Dasavathaaram -A brilliant portrayal of chaos theory
This post is sponsored byiView Author : V.Bharadwaj
Email : vinaybar@hotmail.com
Before I start talking about the film, first a few things about Chaos theory:
Basically a chaotic system is one wherein long term predictions are impossible. Like for example,if I push a car, I know that it is going to move and it will continue to do so if I go on pushing it on and on. However,in a chaotic system,this situation cannot be predicted over a long period of time. Weather for example is a chaotic system. No matter how good your instruments are,you simply cannot predict the weather with 100% accuracy over a long term basis and forecast it. This is put forward by the butterfly effect which is the most important component of a chaotic system. Basically,small perturbations results in amplifications which completely destroys the original nature of the system and makes prediction impossible. If a butterfly flaps its wings in Africa,it could result in a cyclone in USA.(Mark the word COULD)A highly dumbed down explanation of the butterfly effect is in the film Anniyan,where Vikram’s sister dies because a liquor shop owner sells liquor on a dry day.
Now, the question arises: how does the film incorporate this? Basically, the movie talk about 9 characters who though unrelated to the principal character (Govind) as such, drive his destiny. Without Bush, the plane would have been turned back; if Kalfullah wouldn’t have met Govind, Fletcher would have killed him very quickly. Each and every character drives Govind to the seashore, which when the tsunami strikes, is the right place to be, because the high content of salt in the roaring waves destroys the virus. This is the essence of chaos theory where totally unrelated incidents actually drive the world and affect one and all.
Now the question arises: how does Rangarajan Nambi fit into this puzzle? When the idol is submerged into the sea, the orderly nature of the sea and the sea bed is disturbed by a small amount. As per the butterfly effect stated above, the succeeding effects get amplified and ultimately result in a tsunami 800 years later. Kamal has applied chaos theory to plate tectonics which according to modern science is still under some debate.
So does the movie preach atheism or theism? Well, the answer is neither. It simply tells that humans drive the destiny of the world. You may take it as you want to. The theists among us would say that the 12th century incident was engineered by God, to save the world from the deadly virus. The atheists and rationalists will say that separate incidents amplified and modified by chaos theory resulted in the tsunami which was both good and bad. All I can say is that both points of view are correct and I am sure your respective beliefs were reinforced at the end of the film. In my opinion, this is the brilliance of Kamal Haasan, the screenplay writer.
The movie also talks about Karma theory and the cycle of life and birth. One can consider Govind as a reincarnation of Nambi who dies failing to protect his ideology and is redeemed in the next birth by standing for what he thinks is right. Kothai and Nambi are separated at the idol and in the end of the movie the two are united at the same idol as Govind and Aandal.
Dasavatharam is not just an ordinary film. For the receptive people in the audience, it showcases the ideologies and beliefs that most human beings follow in their lives. Truly, a masterpiece.
Reference:
1-Chaos by James Gleick(wonderful book on chaos)
Movies, News & Gossip, PROJEKT iVIEW, Thoughts , chaos theory, Dasavathaaram, kamal haasan, Rangarajan Nambi
20 Responses to “Dasavathaaram -A brilliant portrayal of chaos theory”
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nice writeup.
However there are flaws in the argument.
Chaos, the very meaning of the word implies ‘Unpredictability’. Unpredictability that can and might turn out to be a pattern if one lives long enough to collect data of every little dust and pebble that is dropped in the pond of time and space. This is the reason why a 12th century sub plot had to be introduced and revisited in the climax.
The whole idea of the film is to say from time immemorial, things have stayed, well unpredictable and it indicates an inherent instability in the system which is further extended as an argument to support the lack of any ‘intelligent design’. Lack of intelligent design – according to the premise of the movie – points to lack of a creator (who would as a creator a system that is so chaotic) and thereby a clever argument for atheism is constructed which is summed up by govind in his words “I wish there was a GOD” meaning there isn’t any.
have no qualms about the script which says so, however the movie has been filmed in such a grotesque way, that I cannot even revisit it to understand its implied and overt meanings. Probably when Kamal chooses to release this script as a book, I will pick it up and give a read.
Correction on the words in parenthesis..
(who would, as a creator create something so chaotic – a pandora’s box)
brilliant writeup.
As Jai put it, the script would have looked great on paper but the movie got commercialised and the main intent gets lost making it unavailable for a normal movie go-er to grasp.
Hi,
Haven’t seen the movie but I’ve been told it touches upon the chaos theory in a “subtle way” (which probably means the director clubbed a masala movie with a philosophical/scientific concept.
Am looking forward to it though. By the way, does the movie make any references to causality as well? Although causality and chaos theory on face value look incompatible with each other…causality is the foundation on which chaos theory is built….right??
Good..I see that many people at least agree that there IS a script in the first place..the initial argument was there was no script!!
