Madam Dr Jayalalithaa Jayaraman

Watching the syrupy rendezvous of Madam Jayalalithaa with Simi Garewal after a day of heavy sea sentiments from all people gives you a good sense of life that Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had lived since she was born. As she herself confessed, a third of her life was consumed by the attentive care of her mother and another third by the grasping vigil of the late MGR. So all the disruptions of the last third of her life seemed like undulating musical notes of a score composed by a leader who wanted to live life finally on her terms. And the way she did, it proves the will of the lady hard as nails – never budging, never relenting whether the opposition is a thespian like Karunanidhi, or an actor like Kamal Hassan or a seer like Sri Jayendra Saraswati.
If you have to examine her life, it has more drama, twists and turbulence than the length of the character of Aiswarya co-terminous with what Mani Ratnam created in the film “Iruvar”. As is evident now, not many lady politicians in world history have moved to a vantage position of strength starting with the disaffections and detriments that Jaya has faced. Father gone at age 2, separated from mother from age 5 to 10, pushed into different career choice from age 16, mother gone at age 23, some relationships not materializing into marriage later, and then the insurmountable barriers to her final ascent after the man who mentored her film career and built the foundation of political career – MGR – passes away in 1987. The odium she had to endure in the societal stereotypes of the 1980s instead of pushing her down became the podium of strength which zipped her forward. This is where Hillary Clinton, Indira Gandhi, Benazir Bhutto and Sonia Gandhi had much better upstart than Jayalalithaa Jayaraman. And then came the twin-sagas of humiliation at assembly and the dark-age dungeon she was thrown in the late 80s which didn’t break her spirit or her tenacity. In the first episode resembling the disrobing of Draupadi, it made Jaya take vow without any Lord Krishna’s help to step back in the Assembly only as a CM (which she did)). In the other episode which lasted many days in the inhuman prison cell of Chennai, Jaya had to withstand privations that even the likes of Tanguturi Prakasam couldn’t endure. Many felt it is persisting with the woeful prison days that most of Jayalalithaa’s ill-health started – which took a final toll on her life.
Winning six terms is no mean achievement for any seasoned politician but Jaya did it with impunity and alacrity. Her stamina and the fire in belly never dipped and neither has her appetite for firing salvos on her greatest foes – and each term was getting better than the previous in terms of her dignified responses, even as her political opponents turned more vicious and treacherous. As a state politician, she was vainglorious about her party, her constituencies and her political stakes and that defined most of the terms of engagement with the world outside her state – be it centre, press or FDI. An example is the way she influenced the late N T Rama Rao in the 80s to firestart the Telugu Ganga project which helped Chennai tide over the water crisis. NTR agreed to divert Krishna river water but only if Jaya agreed to “Telugu Ganga”. Jaya agreed and the people of TN were grateful for the gesture. In many other cases, Jaya’s sneezes and coughs during the NDA government’s tumultuous term between 1998 and 2004 distorted her image as a dependable ally making even stock markets dance to her tunes like the Pied Piper of Hamlin but Jaya took stand on issues which merely strengthened her image in the state. Not many Chief Ministers had the assertiveness that Jaya had in dealing firmly with the centre.
Her fight with the Seer of Kanchi showed her obstinacy. While the real issue turned out to be over the sellout of a Medical College which the seer escalated to the centre igniting Madam’s wrath, the world attention was on another angle. She was clear on building the kind of legacy that the poor will remember in all the franchisees of shops dishing out medications to rice. But she was also aware of giving a stable and efficient administration that unlocks the human potential of TN especially in continuing the massive reservation policy which was flagged off first by the late MGR. Jaya has ensured the state has maintained a balance between Welfare economics and Economic Growth. In 1983-84, Tamil Nadu produced only 2000 engineering graduates but now more than two lakh engineers graduate out of 652 colleges. While reservation in educational colleges went up from 30 per cent to 69 per cent, the trend of private groups starting professional courses caught on with other states like AP, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The best thing is the way clearances were given for making Manufacturing hubs in and around Chennai beginning with Auto manufacture and allied components. Today, TN has more hubs and well-developed tier II and III towns than any other state, tag of the most urbanized state in the country, more diversified