Kannathil Muthamittal - A Lovey-Dovey Peck On The Cheek

‘Chinnam siru kiliye kannamma selva kalanjiyame ennai kali tirtte ulagil etram puriya vandhai’, an immortal song by Subramanya Bharathy, wherein he depicts Devi Parasakthi as his daughter and compares the Devi to a parrot (killi), he sings kannama( with love), you are the wealth I own( selva kalanjiyame) and you have come to take away my sins( ennai kali tirtte) and raise me in this world(ulagil etram puriya vandhai). After a romantic cum commercial hit film Alaipayuthe in 2000 much was expected from the ace director of Indian Cinema, Mani Rathnam. In 2002 he bobbed up with a movie, the title being an inspiration from the above mentioned Bharathi song esp one particular phrase from it, ‘kannathil muttamittal ullam tan kal veri kolludadi’, Bharathi sings, when he kisses his daughter on her cheek his heart is filled up with immense joy. And Mani does justice by fulfilling our hearts with joy with his Kannathil Muthamittal.

Anything with a difference is accepted widely by tamil audiences and that is the reason why Mani’s movies do well in the market. The critical acclamation that his movies receive is because of the fairest characters and situations he portrays. One might ask, all Mani’s movies have to do with terrorism or love then what is the difference. Yes you are right, but then in movies it is not the subject but how well the subject is rendered by the characters and how well the situations are pictured which makes the movie stand out. In a single word it’s ‘how the movie makes you feel’. In that case Mani doesn’t make a mistake, as his movies have a remarkable script with well-incised characters, brilliant dialogues, excellent cinematography, first-class art direction and phenomenal music. Many make a comment that the technicians behind the screen store the best for Mani but I think it’s he who makes the best use of the experts in all fields.

Without boring you people let me start with my review. Doing a child based subject is not new to Mani having done Anjali. The best part I like about Mani’s films is that it will have to do justice to two or more subjects, for eg in Roja, love and Kashmir terrorism were the themes. Linking the themes is where he makes the mark. Kannathil is also one such. Here the storyline is not that simple, an adopted child eager to know about her parentage and desiring the love of her biological mother convinces her parents to take her to Srilanka which at that time is at the peak of civil-discord. Mani counterpoises and links a family drama along with the bitter conflicts within a nation. It’s not a bird’s eye view; he succeeds in bringing the audience close to both the themes.

The movie begins with the marriage of Shyama(Nandita Das) with Dileepan (J.D.Chakravarthy) in Maankulam, a village in Srilanka. Both of them are Srilankan tamilans. Dileepan being a militant had to leave when a civil war broke out between the militants and the army, leaving his wife Shyama who was then pregnant. Shyama had no choice but to leave the terror-struck place and move to a refugee camp in Rameshwaram where she gives birth to a girl child. The next scene is in Chennai after 9 years. A girl introduces herself as Amudha(P.S.Keerthana) and also gives an intro about the members in her family. Amudha lives with her father Thiruchelvan( Madhavan) an engineer who is more popularly known as a writer who writes in the pen name Indra, the name of his wife Simran. Amudha has two younger brothers Akhil and Vinay and grandfather Ganesan(Delhi Kumar, of Metti Oli fame) who is a retired Tazildhar. The first few scenes show you a happy, lovesome family.

Thiru is a loving family man and an outright person. All the characters are well-defined. You get to spot Madhavan with specs, a total matured look contrary to the youthful guy you find in Alaipayuthe. Simran plays a loving mother, possessive about her children and hubby. She is not the glam lass you find in many other films, she proves herself as a performing artist. Akhil and Vinay will remind you of your own younger brothers. But yes it’s Keerthana who leaves you spellbound; there is so much of realness that she adds to a scene.

