“Ninaithaale Inikkum”

 

One of the genres rarely attempted these days in Tamil movies is the musical.  Film makers perhaps realize that it is tough to make viewers sit through a movie with, say, 10 songs.  Well, I think that it is an unfortunate development.  Maybe due to whatever exposure I've had to English movies, I've become a patient, attentive moviegoer.  I can be patient enough for 2.5 hours to see whether the Director has created an impact (entertaining or substantial, comedy or pathos).  I am sorry to say this but typical Tamil cine goers do not have the best of attention spans.  They demand fast-paced movies where time flies by (one the reasons why high quality films like “Anbe Sivam” and “Rhythm” fail commercially). Even when love stories were the in thing (after that unforgettable love story--Kaadhal Koattai), filmmakers never ventured into musicals as such. 

 

  "Ninaithaale Inikkum," (1979) one of Balachander's more light-hearted efforts, may be an ordinary movie.  But it is a musical delight.  It has one of the best soundtracks by the legendary M.S. Viswanathan, which, coupled with great lyrics (by Kannadasan) and sweet voices (SPB's voice--do I need to add anything?).  I could say that if you were to fast-forward the songs in this movie, you might as well skip it.  Lets find out why.

 

The story is wafer-thin.  It is about a music troupe (led by Kamal, the singer; Rajni the guitarist; Rajappa the drums player and one more guy) that goes to Singapore for a series of concerts, and how the singer falls in love with a mysterious, eccentric girl played by Jayapradha. 

 

“Ninaithaale Inikkum” is an absolute pleasure as long as it switches effortlessly between romance, songs and comedy.  There is no great story or plot twists involved.  Its just one helluva jolly ride in the first half (I have an uncanny feeling that K.B. and his protégés Kamal and Rajni did this as sort of a lark after serious efforts like “Thappu Thaalangall” and “Avargall”).  Kamal’s charisma in the romance portions, Jayapradha’s slightly nutty character, Rajni’s fantastic timing in the comedy portions, and MSV’s tunes all combine to make it very entertaining for the viewer.  But in the second half, K. B. throws in totally out of place subplots involving cancer, drugs and a villain for reasons only known to him.  That drags down the movie’s pace as well as entertainment value.  The effect is worse because there is no storyline as such to bank on.  This would’ve been a perfect, youthful entertainer had KB stuck to the caper routine instead of this trademark cancer routine!

 

But in spite of the seriously flawed portions in the second half, what makes this movie enjoyable is MSV’s tunes.  He starts off with a bang, with “Engeyum Eppodhum,” rendered enthusiastically by SPB.  Kamal’s graceful movements and Rajni’s antics make this great fun.  “Aagayathil Boogambam” is a short n’ sweet song that kicks off the Singapore trip (later in the second half, MSV scores a perfect companion piece to signal the end of the trip).  “Siva Sambo,” sung by MSV and performed by Rajni (in the movie) doesn’t have a great tune but MSV’s not-so-sweet voice actually suits Rajni perfectly!  The latter’s enthusiasm and Kannadasan’s lyrics form a nice combination.  “Yaavum Oorey” and “Aanandha Thaandavamo” are playful numbers, especially the latter being rendered by L.R. Eeswari with unfettered energy.  “Bharathi Kannammaa” and “Kaathirundhen Kaathirundhen” are probably the most melodious of the lot.  SPB’s voice perfectly captures the moods of the Kamal character on both occasions.  But the best song of this movie is “Namma Ooru Singaari.”  This tune resembles “Seno Rita” (from “Johnny”) for its overall mood (rapture) and as in the other tune, projects the ecstasy of the hero in an unforgettable way.  This is a fast-paced tune, wonderfully delivered by SPB, and picturized with a lot of zest (There is a hilarious moment when Rajni realizes that he is actually out of lip sync with the singer!!).  Kannadasan’s lyrics for all the above-mentioned songs stray more towards fun and charm rather than great substance (as is his wont).  Nevertheless the bard rises to the occasion with several cute, endearing lines—my favorite is a line from the song “Kaathirundhen” where Kamal is awaiting the arrival of his girlfriend at the Jurong Bird Park, with only the birds to give him company.  He tells them, “Kaaka vechchu kanni vandhaal, kaadhal undaa kaettu sollu.”  Salute!

 

Apart from the songs, the movie’s other strength is its comedy.  Rajni, Rajappa and the keyboard player in the troupe create a memorable comedy track.  These light portions are seamlessly interwoven into the story.  Rajni’s kleptomania leads to several memorable moments—his ‘exchanging’ of boarding cards at the airport, his wide-eyed expression at a calculator (belonging to one of the passengers in the plane!), his crush on Geetha that leads to stealing her chain, and the sunglasses that he steals from Jayapradha’s relative are all places where Rajni exhibits tremendous knack and timing for comedy.  His encounters with Geetha, Jayasudha and Saratbabu (all three playing cameos) are all hilarious mainly due to the way he delivers the lines—watch his unabashed admiration of Jayasudha in her apartment and his dismay when he later learns that she is a madcap.  I’ve always felt that comedy is one of Rajni’s strong points and he proves it here.

 

With Rajni stealing the show, even Kamal comes a distant second.  Kamal usually adds some of his trademark touches, mannerisms and quirks to make humans out of 1-Dimensional or 2-Dimensional characters but here the actor is definitely not in peak form.  While he is captivating in the romance portions, I still got the feeling that there wasn’t enough meat in the part (KB should take equal blame for the poor characterization).  But nevertheless, he is all poise and grace in the song sequences.  Jayapradha looks cute and comes up with a good performance as the physically and mentally tormented girl.  Rajappa is great as the supporting comedian and shares good chemistry with Rajni.

 

Photography is sub par.  The sights in Singapore maybe very pretty to look at, but from a technical stand point (and this may have something to do with the limited resources available twenty four years back) there isn’t anything exceptional.  The visuals are hazy and the lighting sometimes is so garish, especially in the song sequences, that it hurts the eye.

 

In the overall analysis, this turns out to be slight and flawed and may not go down in the annals of Tamil cinema as a classic but still has its own charm and energy to be recommended to any movie fan interested in checking out a rare musical.  For me, it is a B+ and a slightly enthusiastic thumbs up!