industries evenly distributed among the districts and industry growing above the national average. Until the Gujarat model came, TN was always shining as the third largest in terms of GDP growth rate, according to noted journalist Susheela Ravindranath from her book SURGE . And Chennai is among the top 10 most attractive outsourcing locations globally (ranked no.5). When the big flood came last year, despite casualties and much flak from the citizens, Jaya government managed to keep the news of death of dozens of cab drivers in IT hub hushed up so that the image of Chennai as India’s second-largest exporter of IT services remains intact. So much for her policies, Tamil Nadu also attracted the pledge of Rs.2.4 lakh crore worth of investments last year, double the initial target. The Niti Ayog also mentioned that the amended Land Acquisition Act of Tamil Nadu is the ideal benchmark worthy of emulation by all other states in India. The activation of Economic growth engines that happened in Jaya’s term shows that CM Jaya not only read the pulse of the poor by dishing out freebies and pamering them with cheap food but also the mood of the skilled manpower and the resourceful entrepreneurs of the state in harnessing opportunities that can propel the state forward.
All the achievements of Jaya the CM show her to be extremely skillful, proactive and feedback-oriented which allowed her party to consolidate position to unassailable lead over DMK and other rivals. But the film career is something that is equally nonpareil for any film star. Fluent in all the South Indian languages, She acted in an English film ‘Epistle’ and a Hindi film `Ijjat’ besides over 140 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. Right from her debut Tamil film “Vennira Adai”, she had a charishma and cuteness that made her the most-sought-after heroine of the 60s and 70s. Supple and svelte, graceful and gaitly and gifted with a willowy dancing form, Jaya had tasted success from her first film making the top stars of the South cast her in consecutive films. Look at the pairing in her journey – 28 films with MGR, 17 films with Sivaji Ganesan and 11 films with NTR besides acting with every top and emerging hero of those times – Rajkumar, ANR, Shoban Babu, Krishna, Ravichandran, Kalyan Kumar, and others achieving a 80 per cent superhit rate. Almost all the heroes enhanced their auras because of the glamor oozed out by Jayalalithaa.
Naturally, she won three Filmfares which includes the very first Filmfare for Best Actress Award in 1972 when it was introduced. One of them was for a Telugu film “Sri Krishna Satya” in 1972. She also dubbed her own voice (something today’s heroines ought to learn) and sung a couple of songs including with legends like T.M.Soundarajan and S.P.Balasubramaniam. Unlike others, she resisted temptation to act in more films after plunging into politics. That’s what set her apart from other actor-turned-politicians. Despite delivering huge hits and being the highest paid actor for some years, she never compromised on her roles and performances and more importantly, never threw her weight around.
As her many interviews and lighter moments reveal, Jaya raced to the top of the films and then aced up on how to crack it in politics. Ambition and serene confidence drove her from films to politics and everywhere she dominated the scene – in films, for example, it was she who replaced B.Saroja Devi who acted in 27 films with MGR to overtake her in the pairing. She acted in roles which had western costumes as well as mythological characters like Satya Bhama. Even as she cruised to the top spot in Tamil films, her foundations for a political career were carefully laid through her multilingual fluency and English which remained her forte in films. Reading novels, current affairs and nonfiction and writers like Ruskin Bond came easy for her finessing her world views and sensibilities.
Shaping her career and achieving her goals became a heuristic progression for her – something that many women politicians in India and the world lack in depth. Not many have shown the resilience and the steely resolve that Jayalalithaa has shown, neither have they shown how to perfect the poise and the carefully cultivated public calm that she displayed always. It is tough to survive and thrive in both the worlds of films and politics especially when both are dominated by men but Jaya’s life and times show that with grit and guts, even a woman can achieve glory and public adulation if she determines. That is her greatest legacy to women in particular and Indians in general. Life kept changing plans for her from the time she was born, but she kept pushing ahead in her own ways until the terms became endearing for her until the last. Salute the Iron Lady who could have also played a national role had the stars aligned. Yes, there were issues of nepotism, conceit, corruption, delusions of greatness and superstitious beliefs (from Numerology and Vaastu to Astrology) but her personality overshadowed her fixations and made her one of the most epoch-making Diva-turned politicians of our time.

