"Aan Paavam"

             “Nothing is more tragic than a wasted talent,” said Robert De Niro in his movie, "A Bronx Tale."  If you regard that as a truism, then Pandiarajan is one of the biggest tragedies of Tamil cinema.  In 1985, when he was just in his twenties, he wrote, directed and starred in this clean, side-splittingly funny, warm, sweet comedy.  In the 18 years after this movie, only "KathaaNayagan" (in which he co-starred with S.Ve.Shekar) can come anywhere near the peak he scaled with "Aan Paavam."  Most of his other movies have been vulgar, unfunny, cheesy and boring. 

            "Aan Paavam" gave testimony to his abilities in comic timing, finding the right tone, penning funny dialogues, and above all, to craft a feature that would have people grinning continuously and leaving the theater with a warm, almost goofy feeling!  This is one movie that is worth having in your DVD/VHS collection.  Rest assured it'll blow away your blues.

 

“Aan Paavam” is the simple story of two brothers (played by Pandiyan and Pandiarajan) who are the sons of a well-respected man in the village (V.K.R.).  Pandiyan goes to a nearby village to meet a girl (Revathi) as part of an arranged marriage.  But due to a silly confusion he ends up going to another girl’s (Seetha’s) house!  He falls for Seetha but the parents of the girl have other ideas and so does Pandiyan’s father V.K.R.  The second half has a fair amount of screen time dedicated to the Revathi character, a chirpy young girl who means well for everyone.  The various confusions, heartburns, trials and tribulations of the characters are told with heavy doses of humor coupled with a touch of sweetness and sentiments at several places.

             Pandiarajan gets most, if not all the credit, for making this movie an unqualified success.  Though his script gleams like a gem, what makes the movie funnier is the never-ending list of sight gags and the precision of comic timing.  Pandiarajan's shtick where he dresses up as a woman to help Pandiyan and the long shot that shows him in a half-saree struggling to tread the waters is incredibly funny.  The sequence in which Thavakkalai (of "Mundhaanai Mudichu" fame) is given special treatment [its impossible to describe in English, how the vessel gets stuck around his face!] is laugh-out-loud funny just for the visual effect (of course, the lines are rib-tickling too).  Comic timing is one of the movie's other strengths.  Janakaraj's scenes are the best examples of this.  It is the perfect timing of some of his reaction shots (look at the way he reacts when Usilamani refers to V.K.R. as "Periya Mudhalaali") that increase the comic brilliance of the scenes. 

            The comic episodes in this movie are almost legendary but what surprised me in a recent viewing is the Director's ability to craft characters that are easy to empathize with.  The second half has some serious parts with the suicide attempt of the Revathi character and he brings the portions to life with a strong script and screenplay.  The scenes in the hospital are extremely well done.  The scenes increase our respect and empathy for all the characters involved.  Look at the way V.K.R apologizes to Revathi for his son's mistake and you'll see what I mean.

             Pandiyan gets first billing but is essentially a supporting character.  He plays the straight man and is just above average in both the romance and the comic portions.  Ditto for Seetha (making her debut) who looks sweet and is earnest but never too convincing.  It is the quartet of Pandiarajan, V.K.R., "Kollangudi" Karuppaayi (playing VKR’s mother) and Janakaraj that keep the humor level consistently high.  All four are hilarious in virtually every scene they appear in.  Pandiarajan, the director, never tries to steal the attention and its amazing the way he gives great lines to each actor in a way that is totally appropriate for the situation.  Late. V.K.R. with his loud, unique style of dialogue delivery had the talent to appear irritated and evoke laughs at the same time.  Pandiarajan is the motormouth, spurting inane, insanely humorous lines (A sample--He tells his grandmother that he'll marry her!  When his Dad chides him, he replies, "You married my Mom.  Why cant I marry yours?!" --this is probably the funniest line in the movie and like the "Vaazhapazham" joke, has never aged).  "Kollangudi" Karuppayi with her short-and-not-so-sweet songs about every issue on the planet manages to provide able support to the director and V.K.R.  Janakaraj (at his peak, in the 80's) is great fun as the unsuccessful restaurant owner.  The different ways in which he is driven to the brink of insanity are strokes of comic genius.  Among the vignettes, the "laddu" encounter is the best.  It is a cleverly done piece with a surfeit of laughs.  There is a certain rhythmic vividness in the “Laddukku Dhuddu”/ “Dhuddukku Laddu” exchange between Janakaraj and the kid. Last but not the least, Revathi, in an extended cameo, is charming and takes care of the serious portions with her usual confidence.

Illayaraja's bgm is instrumental in adding effect to the romance portions as well as the comic sketches.  Listen to the tune during the engagement scene (which plays repeatedly during the Seetha-Pandiyan portions).  It perfectly expresses the shyness of both parties perfectly.  Among the songs, "Kaadhal Kasakkudhaiyyaa," "Enna Paada Sollaathey" and "Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa" are all catchy and fit the mood very well, esp. the first one which has some amusing lyrics about failure in love and how cinema is the ultimate source of entertainment for people.