[Film Review] O Kadhal Kanmani

The film O Kadhal Kanmani is sure creating mixed waves - while the young audiences are gungho about it, the older audiences (who we must remember, grew up watching Mani Ratnam films) are not so enthusiastic. I watched the film more out of curiosity to understand who stands vindicated and this is what I feel.

The Milieu: The film has an Urban, Upper Class setting- the story takes place in Mumbai, with the hero pursuing a career in graphics design and the heroine is interested in art an architecture, this is a refreshing departure from the spate of formulaic films we have been served in recent times.

The Theme: So what's the theme of the movie? Well at least everyone's clear about that- 'living- in relationship.'
Now I wonder, in a country like India, where strong societal systems are in place, where family bonds are strong, where marriage is very strongly encouraged and advocated, what necessitates the need to have a 'living-in' relationship?
But I didn't have to look far for the director's reasons for this choice of theme. In the 60s they made films about strife in the household centered around money and relationships -where 'falling in love' was taboo. Then Tamizh cinema moved and we've had 'falling-in-love' as the theme in all the films that followed. So Mani Ratnam must have gotten up one day and asked himself, 'Love story is old hat... So what next?' and viola- 'living together' must have suggested itself. It does seem cool and it appeals instantly to the youth population of the country, who are experiencing new levels of freedom hitherto unseen by earlier generations. They live in cities away from the stranglehold of an oppressive (read moralistic) family and are eager to experience the 'delights' that this new found freedom brings.
Mani Ratnam has cleverly set this film in Mumbai, the most progressive/permissive of Indian cities, and very far away from the constricting clime of Chennai.

Place Value of the Elderly couple: I feel the director has used the elderly couple (Prakash Raj and Leela Samson) to function as representatives of the older repressive society of India and their acceptance of the young couple's life choices suggests an acceptance of such practices by Indian society as a whole.
But what is puzzling is that neither the hero nor the heroine make any attempt to discuss their relationship with members of their own family( on the contrary they try to hide it) but they are very concerned about eliciting the approval of the elderly couple who are in no way related to them.  The paying guest angle to the story that necessitates the coming together of the couples seems contrived- the guy is obviously making a lot of money- at least enough to rent a house on his own.

Characterization and plot: The films by the director that I have enjoyed the most are Thalapathi, Agni Nakshatram and the recent film Ravan.  What makes them stand out is the depth in the plot, the remarkable character sketches and excellent acting. Unfortunately, all these three aspects are missing in this film- every thing seems so superficial and shallow.

Now coming back to the theme of the film-- well it's not very easy for a guy to pick up a girl or at least that's what Hollywood films tell me. Even the most suave of heroes experiences awkwardness, stress and hitches before he is successful. And a general protocol in the dating process that I have noticed is that the first kiss usually happens around the third date.
Now, surprise surprise!!! the hero here meets the girl fleetingly on a train and sits a couple of places away from her at a wedding in a church, and the two get talking (much to the annoyance of the people in between and us the audience) and just like that decide to start living together - its easy, it's a cake walk- and the 'impeccable logic' behind the choice goes something like - 'We are  both going to part ways in a couple of months, so why not?'  Really???
Let's face it- most cultures (the ostensibly progressive) would find even a one-night -stand, awkward and difficult to pull off and here is a couple who are willing go the entire length - all at the drop of a hat!

So, two people who share no common ground, who don't establish in any manner what connects them, still decide to live together.
And the greatest let down is the ending where the director instead of  exploring the conflict that would necessarily arise from the coming together of two people on such flimsy grounds, does a somersault - goes all traditional and plays safe with the couple opting for marriage.
The other negatives in the film that I noticed is the jerkiness in the dialogues and filminess of the sets especially the room in the shady hotel in Ahmedabad.
My verdict - One more hyped up film bites the dust.
I only hope the old Mani Ratnam returns with a better plot and characterization in his next time!

[Blog] Misogyny in old tamizh film songs

I am, like many of you, a fan of old tamizh film songs. They are melodious and have stood the 'test of time' and are popular even today. Music competitions aired on various TV channels too are doing their bit in helping us remember both the popular songs as well as some of the forgotten ones. In 'Pattimandrams' (debate shows)  some of the speakers adopt the cliched trend of quoting lines from old film songs to support their argument.  But, when I look beyond the chaste tamizh, the lingering music and lilting voices, more specifically at the lyrics- some things begin to bother me.

In a country like India, films impact social thinking and play a pivotal role in changing and perpetuating social practices and attitudes. Through frequent broadcasts, film songs have a wide reach and the values they uphold cannot escape being unconsciously absorbed by the listeners. Many people know the lyrics by heart,  and over time, the values expressed in them gain the status of becoming gospel and the lyricist is ordained as an authority on scripture, value systems, tradition and what not of Tamizh culture, all at once.

 Sadly, the songs are repositories of indiscriminate stereotyping and misogyny. They paint images and qualities of what constitutes the 'good' woman. Chastity, shyness, softness, reticence and restraint are upheld in song after song while qualities such as self assertion are devalued.


