by the marriage bug!

I did not realise that January 2010 – the month I had promised my parents I would signal green for marriage – had already come! I was caught completely off-guard when I was asked to give a photo of mine in which I looked everything but what I really am. Wait! That is not ethical – I tried to say, but was swat down heavily with the ‘Kosu-bat‘, and the photos I hated the most (From the enna-kodumai-sir-idhu list) were ripped off from my Flickr albums. The photos have been doing rounds all over Karnataka ever since, trying to attract a suitable ‘cow-girl’ for my parents (Adhaanga… maattu ponnu).

BMTC

In other news, BMTC has found a new passenger in me. Born with insanely large feet, which only accept shoes of size 12, I realised that I could not reduce my footprint. So, as a counter-measure I decided to reduce my carbon footprint by shunning my car and going to office in BMTC. Nice. The ride in the Volvo buses has been smooth for the past month and a half. Taking a bus to office has a whole set of advantages – right from taking off the tenshun of driving from your head, to letting you listen to the mellifluous voice of Goundamani in your ipod. Come on… everyone knows the unspoken truth – sight adichifying and jollu vittufying (revolutionary terms from Tamil language equivalent to the English term ‘ogling’) at the bus-traveling figars – the best way to spend the 45 minutes to office constructively. (Especially if you work in a detested-by-the-fairer-sex  industry like mine). Mission is accomplished I say.

Watched a Tamil movie called ‘Tamil movie’. (Tamil Padam in Tamil). Ayyoo… how many Tamil…!!! A bold venture into the parody movie genre in Tamil. It was refreshing. Despite having irritating actors like Venniraadai Murthy and Paravai Muniyamma, the movie was interesting enough. For a first kind of effort from a first time director, the movie was commendably good. Hope it yields more movies of the same genre in future.

Related posts:

1. The day we were chased by an elephant…

Aayirathil OruvanThe story is based on the struggle for power between two Tamil kingdoms – the Cholas and Pandyas. The Pandyas destroy the Chola kingdom, and the Cholas are forced to flee their capital, Thanjavur. But while escaping, they take along with them the idol of a Pandya god. The Cholas establish a secret settlement in some remote foreign island, with the hope that some day they will be resurrected back to the Chola kingdom by a messiah. The settlement is well protected by seven blockades, all of which one has to cross, to reach the place. The movie is based in the present day – a 1000 years after the Cholas are overthrown. A group of archeologists and armed men, led by Reema Sen go in search of the lost city of the Cholas, how they cross the blockades, and reach the place. Now, the twists are exposed – the Chola settlement is still alive in the foreign island, and Reema Sen is a descendant of the Pandyas, bearing a grudge to destroy the Cholas and bring the Pandyan idol back.

The movie is an adventure-treasure hunt kind of movie – at least it looks so in the beginning. The first half of the movie is all about the voyage, and the blockades the crew faces one after the other – all done in hollywood style. Karthi sizzles as a cocky coolie, Reema Sen gives a decent performance as the leader of the expedition and a Andrea does nothing more that just appearing in the scenes.The narration is catchy, and the background score is quite indulging. The crew escapes strange creatures, wades through cruel looking tribes, shoots down hundreds of red-colored men and crosses a quick-sand ridden desert to finally reach the lost city of the Cholas. The audience eagerly get ready for the team’s adventures in the new land. And then, the trouble starts…

The director seems to have become suddenly ambitious. He could have finished it off a hollywood-styled adventure movie with bigger dangers and barricades that comes the team’s way, all of which they successfully break to attain their goal. But instead, the director choosed to become adventurous. He keeps the lost Chola settlement alive in the remote land, and makes Reema Sen the descendant of the Pandyas, seeking to destroy the Cholas once and for all. From here, the movie becomes a torture porn, using the excuse of war, superstitions and agony. The director aspires hard to show how barbaric the Cholas are, and how crude things move about in this land, which makes the audience say, ‘Yuck!’. The script becomes slow, and all characters other than Reema Sen bear a zombie like dumbness about them, while Reema Sen becomes the like of a blood sucking vampire. The audience soon start looking at their watches, mocking at the silliness of the things happening on-screen, and how the movie that started off in a great way, was getting into the boring old rut.

Right from the start of the movie, where a voice narrates the backdrop of the story to the dialogues renders by both the female leads, the pronunciation of Tamil is grossly bad. The difference between ‘la’ and ‘zha’ in Tamil has been sadly ignored almost everywhere. Another thing that was odd about the dialogues was the so-called ancient Tamil used by the cave-dwelling barbarian Cholas. It could have been in normal Tamil itself – at least it would have reduced the zombie-ness of the characters. When a lot of logic has been compromised in the movie, I don’t see the reward in painstakingly bringing in an ancient diction of Tamil, which only alienates the characters from the audience.

