UlagaNayagan KAMALHAASAN in ||"PAPANASAM"|| Directed by Jeethu Joseph

[venkkiram]

It is, not denying that .. Infact Kamal asked Jeethu if he could add more emotions to the role for the tamil audience and Jeethu readily and gladly agreed. But with Rajini, there may have been other elements that could have been introduced. Not sure. Those were his opinion ..

"Rajinikanth sir really liked the story when he heard it. Jeethu felt he could add a different dimension to the film with his presence. But Rajini sir had issues with two scenes," a source told IANS.

There's good chance he might get another script for him as a link said with Rajini also looking to try something else ..

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[Adox]

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Venkki,

I dont want to argue about this anymore, but there's no need for Kamal to thank Mohanlal if its only Jeethu .. Jeethu did approach Rajini. Check all the links from my post .. unless all the links are not valid!

[vikatan]

Mohanlal, in the late 80's and early 90s perhaps gave some of the finest movies that India has seen...(my opinion). Movies like Chitram, Bharatham, Surya Gayathri, TP Balamakumaran MA had Lal essay the role of the common man, the normal guy next door, a caring brother, a regular husband...And again in my opinion, nobody has matched him in these kind of roles.

Kreedam for example. Lal's greatness can be understood by looking at how bad the remakes in Tamil and Hindi were.

Having said that, I would rate Kamal's performance in Papanasam a notch higher than Lal's Drishyam.

George Kutty was a role tailor made for Lal. But I felt that it did not bring out the best in him. The master actor just breezed through his role. Nothing special for him. The story and screen play were the real heroes in Drishyam.

Bharatham would be example, where Lal did something extraordinary in his common man's role. It was a scintillating performance which haunted me for weeks after watching the movie. Karthik who himself is not a bad actor, would have realized that there some roles that only Mohanlal can do, when he reprised Lal's in Seenu (the pathetic Tamil remake of Bharatham).

The reason I think that Kamal's performance is better, is because he has truly breathed a lot of life into Suyambulingam. The scenes where Suyambu assures his scared daughter that he will protect her, hugs her and then looks at his wife with utter helplessness and also fear, looked much more realistic than the George Kutty. One would expect a father in that situation to behave exactly like that.

The final scene too. People say that Lals' performance reflects George Kutty's inherent coldness. I don't know. Again, here I felt Kamal's expression and words showing his guilt were much more realistic. Though Suyambu has a ruthless calculating side, he also can empathize with the feelings of another father.

As a Mohan lal fan, I would say that Kamal has outdone Lal in this movie.

[rsubras]

Rajini first choice nu director ninaicha was that an insult to Kamal or the other way around? y this fight? Enthiran was first scripted for Kamal and then came to Rajini..... He gave it his own flavor..... Kamal would have pulled a different trick if he had acted in that..... athu vera oru vithathula nalla irunthirukkum......avlothan.... like kamal himself said..... it is like how various singers recite the same song in a concert......

Had kamal also refused papanasam, jeethu would have gone for Sarathkumar (50+ heroes vera yaarum ippo nybagathukku vara maatengranga)

[irir123]

Rajini first choice nu director ninaicha was that an insult to Kamal or the other way around? y this fight? Enthiran was first scripted for Kamal and then came to Rajini..... He gave it his own flavor..... Kamal would have pulled a different trick if he had acted in that..... athu vera oru vithathula nalla irunthirukkum......avlothan.... like kamal himself said..... it is like how various singers recite the same song in a concert......

Had kamal also refused papanasam, jeethu would have gone for Sarathkumar (50+ heroes vera yaarum ippo nybagathukku vara maatengranga)

The issue of who was the first choice and not - was brought here by whom?

What matters is who did the role and how it was treated and how it has been received by both critics and the public..

'Papanasam''s success is reminiscent of how 80s movies like 'Poovizhi vaasaliley', 'Aan paavam' and 'Nayagan' became sensational hits ONLY through word-of-mouth and not any publicity stunts, which every biggie star (including Kamal) these days is guilty of…

Jeetu Joseph and co deserve all the praise for bringing the crowds back to halls purely based on cinematic content and performances - a hugely welcome sign…..