“Pink” (Hindi) Film Review

We should have got the hint when Shoojit Sircar took  backseat and produced  “Pink” directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhary. Sircar took more time to add labels which helped the film reach more audiences – he roped in half a dozen new names and made PVR Pictures, the largest Multiplex partner, and ensured the trailer released well before the festival season as early as in July. The film delivers making the wait worth it. "Pink" is the most important film of our times – and makes a statement on everything that comes within its sweep and  audacity. The title “Pink” is a euphemism for the color usually associated with feminity and all the vulnerabilities and stigmas affecting it; it’s a color for all the stereotypes that girls grow up with as if they have to stay with that for life. Then the narrative of 126 minutes which builds a simple story of three girls getting traumatized by four Delhi boys – which stays faithful to the episode that triggered it all – then expands the unintended consequences with all the legal permutations and finally, unleashes a feisty screenplay that keeps you engaged throughout. The interval, the pre-climax and the climax  complete the emotions that surcharge this legal thriller.  “Pink” gives out consistent and loud messages to the patriarchical Indian society to re-examine the paradigms through which the law and the law-makers (mostly men) relate to and affect women.

What makes the film different from the recent legal-content films like “Talwar” is the laser-sharp focus of the director on shepherding the main story. Since the story is not in public domain but plausible, the narrative has solid pace and intensity and at many times loaded with panic-attack emotions especially in the first half. Once Amitabh Bachchan enters the fray as a defence lawyer for the three girls Tapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari and Andrea Taring, momentum picks up and the audience is driven to the edge of the seat with courtroom drama bereft of stupid theatrics that we usually see. The only humor in this intense and tense film is experienced  when the defense counsel Deepak Singhal (Amitabh Bachan) is at work. The cross-examination by Bachchan not only wins many hearts but hits at the nub of our banalities – those series of dialogues that he utters as “Safety Rules for girls: Rule no.1, 2,3,4” raise the heckles and mocks at the ways we label women for all the sexual attacks on them. On the other hand, Deepak's adversary on the court, played by Piyush Mishra, personifies what’s wrong with our legal system, in the way cross-examination begins and ends with an axe to grind. Piyush carries his role with a gusto that makes him both repugnant and convincing. Dhritiman Banerjee as the judge is sober and composed showing the eclipsed emotions that a judge is never supposed to show in blink-and-miss moments.  The only gaffe in the courtroom why the portraits of Netaji and Tagore are doing on the walls of a District Court in Delhi. Small obsessions of a crafty Bengali director but forgivable because of a bold story projected with impact.

Tapsee Pannu steals the show with a performance that is both gutsy and pensive. But at times, her role demanded more emoting and she falls flat. After the Telugu film “Sahasam”, this is the role that brings some attention to her. Kirti Kulhari, the other girl is more nuanced. Andrea as the girl from Meghalaya looked apt in her role and reflects the plight of women from Northeast used to the society's insensitivities. Amitabh’s under-stated presence in the first half only to take the center-stage in the second half  with a hurrah performance  is a big plus for the film as word-of-mouth publicity picks up. He has shown a delicate mixture of probity and persuasiveness while single-handedly taking on the case with pure legal acuity. His approach in the build up of opening arguments, investigation and cross-examination give you a sense of intrigue that is missing in most films that ought to reflect current dilemmas through courtroom drama. The closing arguments merely underline the recurrent theme of what it means to be an adult woman and the need for consent. Another highlight of the film is the stark contrast in approaches followed by both the lawyers. Amitabh never cross-examines any of the motley of witnesses presented by the plaintiff, he presents only one witness who surprisingly is ignored for cross-examination by the plaintiff. But the approach to examining the key accused and the victims by both the lawyers is a treat to watch.

