KungumaPoovum KonjumPuraavum - lyrical story unfolding in Muttam

I guess Thamizh Cinema is going along the right path these days, what with the movies like debutante Suseendhran's Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu, made on shoe-string budgets, without any expensive star-casts but with strong screenplay reaping success at the box office.

The recent example will be debutante director Rajamohan's KungumaPoovum KonjumPuravum. The producers(S.P.B.Charan) needs to be appreciated to have the guts to produce a story of this kind.

After Bharathiraaja's Kadalora Kavidhaigal, Rajamohan takes us to Muttam, a beautiful little town with picturesque beach, where the story unfolds.

Thulasi(played by debutante Thananya) comes along with her paati(played by Nagammal, another new face) to Muttam town. Koochan belongs to Muttam and lives with his mother. His mother has great love for her only son.

Koochan's(played by debutante Ramakrishnan) mother supports Thulasi through her initial tough times. However, when she comes to know about the love between her son and Thulasi, she disgraces Thulasi infront of the entire town.

Thulasi moves out of town along with her paati(grandma), where she has no other option but to marry a guy called Dharman(played by another new face). Dharman is a drunkard and spends time in Mangaatha, Drinks, etc. In one instance, Dharman kills a guy in a clash and goes to jail.

Without any support, Thulasi now comes back to Muttam, where Koochan still lives in memory of Thulasi. [Seems guys are always like this - they lose their entire life all the while thinking about the gal]

Does Thulasi accept Koochan and what happens to both of them is the climax.

Heard the story before...? I guess so.

However, the way the director has portrayed the story is superb.

The (high school) love shown between Koochan & Tulasi is almost lyrical. The dialogues are powerful at many a places.

Couple of places where I enjoyed the dialogues the most are:
1) Where Koochan proposes to Tulasi. How she replies in the negative and how Koochan turns into positive(absolutely awesome - guys can learn a lesson from this)
2) Where Koochan vents his feelings out infront of Tulasi's house, after she returns to Muttam

Now to the characters:
1) Ramakrishnan as Koochan displays amazing acting skills. He is last seen as one of the friends' in April Maadhathil movie. Here he gets promotion as hero. Be it in the first half, where he comes as a school boy, and in the second half, as a matured guy longing for his lover(Tulasi), he excels.

2) Tananya as Tulasi has literally lived her role. Her eyes are so expressive, displaying a myriad of emotions. The screenplay offers ample scope for her to perform and she has used most of the opportunity. Be it love, joy, sadness, shyness, anger, frustration - the gal simply weaves magic with her expressions. As a high school girl in the first half, and as a struggling wife in the second half, she performs with role with effortless ease. A promising find by whoever did the casting.

3) Koochan's mother - I recall seeing her in the movie Sandakozhi(the scene where her husband kills in the road by villain Lal's gang). Here, she is offered the role of a mother who dotes on her soon, but with bitter tongue. The way she goes about defacing Tulasi in front of the entire town brings out fear/anger in the audience.

4) Nagammal as Tulasi's mother - wow, what a find.. this paati steals the show with her sympathetic role with all the wrinkles in her face. Paatti--- kalakeeteenga..

5) Dharman as Tulasi's husband - this guy too is a new face, who has given a neat performance. His height offering good support for him to perform as a villain.


Not in any of Yuvan's recent movies I felt Yuvan's songs so appropriately placed. Two of his numbers(Chinnan sirusuga & Kadaloram) are heart melting melodies and blend nicely with the movie. The lyrics, the music and the lead actors are in perfect sync making these two songs unforgettable. I got reminded of Ilayaraja in these two songs.

The BGM is top class, with Yuvan using the BGM of Chinnan Siruga aptly in many a places a-la IR style.

Siddharthan's camera captures the scenic exotic locales of Muttam town in all its splendor.

Thulasi, Koochan, Thulasi's paati all still remain in my heart even after 2 days of seeing the movie. Goes on to show the strong characterization behind each character.

Thulasi especially still does not go out of my eyes ;-)

I consider this movie to be a tribute to lovers who broke-up.

Winners:
Tulasi's spellbinding performance
Nagammal Paati
Yuvan's music & Re-recording
Siddharthan's camera
First-Half

Losers:
Second-Half(though the climax is on predictable lines, the director could have made it less melancholic)

Best Regards,
Dharma.