‘Logic’ is something missing thoughout the movie. Cell phone works seamlessly in a place which has never been explored by humans. The army from India is able to get to a foreign land and kill hundreds of people there, without any issues or implications. If the army could be air-dropped in the Chola-settlement so easily, why should the crew travel over land, facing so many dangers and losing so many lives? Why do the Cholas look, act and behave like barbarian cannibals? Even though they are shown to have magical powers, how do they get cheated so easily by a girl? When all of the Chola women are raped and tortured by the army, how does Andrea escape, always standing by the side, watching all the horror?

Two good things about the movie are its stunning camera work by Ramji and wonderful music by G.V.Prakashkumar. The songs are indulging, and the background score is good too. ‘Un mela aasai thaan’ and ‘O Eesa’ are tunes that linger along. The computer graphics looks amateurish at some places, but the overall cinematography is quite good.

Reema Sen has given a splendid performance in the second half of the movie, as a vengeful and ruthless female. Karthi disappears in the second half and reappears to sum up at the end. Andrea is more conspicuous by her lack of any part to play in the second half. Parthiban is a huge let down. The most hyped character of the movie – the Chola king – behaves no more mature than the leader of a cannibal tribe. He is speechless and expressionless most of the time, except when they show his large eyes in close-up, trying to make up for the boring screenplay.

The movie is a new venture in Tamil. I have always wondered when the Tamil movies would move ahead of love, revenge and sentiments. This could be a first step, at least the first half. If the excessive gore, barbarianism and blood shed is removed, the characters are made to talk normal Tamil, and the movie is cut down by half-an-hour, the effect could have been completely different. Overall, the movie is nothing close to a must-watch!

Related posts:

1. The day we were chased by an elephant…

அவனுக்குப் பிறவியிலேயே வலது கை கிடையாது. அவனுக்கு ஒன்பது வயது நிரம்பியபோது, ‘கராத்தே’ கற்றுக்கொள்ள விரும்பினான். பெற்றோரிடம் தன்

விருப்பத்தைச் சொன்னான். மகனின் துணிவைக் கண்டு மகிழ்ந்த பெற்றோர், அவனை கராத்தே பள்ளிக்கு அனுப்பினர். சில நாட்களிலேயே நன்றாகக் கராத்தே பயிற்சியில் ஈடுபடத் தொடங்கினான். கராத்தே போட்டி ஒன்றில் பங்குபெற விரும்பி, தன் ஆசிரியரிடம் இது தன்னால் முடியுமா என்று கேட்டான். “என் மீது முழு நம்பிக்கை வைத்து, நான் சொல்வதை அப்படியே செய்வதானால், உன்னால் முடியும்” என்றார் ஆசிரியர். அவனும் சம்மதித்தான்.

ஆசிரியர் அவனுக்கு ஒரே ஒரு தாக்குதல் முறையை மட்டுமே கற்றுக்கொடுத்தார். அந்த தாக்குதலில் மட்டும் அவன் நன்றாகக் கவனம் செலுத்திப் பயின்றான். ஆனாலும் அவனுக்குக் கொஞ்சம் கவலையாக இருந்தது. எல்லோரும் பலவிதமான தாக்குதல் முறைகளையும், தற்காப்பு முறைகளையும் நன்றாகப் பயின்றுகொண்டிருக்கும் போது, அவன் மட்டும் ஒரே ஒரு தாக்குதல் முறையை மட்டும் கற்றுக்கொள்வது, அவனுக்குச் சற்று நெருடலாக இருந்தது. ஆசிரியரிடம், தனக்கு மேலும் சில தாக்குதல் முறைகளையும் கற்றுத் தரும்படி கேட்டான். ஆனால், அவர் மறுத்துவிட்டார். அந்த ஒரு முறையை மட்டும் நன்றாகப் பயிலுமாறு கூறினார்.

கராத்தே போட்டியின் முதல் சுற்றில் அவன் வெற்றி பெற்றான். அடுத்த சுற்றிலும் வெற்றி பெற்றான். அடுத்தடுத்த சுற்றுகளிலும் தொடர்ந்து வெற்றி பெற்று கடைசியில் போட்டியிலேயே முதல் இடம் பிடிக்கும் அளவிற்கு வந்து விட்டான். அவனுக்கு ஒன்றுமே புரியவில்லை. எப்படி இது சாத்தியமானது? ஒரே ஒரு கை இரூக்கும் ஒருவன் எப்படி மற்றவர்களோடு போட்டியிட்டு ஒரு கராத்தே போட்டி முழுவதையும் வெல்ல முடியும் என்று அவனுக்குக் குழப்பமாக இருந்தது. ஆசிரியரிடம் கேட்டான். ஆசிரியர் சிரித்தார். “நான் உனக்குக் கற்றுக்கொடுத்த தாக்குதல் முறை என்னவோ ஒன்றுதான். ஆனால், அந்தத் தாக்குதலில் இருந்து தம்மைத் தற்காத்துக் கொள்ள ஒரே ஒரு வழி மட்டும் தான் உள்ளது. அது என்னவென்றால், தாக்குபவரின் வலது கையைப் பிடித்து இழுத்துப் போட வேண்டும்!” என்றார்.