Back to the story, it is Amudha’s ninth birthday. Thiru and Indra tell her the truth of her parentage. The couple didn’t want to conceal anything from their daughter. Thiru tells her that she was adopted from a camp in Rameshwaram. After knowing this Amudha emotes, she crys, whimpers, and complains why they adopted her. To which Thiru replies ” Naanga unna thathu eddukale, nee dhaan engala thathu eduthe”(We didn’t adopt you, it was you who adopted us). Mani again takes you nine years back, this time the location is Rameshwaram. Indra is a college girl and Thiru has just embarked on writing. They are neighbours. Thiru titles his first story as ‘ Kudai’(Umbrella). Well Kudai is about the refugees who were forced to leave their nation, and Thiru mentions about a girl child who was abandoned by her mother who came as a refugee to the camp in Red Cross out there in Rameshwaram. I cannot resist myself from writing down those lines in the story that moved me. ‘ Yaar ivargal, oru theepatti padhinainthu rubaiku vikkum, mannanai; minsaram; maruthuvam edhuvum illadha naatil, palikoodangalil yudha sathum edhur ollikum nerukadiyil, sondha natayum odamaigalai thurandhu padageri , vandha naatilum varra verpillamal, unmayagave nadu kadalil thavika vidapatavargal. Avargal kettadhellam orru kudai nizhal, tharkaliga karunai, avargaluku naam thandhadhu enna agathi mugaam endru peyaril oru thirandha veli chiray. Siruvar, sirumigal, vaisaligal,penngal, ivargalil oru penn aval vayatril ulagay sandika avasra padum oru kuzhandai. Andha kuzhandayin kadhay idhu. jennal vazhiye kuzhandayay etti paarthaal, pirandha kanname andhu pinju virral thaayin veralai arindhu paatri kola, than viralai vidivithu konda porapadum badi avalai seluthiyadhu edhu, sondha naatil avaluku enna eerpu, kadamaya, kannavana,yudhama. Yaaruku theriyum? Kannathay kanneril nanaika, maarbil thaaipal nanaika, piranda udanaye, marandhu, pirundhu pogum kodumayay orru kalla kattathilum nyaya paduthu mudiyaadhu.Oru murai kuzhandayay thirumbi paarthal. Idhu dhaan kadaisiya, yaaruku theriyum, idhay sattrum ariyadha andha kuzhandayin mudhal azhugai amudhamai ollithadhu’. To translate the last line, ‘the child’s first cry flowed as sweet as nectar’. The lines are by writer Sujatha. And to say the least he is just awesome. The narrative never swags. Thiru decides to adopt the child, but the rules don’t allow for a bachelor to adopt. Thiru and Indra have a liking for each other. Their chemistry is well filmed by Mani. They marry and also adopt the child whom they name Amudha.

Amudha having heard the story couldn’t withstand the strong feeling of getting back to her biological mother. She runs away twice from house. Thiru and Indra decide to take her to Srilanka in search of Shyama. Dr. Wikramsinghe( Prakashraj) plays the role of a caring host and he takes them to Maangulam which at that time is war-torn place and people are getting displaced for safety. Amudha also views at close angles a suicide bomber. When Thiru and Wikram are speaking about the brutalities of the war, they are overheard by the militants. Thiru is recognized by one of the militants as a tamil writer, and they question him why they have taken a risk of coming to the place. One of the militants happens to be Shyamas brother, played by Pasupathy. When he comes to know they have come in search of his sister, Pasupathy tells him to come to a park in a nearby town. But once they reach the park they witness another attack, a face to face between the militants and the Srilankan army. The Audiography by Laxmi Narayanan and Art Direction by Sibu Cyril help in recreating Srilanka. Indra gets injured badly. Amudha could not handle any more as she could not see her foster parents suffering because of her. She tells Thiru that she wants to leave back home. On their way to airport they stop once in the park where they had decided to meet Shyama the other day. To their surprise Shyama had come there with her brother. Amudha asks Shyama the reason why she desolated her. Shyama speaks less but her body language does the job. Amudha wants to take her mother to Chennai. Shyama replies ’Eppa yavudham oru naal idhu yudham illadha bhoomi ya maarum, vidiyal varum, annaiku thiramba vaa’ (Someday there will be peace in this country, thn come back to me). The scene is a quintessential one in the movie and needs to be watched to get the real feel. Nandita Das does the small role given to her with perfection. Shyama leaves and the movie comes to an end with Amudha kissing Indra; Kannathil Muthamittal.

The music of the movie is by A.R.Rahman, and it is outstanding. ‘Oru Deivam thandha poove’ rendered by Chimnaye and another version by Jaychandran is a remarkable song. Chimnayee is a Rahman product and amazes you with her pitch in singing, the low and high notes are delivered with flawlessness. No wonder why Chimnayi became a household name. Written by Vairamuthu, the lyric excels. It is about the love of parents for their child, it’s a pain and a pleasure ( sugamana valli). My favorite line is ”Ennadhu vaanam nee, izhandha siragum nee. Naan thooki valarthu thuyiram nee”. Ravi.K.Chandran makes Marina beach look beautiful than ever for the picturing of this song. Quite different from oru deivam wherein Rahman makes use of so many instruments, “Vellai pookal” is a delight. Here the guitar plays the magic and ya the vocal is by the maestro himself. It reminds me of Newyork Nagaram, Khamosh raath which were also songs with excellent strumming of the guitar. The lyrics once again by Vairamuthu are striking. “Engu siru kuzhandhai, Than kaigal neettidumo, Angu thoandraayo, vellai, nilavey. Engu manidha inam, Poar oindhu saaindhidumo, Angu koovaayo, vellai, kuyile” . The song is a favorite of many music lovers. To feel the freedom unburdened by fear. That is what the song asks for.

The film won six national awards in different categories, had a warm welcome everywhere and was acclaimed in many International film festivals. The movie is a brainchild of Mani Rathnam. The filmaker who believes that any story he makes has to start with life and end with it. Universal love and fight against terrorism has been his keen interests. Kannathil Muthamittal is just about the same. A plot which I believe is second only to Mani’s Ayutha Ezhuthu.

Kodi keerthanamum Kavi koartha vaarthaigalum, Thuli kanneer, poal artham, tharumo? Alike, this movie needs to be watched by one to get the real flavor and tone!!