7 Half Tickets To See This 14th November

Nehru envisioned November 14th as the day India celebrates children – the future of our country. Mostly though, Children’s Day is known as the time when kids all over India get to wear ‘colour dress’ to school and watch their teachers dance awkwardly onstage.

Be that as it may (and this is the last time Silverscreen will use this phrase), a day dedicated to children is as good an excuse as any to catch up on some lovely Tamil films.

1) Malli (1998) | Dir: Santhosh Shivan

Starring: P Shwetha, Priya, Janagaraj

Critically acclaimed, this Santhosh Shivan film fetched its lead actress P Shwetha a National Award. Malli followed the adventures of a young girl put to work collecting firewood. The strong-willed Malli finds escape from her dreary life in the stories of Old Monu.

With strong performances from Shwetha and veteran actor Janagaraj, this heartwarming tale of love and innocence is just the thing to chase away those Monday blues.

 

2) Kutty (2001) | Dir: Janaki Vishwanathan

Starring: P Shwetha, Kousalya, Ramesh Arvind, MN Rajam, Vivekh

Another P Shwetha film, this one looked at the dark underbelly of child labour. Just like her Malli, Shwetha’s Kannamma is sent away to work in the city after her much-adored father passes away. Initially, things are rosy. Her new employers treat her with kindness, and Kannamma finds some measure of strength to go on in this new world. When MN Rajam, who plays the mother of Kannamma’s employer, enters the picture though, Kannamma’s world goes haywire. Her life becomes increasingly miserable until one day, she decides to escape.

Director Janaki Vishwanathan’s brutal, no-holds barred film is a cautionary tale about the ills of child labour, and how we must all band together to root it out of the world.

Unfortunately, this film still finds relevance, fifteen years after it was released. According to a recent survey, over 82 Lakh children are put to work in India.

3) Kannathil Muthamittal (2002) | Dir: Mani Ratnam

Starring: PS Keerthana, R Madhavan, Simran, Nandita Das

An adopted girl’s search for identity results in this exquisitely crafted Mani Ratnam film. It is a simple story, simply told, without any melodramatic embellishments. With relatable characters – Amudha (PS Keerthana), Thiruchelvan (Madhavan) and Indira (Simran), the movie explored the larger theme of Sri Lanka’s civil war without tying itself into knots.

The film won National Awards for Editing, Music, Child Actor, Lyrics, Feature Film, Cinematographer and Audiography. It was critically acclaimed, and had gorgeous music by AR Rahman.

Eight very good reasons to go watch this movie yet again.

4) Pasanga | Dir: Pandiraj

Starring – Kishore, Sree Raam, Pandian, Jayaprakash

A simple tale of love and rivalry in childhood, this film marked the debut of director Pandiraj. The movie chronicled the rivalry and eventual love between ‘good boy’ Anbukkarasu (Kishore) and Jeeva Nithyanandam (Sree Raam), the bad-boy son of a school teacher. Caught up in their children’s dramatic rivalry, the two families compete against one another. A surprising incident changes everything, and all’s well after that.

While the film’s plot was rather simple, it was enlivened by the performances from its young cast and the quirky romance between actors Vimal and Vega in the movie. James Vasanthan contributed lovely music to this happy film that should have come with the tag line – ‘Boys Will Be Boys’.

5) Goli Soda | Dir: Vijay Milton

Starring – Kishore, Sree Raam, Pandian

Marketed heavily as the ‘Return of the Pasanga Boys’, this Vijay Milton film pitted the now-adolescent Kishore, Sree Raam and Pandian as the underdogs in a battle against heartless and ruthless men.

Kishore and Sree Raam are a band of orphans who work as daily wage labourers in the Koyambedu market. They quickly latch on to an opportunity to work their own hotel. Things go well until the day they stand up to a much-older thug type who molests a woman in their hotel.

Portions of the film are unwatchable, mostly for its upfront look at the humiliation meted out to these boys at the hands of the bad guys. But, the way these young men fight for what’s right with grit and determination makes this movie a must-watch for all those times you really and badly need a pick-me-up.

6) Poovarasam Pee Pee | Dir: Halitha Shameem

Starring – Gaurav Kalai, Praveen Kishore

Halitha’s debut film – Poovarasam Pee Pee is an atmospheric coming-of-age tale about young boys who are forced to grow up overnight. What starts off as a lazy Indian summer adventure for Venu, Harish and Kapil, suddenly takes a turn for the worse when a crime happens in their sleepy little hamlet. Spurred on by their sense of justice, the boys launch their own investigation into the crime, all the while discovering that the grown-up world is not as shiny as they hoped it would be.

 

 

7) Kaakka Muttai | Dir: Manikandan

Starring – Vignesh, Ramesh, Ishwarya Rajesh

Periya Kaakka Muttai and Chinna Kakka Muttai dream of eating pizza. Their economic situation does not allow for such indulgences, and so the boys do everything they can to make their dream come true. Weaved into this heartwarming tale is a lesson on urban poverty, and how our tendency to brush this issue under the carpet has resulted in dire consequences for the society as a whole.

Manikandan, a former wedding photographer, wrote, directed, and photographed this charming little film that went on to win a National award.