"Avvai Shanmugi"

 

I've been writing movie reviews for the past couple of years and I feel that comedy is one genre that is tough to write about.  Yeah, its easy to say that the material was funny but the job of a reviewer is not to make pithy statements; rather he/she should be able to provide a certain degree of insight into a movie's success or failure.  It is with this issue in mind that I embark on writing about the first full-length comedy in my favorites section.

 

"Avvai Shanmugi" is a hilarious full-length comedy that was one of the grand successes of the Kamal-Crazy Mohan combination (the pair has worked in 10 movies till now—this movie, "Aboorva Sahodharargall" and the first half of "Kadhala Kadhala" being my favorites).  The two of them take the story and structure of "Mrs. Doubtfire" (Robin Williams) and adapt it to the Tamil milieu.  They succeed in this task admirably creating a zany comedy that never fails to keep the comic momentum going, and has the audience in splits for the most part.

 

Pandiyan (Kamal Hassan) is a dance assistant, who lives a lower middle class life with his wife Janaki (Meena, the daughter of a rich industrialist played by Gemini Ganesan) and daughter.  He struggles to make both ends meet, yet finds happiness in spending time with the apple of his eye--his daughter.  Irreconcilable differences cause Janaki to get a divorce from Pandiyan.  She returns to her father's place with their daughter, thus shutting out the sole source of joy for Pandiyan.  But Pandiyan finds light at the end of the tunnel and with the help of his friend (a make-up man, played by Nagesh), he decides to masquerade as an old lady (under the name Avvai Shanmugi) and work at Gemini Ganesan's place as a maid!  This would enable him to be in close (sometimes really close!) quarters with his daughter and wife.  The movie is about the hilarious consequences of this situation, and how (s)he becomes the center of attention for not just his wife and daughter but also for his father-in-law Gemini Ganesan and his house owner Mani Vannan (both of whom think of Shanmugi Maami as a reincarnation of their dead wives!).

 

One of the biggest strengths of the movie's script (by Crazy Mohan) is to find something funny in every situation, irrespective of the nature of the situation.  The courtroom sequence is one such example.  Neelu's stoic reactions to the silly acts of Delhi Ganesh and Co. are great fun.  Of course, with the arrival of the Shanmugi character the situations themselves are hilarious in nature.  Impersonation has been a staple part of Mohan’s scripts and he uses that to maximum effect here, to garner laughs.  Instead of stopping with the basic idea of ‘one person in two places,’ Mohan extracts unbelievable mileage out of this—Kamal has to tackle Gemini Ganesan and ManiVannan who nurse a unique kind of ‘love’ for Shanmugi; Delhi Ganesh who is out to expose Shanmugi’s true colors; and Heera who loves Pandiyan!

 

But in spite of the impersonation episodes, the best parts of the movie are the ones involving Gemini Ganesan and ManiVannan’s attempts to woo the old lady Shanmugi.  This leads to several side-splittingly funny encounters.  The best scene in the movie is the one where Gemini proposes to Shanmugi.  Kamal’s flabbergasted reactions and his silly excuses are rib tickling and its really funny the way the screen turns into black and white and we hear the “Kaadhalile Thoalviutraar” song (an in-joke about Gemini’s lovelorn image of yesteryears).  ManiVannan too, has several amusing comic vignettes, the way he shyly talks about Shanmugi Maami to Pandiyan (with a rose in his hand!) being the pick of the lot.

 

In addition to a great script, the movie’s other highlight is the casting.  Right from Delhi Ganesh as the talkative assistant, Nagesh as the make-up man, Nasser as the ‘dumb’ (literally and figuratively!) cook, the movie’s supporting cast is memorable, the parts fitting the performers like a glove.  Delhi Ganesh is the best among the secondary characters with his impeccable timing and patented dialogue delivery.  Among the seniors, Gemini Ganesan and ManiVannan are so good that they steal the show from Kamal at several places.  Meena is pretty good in the comedy portions but fails to sizzle way Simran did in “PKS.”  She is more comfortable in the serious parts where she makes her domestic problems believable.  The kid who plays Kamal’s daughter is incredibly cute and gives a turn free of artifice, be it sobbing in the courtroom sequence or laughing at Shanmugi’s antics.

 

            Kamal at the center of all the action is also the center of attraction.  The painstakingly done make-up adds gloss to his portrayal.  He does the Shanmugi Maami role with élan, effectively capturing the subtle nuances and mannerisms of an old lady.  Though there are some crude jokes (Nasser’s dumbfounded reaction to Kamal’s stripping is vulgar but laugh out loud funny nevertheless), the proceedings are pretty clean most of the time. 

 

One of the subtle things you notice after repeated viewings is how effective the comic timing in this movie is.  In the scenes where Kamal has to deal with Delhi Ganesh trying to reveal his identity to Gemini Ganesan, it is the timing and editing that contribute to the hilarity.  Kamal’s reaction to Gemini’s punch line (“The ball is in your court”) is one such instance.

 

Technically, the movie is above average.  Deva comes up with the catchy “Rukku Rukku” and the melodious “Kadhala Kadhala.”  “Velai Velai” scores with its fun, inventive, fast-paced picturization.  Cinematography is so-so, even the helicopter shots in the “Kadhala Kadhala” song not being particularly eye pleasing (P.C. Sreeram’s top angle shots in “Kadhalar Dhinam” and Ashok Kumar’s work in “Jeans” were much classier). 

 

So, in the overall analysis, though by no means flawless, this is a standing example of riotous fun created by the Kamal-Crazy Mohan pair.