Saw this really old "swaami padam" to keep my father in law entertained. But as it turned out, it did keep me hooked on to the TV as well! But hey... not too surprising considering that I am a devout person who does not know much about the epics other than Ramayana or Mahabharatha!

What's New

How can anything be new in such an old movie? But the story itself was new to me, although the topic of the argument was pretty familiar. I had seen it in one of Solomon Paapaiyya's Patti Mandrams on Pongal day (not on television but on The Hindu's tv page!).

Noticeable

I last saw K.R.Vijaya in Chandramukhi and boy o boy, it was shocking to see her in this movie. She was really a babe (sorry for saying that in a Swami pada review)! Some natural acting from Sivaji Ganesan (instead of overacting). His contrast in the roles of Vidyapathi and Naradar were simply a sign of a genius. Nagesh was his natural self. Gemini Ganesan had a subdued role and was by no means equal to Sivaji and K.R.Vijaya. Also, it seems like the trait of "Veeram" was simply glued in to the argument, not much synergy in this. Although this was a long movie, the ending was pretty abrupt and the gods intervened into an interesting fight, but I guess the message had to be conveyed in time, while the audience was still awake. The godesses are projected as pretty childish in this movie!

Verdict

Very interesting movie and worth watching again and again for its meaningful songs and to teach your kids a thing or two about gods.

Monday, May 16, 2005 at 3:39 PM