Urumi

‘Urumi: Padhinaintham Nootrandu Uraivaal’ is a legend made out of a single line from History. It’s a well known fact that the Portuguese were the first colonists to set their foot on the Indian soil led by the ‘tyrant’ Vasco Da Gama. Also we know that they were the first one to leave India as well. But do you know why? The whole world praised Vasco Da Gama as the first man to discover India. But did you know that he was a tyrant and a threat to the Indians. No, definitely not. Most of us thought him to be a good man. This sets the background for this fifteenth century period film.

The movie opens screen with ‘Youtube’ playing a documentary on Vasco Da Gama’s landing in Goa and his fascination for the Indian spice - pepper. Now enter the two happy go lucky men Krishna Das (KD) and Tarzan one of whom (KD) is the heir of an ancestral property which is leased out to a tribal school. The two of them are completely unaware of the history associated with the land. This land is chosen for mining by a multinational company backed by the local MLA and they are ready to pay KD a fat cheque. A local tribal head who lives in the caves kidnaps KD and narrates him the story about the untold heroes.

The history unfolds with Vasco Da Gama enforcing a reign of terror along the Konkan Coast to which all the petty kings along the coast protest. The three warriors Kelu (Prithviraj), his friend Vavvaali (Prabhu Deva) and Arakkal’s Princess Ayesha (Genelia) fight relentlessly against the Portuguese by joining forces with the local village people. They imprison Estavio, the son of Vasco Da Gama and keep him under vigilance in the prison of the kingdom of Sirakkal. The comic track of the movie is driven by the romance between the Sirakkal princess (Nithya Menon) and Vavvaali.

Due to internal treachery, the King of Sirakkal who earlier made Kelu and Vavvaali his commander-in-chief is killed and Estavio escapes with help from the Prince himself. The sudden turn of events result in the outburst of war. Vasco Da Gama seeks revenge and our warriors want to expel the colonists. The pages of history close with the unsung heroes of the Konkan coast who tried to fight away the Portuguese by sacrificing their lives.

The star cast in the movie is interesting with Arya, Vidhya Balan and Nithya Menon playing cameo roles. The camera work for the movie is stunning. The costumes designed by Eka Lakhani are so relevant and the visualization is good.

When asked to tell one negative factor about the movie, a youngster said ‘Well… I have to give it a thought’. This proves the movie to be flawless.

The cinematography in ‘Urumi’ proves that South Indian films have begun to reach higher standards and are setting up new milestones. The songs are really good to the ears and take us to their world itself. The movie’s screen closes with the decision made by KD as to whether he sells his ancestral property or retains it so that the legend of the real heroes of the land are not forgotten. The best part in the movie is about relating the characters in the history with that of the present day characters.

The brutality of the colonists towards the natives is beautifully portrayed. Indians were not only rich in tradition and culture but also in war ethics. But the colonists knew only guns and cannons against our men’s swords.

The actors have done extensive homework for the movie which is obvious with Genelia’s stunts and Prithvi’s biceps.

The scenes with Kelu and Ayesha evoke a sense of tension right from the beginning and are romantic in a special way. The eyes of the lead pair speak volumes without words.

The whole world praises Vasco Da Gama and history speaks highly of him. But no one knew about the real heroes. Santhosh Sivan has proved himself as an amazing Director and Cinematographer.

Bottom line:

This movie is not only for the history enthusiasts but also for the ones who eagerly catch up a good movie.

Aravaan...

As you see the opening sequence, where the entire screen is being filled with an eighteenth century landscape, you can’t help but wonder if you have actually been transported in time and world. Well… That is not all. For a tamil movie representing an earlier time period, the movie ‘Aravaan’ stands apart. Be it the clothes and accessories, the landscape or the people everything is so real and so unique. Director Vasanthabalan has taken ‘the road less traveled by’ and has crafted a wonderful movie based on the tamil novel ‘Kaaval kottam’.

The opening scene itself is a classic. Kombhoothi (Pasupathy) and his gang called ‘kothu’, the legendary thieves from the petty village of Vembur execute a well planned theft from a rich landlord’s house. This literally makes people wonder how elegantly the theft was carried out and this sequence has overtaken any of the modern day technology based movies like the ‘Ocean’s eleven’ saga with all the modern gadgets and all.

 The entire village lives on the income earned by thieving. Situations lead Kombhoothi to meet a hippie called Varipuli (Aadhi), the protagonist. Soon the two go on to become very close friends and they go for ‘kalavu’ (means theft) together. During a very difficult situation, Varipuli keeps his life at stake and saves the life of Kombhoothi from the guardsmen of the village ‘Kottaiyur’.

Later on, one day Varipuli gets beaten up and kidnapped by a gang of men who guard the village of ‘Kottaiyur’. This is when the true identity of Varipuli is revealed. In a flashback sequence rolls the story of how Chinna, the guardsman from the village of Chinnaveeranpatti became Varipuli, the thief.

The movie portrays how in olden days a murder of a stranger was viewed, messenger being sent to several villages to spread word and the brutality of ‘an eye for an eye’ concept without even an investigation. The cameo roles of the king, the queen, a dancer, the perfume vendor and the gypsy are crafted with care so every role shines with perfection and realism. The end of the movie is overwhelming and moves us to tears. And it is so true that ‘Men with authority and money buy their way out of justice’. Also the movie conveys a message that life sentence is a brutality and not a punishment which by the way is very true.

Make up for the artists is amazing. Bharath as the perfume vendor couldn’t be recognized at all. Bharath and Anjali have done a cameo role which marks the turning point of the story. Also the landscape the director has chosen must have taken him a good proportion of time to find out. In the current era, a stretch of land without any mobile phone towers, electric lines and railway lines is not easy to find.  

The traditions and lifestyle of the people are totally portrayed in the song ‘Enna petha oore’. Playback singer Karthik’s debut attempt as music director has been a hit with all songs so light on the listeners.  

With flawless performance, all the artists of this film definitely deserve a standing ovation. And the movie, in its own style expresses a mixture of flavors - joy, sorrow, love, loss and sense of humor and is on its way to become one of the classics. For a period movie, ‘Aravaan’ stands ahead of any other movie released on Tamil screen. It is obvious that the director Vasanthabalan has taken an extra step forward in making a period film and his hard work definitely shows up in the quality of the movie.

Bottomline: For people who would like to know the ‘not so glamorous’ life of the royal blood, it’s a must watch. And for all Tamilians too!