I quote here some of the examples that have occurred to me, but I am certain that there exists enough material to present a whole thesis on the subject.

Women must be shy and reticent in public spaces - The 'Oruthi oruvanai ninaithuvittal' ( When a woman thinks of a man) song suggests
'adakkam enbadhu pen uruvam' (restraint is the very image of woman)

Remarriage is abhorred in this song from Nenjil Or Aalayam : The woman in the song 'Sonnadhu nee dhaana' (were you the one who said it?)  asks:

'Deivathin marbil soodiya malai/theruvinile vizhalama
theruvinile vizhundalum/Veroru kai thodalama'

Can the garland that adorns the lord be allowed to fall in the street?
And if it were to fall, can strange hands pick it up?
In this elaborate metaphor - the lord is the husband and the garland signifies the woman.

In the same song we find the lines: 
 'Oru kodiyil oru murai dhaan malarum malarallava' (A flower blooms but once in a creeper meaning love and marriage can happen but once in a woman's life)
Both these quotes endorse the view that a woman has no other purpose in life than to serve her master and with his passing her life loses meaning.

While chastity and virginity are the cornerstones of a woman's life, she can and more importantly should dispense with them if a man were to demand it!

In the song:
'Nan Malarodu Thaniyaaga Yen Ingu Nindren ?
En Magaraani Unnai Kaana Ododi Vandhen'

Who do I seek with flower in hand?
Awaiting you- my queen here I stand.
To which she replies:
'Nee Illamal Yaarodu Uravaada Vandhen ?
Un Ilamaikku Thunaiyaaga Thaniyaaga Vandhen'
I have come of course to cavort with who else?
I  come alone to yield to your juvenescence.

 Forthrightness in woman is discouraged: In this song from Poova Thalaiya -Adi sarithaan podi vayadi (Oh get going, you chatterbox) a woman's femininity is questioned when she tries to be assertive. The man asks 'Unakku penmai irukka? (Are you feminine at all?)

 As I said earlier, many examples may exist for each of the aspects I have touched upon, and more importantly research will yield several misogynistic misconceptions contained within them.

Meanwhile, I would like to continue listening to them for their other merits, firm in the belief that the woman of today has eased at least some of these shackles that bind her. 

[Blog] Popular Culture : The proliferation of item numbers

The item song is a phenomenon that now dominates the Indian film industry. We seem to have them in all languages. It has replaced the bar song that was quite popular a while back, which has now returned after a hiatus in the form of the item number.

Typically an item song has a set of very predicable characteristics: it usually features a very popular, highly paid, good looking actress (and actor) or the occasional 'Western' model. The marvelously beautiful woman occupies centre screen and is usually surrounded by a host of men who appear, poor, uneducated, ill dressed and drunken. What makes the item song so remote from reality is the fact that the actress seems to be at ease dancing in their company in her skimpy costume while appealing all the time for them to love her. The song has a catchy tune and ingrains itself in the audience's imagination through its choice of words, facial expressions, dance moves, music and style of singing. Paradoxically, the song manages to attract all sections of society- prodding one to want to see and hear it innumerable times. The tune generates an upbeat mood which encourages one to see and hear it often.

 The very presence of a respected, sophisticated, popular, good looking and highly paid actor 'sanitizes' the song and its lewd picturization and surprisingly lends it an undeserved credence and credibility. This directly contributes to it a garb of 'decency.'  I never cease to marvel at the way the actors cleverly manage to portray facial expression and gestures that exude an air of 'innocence' and 'sweetness' in these songs -- be it  Katrina Kaif in Sheila ki Jawani or Kareena Kapoor in the recent Fevicol song.

 The life cycle of an item number: The song is released after much fanfare and publicity and is played over and over in the media, at every wedding, every party, every festival and every school annual event and if that isn't enough, some local groups even manage to make parodies replacing the theme with a religious one and playing it over loudspeakers at all festivals. This constant bombardment of the psyche with the tune feeds on itself and makes one want to hear it more often until saturation kicks in at which point the scales tip - paving the way for a new item number.

Now, unlike the bar song that used to have overweight 'vamps' ( at least in Tamizh) which only entertained a section of the male audience, these songs now feature fashionable, main stream actresses thereby attracting all sections of people including women. Interestingly, it is women who play these songs at home and dance to them at private parties and social gatherings.  Another surprising trend is that the presence of a lesser known (albeit more talented) woman in a song doesn't attract the same degree of popularity and public endorsement. An example I can think of is : En peru Meenakumari from the film Kandasami which might not be allowed into 'respectable middle class homes but  a song like Pottu thakku that features Ramya Krishnan may find better acceptance.

Sadly, the item song has a direct impact on the safety of women on the streets of India. I feel that they fuel the fallacy that urban, educated, fashionable women and western women are promiscuous and decadent and these songs might be the single unwitting cause for an incidence in rape.
All I can wish for is an increase in the maturity of the audiences to view them as mere entertainment which might take a while. A more realistic wish would be the 'death' of the item number and its replacement with a more sensible form of entertainment.