Mounam Pesiyadhey

Grade: An enthusiastic A!

 

It is hard not to resort to hyperbole while reviewing a fresh, cute and charming movie like “Mounam Pesiyadhey.”  Debutant Director Ameer makes his bow in fine style with the confidence of a veteran, in presenting this simple yet well-told tale of a person who doesn’t believe in love but experiences a 180-degree turn with the advent of a new girl in his life.  There are some logical flaws (especially with the behavior of the Trisha character) but with a great script, splendid performances and catchy music, this is a delightful treat for all ages, esp. youngsters.

 

One of the things I appreciate about new directors these days is the strikingly natural and realistic way in which they portray friendship and love (“Five Star” for instance).  Such is the case here with the Director.  Right from the beginning, he adopts a unique approach in placing slightly peculiar characters in situations where there is a definite aura of realism.  The friendship of Gautam (Surya) and Kannan (Nandha) is established in a very nice, practical way.  The way Gautam ridicules Kannan’s notions of love and the way Kannan comes back to Gautam after very tiff, are testimonies to the fact that the Director portrays friendships as they are in real life.  Kannan not letting down his friend Gautam in front of his girlfriend Maha (played by debutant Maha) is a great touch and so is the way Kannan’s father apologizes to Gautam for his harsh words.  There are several cute little touches that are nothing short of endearing—my favorite is the scene where Gautam, the day after he insults Kannan in front of Maha, goes to Kannan’s office and apologizes to him.  After the two talk for a couple of minutes, Gautam asks Kannan to get off of work in the afternoon but Kannan apologetically says, “Oh, I already planned to go out with Maha.”  Surya’s reaction when he says “poay thola” and that sarcastic smile are top class.  The movie is full of such innovative, plausible situations replete with nice directorial touches like this.

 

The first half that shows Gautam as a non-believer in love culminates in him getting the impression that Sandhya (Trisha) is in love with him.  Surya is an absolute delight in the scenes following the intermission.  Shyness, uncertainty, frustration and unbridled joy of having fallen in love, are all conveyed by him in a superb way.  The twist that occurs with the Sandhya character is presented well though in retrospect, is unconvincing.  But what stands out is the way Gautam handles the bitter reality.  Sans bouts of shouting or loudly expressing feelings of betrayal, the way Gautam “calmly analyzes” (two words rarely associated with movie heroes!) the situations that led to his belief, is very different from the average tamil movie scenario.  The subplot involving Kannan getting beaten up by some goons paves the way for a great scene where Gautam tells Kannan’s father that his friendship is more important than the latter’s affection for his son.  The movie concludes with a pleasant surprise in the climax-- the way the director shifts the tone from serious to light-hearted following the dialogue “Enna Yaaro Follow Panraanga” is delightful.  Ameer, kalakkittinga!

 

The performances are the reason why this movie works so well.  Every member of the cast deserves mention.  Surya turns in the best performance of his career.  This movie shows that he is a ‘complete’ actor.  He expresses a gamut of emotions with effortless ease, fights with undeniable intensity and ferocity, and dances with gay abandon.  His dance steps are spell binding in that sequence in the room.  Among the new faces, Nandha is the best with a casual performance (the way he introduces himself as “I am Kannan…Bachelor” to every girl and in the end, the way he says, “I am Kannan…Aana, enakku ippo kalyanam aaydichu” is hilarious).  Maha (looks a lot like Jyothika) underplays her part to the needs of the screenplay and performs well in the heavier scenes too.  Trisha is the only disappointment (more so because her character is the least endearing and interesting of the lot) with a wooden face that fails to show any emotion.

 

YuvanShankarRaja comes up with an awesome soundtrack with some foot-tapping, youthful numbers—“Nanbane,” “Oh Saki,” “Aadatha Aaattamellam” and “Arubathu Aayidichu” all sound great. 

 

On the whole, this is a sure-fire winner.