[irir123]

At last even Outlook India gives a positive review!

http://www.outlookindia.com/article/papanasam/294804

Contrary to what many have opine about Gautami's role, the review says "...with Gautami giving him graceful company. The surprise is the genteel, suffering Anant Mahadevan. Ajay Devgan has quite a task ahead as he heads the cast for the Hindi version…."

[pushpak]

Rajini first choice nu director ninaicha was that an insult to Kamal or the other way around? y this fight? Enthiran was first scripted for Kamal and then came to Rajini..... He gave it his own flavor..... Kamal would have pulled a different trick if he had acted in that..... athu vera oru vithathula nalla irunthirukkum......avlothan.... like kamal himself said..... it is like how various singers recite the same song in a concert......

Had kamal also refused papanasam, jeethu would have gone for Sarathkumar (50+ heroes vera yaarum ippo nybagathukku vara maatengranga)

Vikram?

[kumarsr]

When the movie is good, everyone (including North Indians) appreciate unreservedly.

Here's what the same reviewer in Outlook feels about Vishwaroopam:
Vishwaroop kickstarts like a comic book. The ditsy slapstick routine in the midst of gory villainy in NY tells you: don’t take this seriously. But only for a brief while. As the scene shifts to bleak Afghan landscapes and Al Qaeda training grounds, the stereotype “Islamic terrorist” emb*edded in our collective consciousness post-9/11 gets reinfor*ced onscreen—the bru*tality, ort*h*odoxy, obduracy, it’s all there. It’s a cruel world where “zubaan koi bhi ho, boli jehadi hi honi chahiye”. Severed limbs, lifeless bodies, spurting blood—you wonder why you are seeing these killing fields images all over again, in yet another film. Meanwhile, our hero Tau*fik finds Buddha-like enlightenment. He is the one good Muslim taking on the many rogues from his community to save New York from the “dirty bomb” even as the rather daft FBI agents ask him, “Jeez man, who are you?” He is the one good Muslim who “redeems” the many who have gone astray.

Cut to Hansal Mehta’s Shahid. Based on the life of activist-lawyer Shahid Azmi, who was allegedly killed for defending Mumbai bombing accused Fahim Ansari, this too begins with protracted seq*uen*ces of Shahid in jehadi camps. But unlike Vishwaroop, it settles down to focus on the dilemmas of a lower middle-class Muslim family. No demonising, exoticising or romanticising. “My atte*mpt was to humanise,” says Mehta. After a few devastating episodes—riots, jeh*a*di camps, jail—Shahid prefers the path of the law, fighting for the accused in court, to going on Taufik-like revenge mode. The gentle Shahid stands on the fringes, and Vishwa*roop shows how the heavy-handed, sweeping Muslim stereotypes dominate our mainstream cinema.

[selvakumar]

What is wrong with first 20 minutes? No opening song with self praising lyrics?

First 20 minutes test the patience and the film really starts after the daughter-Gautam-Villan scene. From then onwards, the screenplay is so racy and it was neatly edited. Had he trimmed that as well, it would become a perfect murder investigation movie. This is not a major flow but a minor P3/P4 issue. Gautami was a P2 bug.

I am a fan of murder investigation documentaries like NNT, Solved etc where the context is set within the first 5 mins. So, I felt the first 20 mins can be trimmed to make it even more racier.

[pushpak]

First 20 minutes test the patience and the film really starts after the daughter-Gautam-Villan scene. From then onwards, the screenplay is so racy and it was neatly edited. Had he trimmed that as well, it would become a perfect murder investigation movie. This is not a major flow but a minor P3/P4 issue. Gautami was a P2 bug.

I am a fan of murder investigation documentaries like NNT, Solved etc where the context is set within the first 5 mins. So, I felt the first 20 mins can be trimmed to make it even more racier.

Nice. The fact the you felt the duration was 20 minutes before the daughter-Gautami-villain scene it self explains it was great. That 40 or more minutes made you feel it was done in 20 minutes.
Thank you Jeetu.