Hope all are aware of the Prashanth starer 'Ponnar Sankar' hitting the screen shortly. I think this story came in Kumudham as a series, but I didnt read it then (didnt had the patience)..
whats the story about? How do you think the movie is going to fare? it says a tamil historical after nearly 40 years....but some reviews say that the original story is totally different from what has been penned...
who are these Ponnar-sankar and whats their role in our history? can we discuss?
I kinda liked the original story, the legend of two brothers fighting side by side and reclaiming their ancestral lands. Its been years since I read it as well, so please excuse if there are errors. This is the story, as far as I know:
Kunrudaiyaan (aka Masaichamy) and Thamarai are a couple who marry against her parents' wishes. There's a backstory to this: Thamarai's father had planned to give her in marriage to one Maandhiappan (this guy and his father, originally meant to be Kunrudaiyaan's guardians, had walked away with his lands and property, and left him practically in the streets).
Thamarai's father's plan backfired; Kunrudaiyaan came back in time for Thamarai's marriage and they got married, after a fashion. but there's some sort of prophecy that says Thamarai's sons will prove to be the death of the local king Thalaiyur Kaali, which means they have to be assassinated. And so Thamarai's twin sons are whisked away and raised in secret by a loyal soldier, Raakkiyannan. They grow up to be Ponnar and Shankar. Thamarai has another daughter, Arukkani. Of course, Ponnar and Shankar are eventually re-united with their parents and defeat their enemies, getting back their lost lands in the Ponni Vala Nadu region.
Thats the bare bones. Pretty sure other member will be able to add a lot more to it.:)
Coming to the movie - urgh, sorry to destroy expectations, but it basically, um, sucked. For one thing, there's nothing even remotely historical about the movie: there are no mention of dates, places (except very randomly) - not even the ruling Chola King is mentioned (everyone just shouts "Chola King!") I understand that its a local legend, but still, no research at all, seems to have been done. There is no character/plot development. The dialogues are neither chaste Tamil, nor local slang - a half-baked mix between the two.
The costumes are horrible - everyone dresses like they're in Jodha Akbar, which considering the fact that they're in TN - looks silly.
The only good things I could see were the camera-work and sets. Now those, they've spent crores on and its obvious to see. Pity they didn't concentrate on other areas, because this is one story that actually has possibilities. :(
Its better to approach Ponnar-Shankar, the movie, as a kind of mythological fantasy tale where two brothers simply beat down every kind of opposition with their bare hands. Its a watered down version of the ancient MGR Raka kathai, where you didn't really think much about characters (even those were way, way better. They had some kind of logic.) To call its a historical would be, I don't know, kinda demeaning to the genre of historicals. :)
Again, sorry to disappoint, but those are my views.
Thanks Pavithra...as usual who comments on these interesting things first :)
You mean the story that came in Kumudham is better than the screenplay of the movie? Heard even the story of Karunanidhi was a watered downed version.... so this is yet another hyped up movie..
anyway, its painful that we dont have any one in Tamil filmdom who can give a classic historical flick....
But it will take more than three years to complete.
A comprehensive version could be made by Great Viskwak senan/ anusha/vikraman/dr l kailasam/parvatha vardhini or some historical novel writer to brief the story fifteen chapters, that will do the purpose.