'Vasoolraja' tops Tamil movies despite odds
- IndiaGlitz, [Thursday,September 16 2004]
After the success of "Virumaandi", Kamal Haasan's new film "Vasoolraja MBBS" is also a hit all over Tamil Nadu. The light comedy directed by Saran is the remake of the Hindi film "Munnabhai M.B.B.S". All the new releases after "Vasoolraja MBBS" have tumbled at the box office and these include Vijay's "Madhurey" too.
The following are this week's top five movies:
1. "Vasoolraja MBBS" (Director Saran): True, "Vasoolraja MBBS" cannot be compared to many of the old comedies of Kamal Haasan like "Pushpak" or "Michael Madanakamarajan" or "Avvai Shanmughi" or even "Panchatantram". But, in Tamil, Kamal is a class apart, even in an ordinary film. Similarly, "Vasoolraja MBBS" is an ordinary film but Kamal Haasan made it enjoyable.
2. "Madhurey" (Director Madhesh): The writer-director debutant Madhesh, who was an assistant to Shankar, thought he could recreate another "Gilli" if he had with him Vijay, Vidyasagar and fast music. But "Madhurey" is a film that cannot be tolerated even by those who enjoy the pulp. It turned out to be too hot for any stomach. It was a pain to sit through the whole film. The film is at number two only because it is a new release and has come immediately after the success of "Gilli".
3. "Azhagiya Theeye" (Director Radhamohan): Unlike "Madhurey", "Azhagiya Theeye" is a sweet film. Like Madhesh, Radhamohan, director of "Azhagiya Theeye", is also a debutant but he seems to have a strong grip on the film, its script and narration. All the artistes, including Prasanna of "Five Star" fame and Navya Nair have performed well. Like "Autogrpah", this film has succeeded because it is a realistically made film with a good story. The success of "Azhagiya Theeye" reaffirms the fact that a good film with a good story will succeed eventually. Hats off to Prakash Raj who came forward to produce the film.
4. "Students" (Director Jayaraj): A remake of "4 The People" from Malayalam, "Students" was not released in the main theatres in Chennai. Still, the film manages to do well. Of course, it has not replicated the kind of success it had in Kerala mainly because students or individuals fighting against the corrupt system is not new to Tamil filmgoers. Films like "Indian", "Ramana" etc., depicted just that. The film still tastes success because it is a well-made, fast-paced film. The music of Jassie Gift was a roaring hit in the Malayalam original and it has become a hit in Tamil too. It has contributed to the success of the film.
5. "Kudaikkul Mazhai" (Director Parthipan): Parthipan, who has written, directed and produced this beautifully titled film, had the courage to make a different film. Of course, nobody can forget his national award winning "Houseful", another experimental film. "Kudaikkul Mazhai" also can be termed experimental but, somewhere, something has gone wrong for the film. Or, are people not really ready to accept such experimental films wholeheartedly?