Technically, the film’s cinematography gets the moods aligned with the tone of the narrative – there is no room for any relief in the 126 minutes. BGM score by Shantanu Moitra is the finest we have heard in years. Using a haunting medley of violins, bass and percussions, Shantanu intensifies the first half by building the tempo of the incident and then blending tensions  that leaves you restless all through until the interval. By the, the stage is set for greater expectancy and intrigue towards closure. Shantanu’s strength is in mixing different  instruments with live recording of street sounds. Going by previous OSTs of Shoojit Sircar’s films, enough care is taken by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury in syncing Moitra’s sounds with the film’s motifs and images. Dialogues are hard-hitting and reflect the usual measured metrics of Sircar’s films. In a film that is near-perfect, the few things which take away the credit are the half-developed characters of Amitabh’s wife, Tapsee’s father, Kirti’s estranged lover and so on – the director lost some opportunities for impact-making statements. The film is going to be talked about for a long time as long as the society shields the culprits and shames the victims in the stigmas and stereotypes it perpetuates. In one of his famous judgements, Justice V.R.Krishna Iyer once remarked: “The life style of the people shapes  the profile of the  law and not vice-versa.” This film drives the point of that more directly with preciseness and seriousness without sensationalising the issues. “Pink” is not to be missed at all, it is watchable but keep the pre-teenagers out of it for the disturbing visuals.

Rating: 4/5

“Inkokkadu” (Telugu)/ “Iru Mugan” (Tamil) Film Review

Chiyaan Vikram calls himself an actor and not a star in a recent interview to a Telugu channel and he wills all his scripts to let him stay that way. “Inkokkadu” is one more script in that direction where the uber cool actor can be seen in two different shades which underline his versatility and range of acting. One, is a character called Akhilan, an ex-R&AW agent who has “lost” his wife Nayanataara while fighting a deadly gang of chemical-using terrorist called “Love”. The second one, of course, is the character of that dreaded terrorist whose pictures are not available in police records - the evasive “Love” - a transvestite businessman-cum-silent-terrorist. 

In both shades, Vikram excels himself. As R&AW agent, he sports a dapper beard that is in sync with a mop of a hermit-like hairdo who regularly visits the barber something similar to what Jr.NTR looks like in “Naannaku Prematho” but leaner and fitter. He moves with piercing eyes and wears a punishing look of a man on mission who can activate a sleeping volcano whenever villainy presents itself. But it is the second role which makes its dramatic appearance at the 60th minute, literally a few scenes away from Interval bang which makes the film watchable - as “Love” the sweet-talking cross-dresser who makes a billion-dollar drug called “Speed” (known by the generic name of Pervatin) which makes ordinary mortals fight like Marvel-comic superheroes - denting metals and pulverizing armies of armed men. Vikram as “love” steals the show with a unique body-language and ibby-jibbies typical of sophisticated hermaphrodites who view the world as perverse with a sadistry unknown to men and women; he mints a new screen presence with a role that will get him as much fame as what he did in “Anyan”.

Supporting cast of Thambi Ramaiah as a comedian adds some relief to the film but the role of Nitya Menen as a cop makes no impact. Nayanatara as Vikram’s wife sizzles in a few melodious songs but having played herself many female-centric characters, she appears uncomfortable with the charms of Vikram in many scenes even if she looks a million-buck in each frame with a toned body at her ravishing best. Since Vikram plays both the hero and the villain, there isn’t much scope for performance by anybody else - most of the best scenes are those of conflict between “Love” and Akhil. These are well-picturised and dramatically shot which remind you conflict between an antangonist and protagonist is what can fire up the sceen - and it is not necessary that the hero should steal the thunder from the villain in every scene of confrontation; it is okay if the villain wins many hands against the hero before caving in finally.