Bharadwaj..good post!! But be careful..people who have bias against the film will hit you below the belt by labelling you as a pseudo intellectual!!
As far as the way film is shot, I think it is the vision of the director, and Kamal despite knowing that the film will not get a class look like Apoorva Sahodharargal, has purposely chosen KS Ravikumar, because in Indian film Industry, I do not think there is a better manager/ administrator(I say manager/ administrator, not a director) today to handle the logistics of a film of this magnitude.
Bharadwaj…Thanks for the post man..Your post has left me thinking about the film. In PFC, people passionately argue but the common thread is love for cinema.
I have watched Dasavatharam thrice so far and have thought about it a great deal but it did not strike me that Govind and Aandal could be rebirths. So stupid of me..Of course thats the reason why Asin has a double role in the first place, to make room for such an interpretation.
The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that there are many more layers which have not been peeled yet.
Brilliant article with such simple english, without being showy. I think it is one of the best posts that I have read in PFC so far. Hearty congrats!!
There is nothing wrong in being a pseudo intellectual. That is the net best thing you can do if you are not an intellectual!!
Correction………Chaos is not “randomness/unpredictability” it is the predictability behind unpredictability or the pattern in randomness……..sounds confusing……..read about fractals and the book by james gleick.
@vineet
True – predictability in unpredictability is exactly what i am alluding to when I bring in the question of the length of time slice required to reasonably understand the pattern. The events in the movie begin with the sea and culminate in the seashore with an event from the ocean – Is there a causal relationship from what we have seen in the movie – To say that there is would be subversion of Chaos theory. So let us simply state that there could be or there might be. Going even a step further would walk right into the alley of GOD wreaking vengeance on the society that mutely watched as a devotee got insulted and drowned. Cleverly movie does not tread even one step there. Offcourse none of the characters in the movie could have known anything about Rangaraja nambi or that the statue that washed ashore is the original one including Govind to make that conclusion – hence it is left open for the viewers to interpret whatever makes them feel comfortable.
Thanks guys for your kind comments.As someone mentioned,this movie touches chaos theory subtly and is packaged as an entertainer.
Again one more thing,my post is a very simplified explanation of chaos.It isn’t that simple(I am a physics student and I know how difficult it is to work with Duffing’s equation,Lyapunov exponents and all).People who would like more info please mail me and I would be more than happy to explain it to you.
Bharadwaj, its a nicely written article. I never knew the movie has so many layers within. I thought Bush and Kalifulla are the weakest of the 10 avatars but your explanation on their significance has educated me. Kamal’s screenplay has succeeded in satisfying a normal movie goer with its commercial contents and the intellectuals with such a brilliant portrayal of chaos theory. Its time to watch the movie again. Looks like it is a major success in the box office too.
Neat write up! The most interesting piece on ‘Dasavataram’ so far!
This is definitely one of the best reviews I have read “for” the movie. That said the theory does take a tail-spin when you take into account the narrator’s (Govind) knowledge of Nambi. He seems to know exactly “which” butterfly flapped, “when” it flapped and “where” it flapped – all contrary to the already simplistic “butterfly effect” to explain Chaos theory.
Simply put, though we know there was a cyclone we will never be able to say with confidence which butterfly flapped its wings, when it flapped and where it flapped.
Had the story not been laid out by a narrator (who also happens to be a character) in Dasavtharam – then your theory would have worked !
Dear PK,again, no one has claimed that Govind knew everything about Nambi.We as people outside the system portrayed in the film know that the idol was one of the causes of the Tsunami(again it is not THE cause.That would be too dumb won’t it).Govind simply talks about Nambi to illustrate the significance of the passion for religion and before starting his tale on the ‘Uchchavar’ he talks about the ‘Moolavar.’
Again guys,the tsunami was not caused JUST by the statue.But,it does play a contributing role.
Bharth,
an excllent write up.
Dasavatharam is a gr8 movie!! Kamalhassan has done an amazing job……my friend Rakesh loved that movie.
Dasavatharam is an amazing movie. My friend Rakesh loved it
Wow!!!I never knew all these.What a complex movie dasavathaaram is turning out to be!I LOVE IT!!
Thanks Bharadwaj
hey dat was a gud one..wen u spk of the re-incarnation part..theres one more thing..wen we keenly observe,we see that both ‘nambi’ and ‘govind’get hurt in the forehead(centre)i think it was intended to be so..that also shows a link bet ‘nambi’ and ‘govind’:-)
Excellent write-up! I want to watch the movie again when it hits the DVD/Blu-ray.
But I strongly encourage all of you up North (who were impressed with this write-up) to catch it’s Hindi version, Dashavatar, this Friday (April 17th). Trust me, it’s an experience you’ll never regret.