Technically, the film is a visual feast with good musical and cinematographical inputs. Harris Jayaraj has given a good album and a BGM; atleast two songs score high on melody after a long time. The first half is brighter than the second half even if the film is long at over 160 minutes. Editing would not have mattered much as the problem lies with screenplay more than the scenes; director Anand Shankar has chosen a simple story of a seasoned Spy who brings a gang of villains to book and destroys his evil empire of malefic drugs that can devastate swathes of population. But what is not clear and logical is that the drug which activates and works for five minutes as a chemical tranfixed on human body doesn’t appear to kill the user. Or did it kill? We are confused because in the prologue to the film before the titles begin, an elderly Malaysian uses the Speed drug and wreaks havoc on an army of people at the Indian Embassy but he drops dead after 5 minutes of the drug’s tenure. We are never shown whether he is dead or autopsied. But throughout the film, we see about half-a-dozen instances when the drug is self-administered at will by the villain or the hero or even the heroine and they spring back to life after the inflammation of body and mind ends which makes them seem invincible during the duration of the drug.  This is a fatal flaw which takes the credit away from the director. It is not a science-fiction film because there is some truth about the usage of this drug during the second world war when Hitler used this drug on a mass-scale on the Nazi Army - a fact documented in the film’s narration. But if it is a fact as one believes it is, the effects have to be made abundantly clear - which we didn’t get to see. 

Among Vikram’s recent films which ended as disasters, this film is a better-made film which makes it half-watchable and if you condone the logical fallacies, you may still find it bearable for the performances of Chiyaan Vikram as the villain and the hero. It is now clear Vikram may perhaps never act in a normal film with a vanilla commercial flavor - he is caught in the web of delusions of grandeur and histrionics by use of different prosthetic makeups and variations of character.  We have to see how long this can go on - before Vikram delivers an unadulterated entertainer which reconnects with the masses like a “Gemini” or an “Aparachitudu” (“Anyan” in Tamil). For director Anand Shankar, the film is a neat attempt but he has a task cut out in fleshing more twists and drama in the second half which turns out to be a dull show. For fans of Chiyaan Vikram, the movie cannot be missed. For the rest of us, it is watchable once. Don’t go by the rating as the presentation is slick and different with a better visual sense of Malaysia than recent Tamil movies.

My rating: 2.5/5

“Janata Garage” (Telugu Film Review)

Koratala Siva is a director who believes in making meaningful commercial films with an underlying message. His previous films “Mirchi” and “Srimanthudu” have met with huge success even if the initial response has been slow to muted. What sets him apart from the usual mongrels directing commercial films is the unhurried pace of narration, and honesty in story-telling. Even the audio tracks of his films released have a touch of this honesty. Many times, the audience keeps guessing on the order of songs in the audio CD because the makers juggle the order of songs. But from the film “Mirchi” onwards, Koratala Siva insists the songs on the catalogue appear in the same order they appear in the film – that’s quite remarkable. It is proof of the director’s intent to never cheat you – either by meaningless side-shows or flippant comedy for the sake of it. How does Janata Garage fare? First half of the film sizzles with good romance, towering performances, great songs and impactful scenes. But the second half loses its way after a brilliant scene in a government office starring NTR Jr. and Rajiv Kanakala.

For NTR Jr. the film is one major step in the right direction – of moving away from lineage-heavy dialogues and mass-image roles – of becoming a metrosexual, uber cool actor who will pack a punch with subtlety and method acting. He excels in his dances and gives another career-best performance by staying true to the mood of his role as a nature-lover and environmental activist who tames villains. The best part of NTR is he takes a backseat in few crucial scenes to elevate the Superstar Mohanlal wherever he needs to – right from titles (where Mohanlal’s name appears) to the last scene of the film (where again Mohanlal finishes off). In a film with mighty starcast from Mohanlal to NTR to Saikumar to Sachin Khandekar to Samantha and Nitya Menen, rarely do you find the hero’s introduction delayed by 21 minutes after the film starts.

The story is not new: Mohanlal is a self-made repairman who builds a giant garage called `Janata Garage’ in Hyderabad repairing all wheeled vehicles. He also attends to the worries of people and hence the caption “All things repaired here” which brings his troop of men in direct conflict with a billionaire called Mukesh (sounds eerie, right?). NTR, on the other hand, lives in Mumbai with his uncle Suresh’s family pursuing his interests in nature conservation. Destiny and family history eventually brings NTR into the portals of Janata Garage but there are some hidden sources of conflict from within which pull the story. Even though the story is familiar, the treatment and the characters built into the story build it out for a watchable though predictable narrative  - something that is bereft of regular formula stuff.

What pulls down the film is the second half with a heavy dose of violence, an item song (that is avoidable and deplorable) and monotonous. It smacks of lazy writing and momentary lapse in clarity that pulls the graph dramatically lower than the feeling you get at interval time. A lot of ends which could have got tied up in the second half hang out loose – the character of Samantha who cutely tailgates NTR in the first half peters out, Suresh and Sitara who doted on NTR never come back in his life again, the environment activist in NTR who is so vocal in the first half goes to sleep once NTR takes up the causes of JG in the second half…It is things like these which make the 162 minute film a little less savory than a four-course meal, it is okay to skip the desert but don’t take the breads away from the table, the audience may ask. However, what redeems the film is the measured characterisation of the principal and side actors in the film – Mohanlal, NTR, Sachin Khandekar, Unni Mukundan (as Mohanlal’s son), Saikumar, Suresh, Rajiv Kanakala, Ajay and Bhargavi. 

Of all, the surprising elevation comes from unexpected characters like Rajiv Kanakala and the subtle romantic track between Ajay and Bhargavi. Rajiv’s character also elevates the crux of the message that Koratala Siva wants to spread through the film about principled and integrity-based living. Ajay’s characterisation leaves you with a heavy heart. Almost all the rest of the pack from Saikumar, Suresh and Sachin Khedekar make their moments of impact on screen. Unni Mukundan, the Malayali actor who plays Mohanlal’s son stands out with a good performance that shows calibre – there are shades of the film “Shakti” (Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan) in the way his role develops. Interestingly, Sachin gets to dub his own voice in Telugu whereas Mohanlal (who dubbed himself for “Manamanthaa”) borrows another baritone for his role. Of all the roles, Mohanlal’s role is consistent throughout the film – he stays in the zone of a comatose, good Samaritan and can fire up a lighthouse without even a twitch on his chubby cheeks, his eyes have that magical power. Even the way he takes to stunts ought to be a lesson for NTR and other macho heroes – you don’t need to bash up baddies till they crumble like nine pins, you just need a symbolic fight once, the rest is banality. That’s what makes the film a bore in the second half. After a dramatic fight by NTR showing the five elements of nature in a demonstrative fight with the baddies, he keeps using his brawn instead of brain in the second half to tame the villains which dilutes the intensity of the original character – a cardinal mistake.

On the whole, the film dazzles in technical departments – dialogues, cinematography (Thiru), music (DSP) and set design. Thiru’s cinematography is great but if greatness is all about showing “yellow” colors oozing out of every frame, then the eye clamors for more. Music by DSP is just about apt both in the BGM and songs – he uses silence more at crucial screen moments which build a subtle tension in the film. The song, set design and choreography in “Apple Beauty” make it a visual treat to watch with B&W images of fallen motifs from modern wonders of the world. The song showing a nature trek by the hero and the two heroines Nitya and Samantha can ensnare anybody into love for nature and serenity. Had the editing been sharper in the second half, this film would have got a blockbuster status but for that to happen, the excessive stunts, the item song on Kajal (what a waste!) and a few dragging scenes should have got mercilessly chopped. NTR’s twelve minute oration in the Government Municipal office will become the most famous scene in his career and that itself is a paisa vasool scene for me which can rebuild foundations of a moralistic society in a corruption-free India.

Finally, one needs to assess this film differently despite scant comedy, lack of fan-hungry entertainment, incomplete romance or a lousy climax. In the past, class directors used to get atleast a dozen films or more to establish their credentials as makers with a different idiom and style and who are here to stay. Nowadays, the directors get only two or three films to establish what they stand for and how they mould their film templates. Koratala Siva has established himself as a meangingful director in just three films – and despite flaws, deserves praise for making a film worth watching once. NTR Jr. too is directionally moving correctly towards a mass-affluent image and this film underlines that intent one more time after “Naannaku Prematho”. He may have erred on the overall finishing of the plot because he doesn’t have the benefit of a mega family where about half-dozen people hear a script before okaying it with more modifications. But that doesn’t make the film less worthy. It can be watched with family too.

Rating: 3/5