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Evano Oruvan: Not a stranger, but one among us
Movie: Evano Oruvan (Tamil)
Director: Nishikant Kamat
Cinematographer: Sanjay Jadhav
Editor: Amit Pawar
Music: G.V. Prakash
Producer: Abbas-Mustan (Burmawalla Brothers)
Co-Producer: Leukos Films
Cast: Madhavan, Sangeetha, Seeman, Nishikant (cameo)
It is more than three weeks since I saw ‘Evano Oruvan’, but its images still hold me in a vice-like grip. They keep running in my mind; I keep seeing the movie over and over again in my head, starting from the first frame till the end.
I have never been so affected by a movie ever before. Some movies have surprised me, some have confounded me, and some made me go ‘wow’. Some movies went over my head too. But never has one movie dominated my thoughts like this.
Why? Is it because like the protagonist of the movie, Sridhar Vasudevan, I also live in Nanganallur, a suburb of Chennai? Is it because like him I also take the same crowded trains to work every day? Or is it because like him I also crave for a window seat to get some respite from the searing heat? Yes, and no.
The movie affected me on a personal level because I could identify with the protagonist’s angst. But more than this, it set me off thinking: the incidents portrayed could happen to anyone. You, me, anyone. The problems Madhavan’s character faces in the movie are right out of the average Chennaiites life: the daily fights for drinking water, the donation system in schools, garbage outside homes and in public places, the corrupt police, etc.
How many times I have wanted to pick up a stick and teach a lesson to the telephone lineman, who keeps asking for money to do the work he is paid to do? And the corporation garbage collectors, the autorickshaw drivers, the government officer who demanded money to issue a death certificate, and many such people. But the only difference is that I could control my anger, and channelise my energies into adopting a non-violent path. Yes, picking up a stick would definitely have provided me instant gratification, but then I attach equal importance to the means as well as the ends.
(While I was writing this, I was reminded of a poem written by Indira Gandhi. It was published in a magazine after her assassination, and I memorised the lines for use in some school essay. But now I understand the real import of the lines. They are:
“Mourn not the dead
But rather mourn the apathetic throng
The cowed and the meek
Who see the world’s greatest wrong
But dare not speak.”)
Some people rise up in protest at the injustices that happen around them, while others just curse their fate and move on. But in “Evano Oruvan,” bank employee Sridhar Vasudevan decides to do something about correcting the wrongs, after being berated by his wife (played ably by Sangeetha) about his unrealistic principles. Actually, he does not decide to do something … something snaps inside him and he becomes a vigilante trying to change society. He first uses a cricket bat he takes from a boy; after some time he grabs a knife, and later a gun from a drug dealer.
The police are on his trial, and the inspector (played by Seeman) is in awe of him for doing a job the police should be doing. But then the police brass and the administration are running scared, and they decide to make an example of him.
Maddy has worked hard on his role, and it shows. Right from his indignation at his wife’s unreasonable expectations to his angry walk, he gets all the expressions right. Special mention must be made of a couple of scenes — his soliloquy, where he tells god that he has had enough of his life, and wants to close his account; also the scene where he tells the cop that he always wished for a window seat on the train to catch the breeze.
Nishikant does a terrific job transplanting the Mumbai milieu to Chennai, and that too without knowing a word of Tamil. Agreed, he had help from Maddy (who wrote the dialogues) and Seeman (a successful director by himself, who supervised the dialogues), and also Sanjay Jadhav and Amit Pawar, who had worked on the original “Dombivli Fast.”
And I guess, the audience at the special show, where I saw the movie, reciprocated my feelings. As the movie ended, there was no applause. Only shocked, grim people, who I am sure were thinking about the movie. Thinking Sridhar Vasudevan is not “Evano Oruvan” but “namakkul oruvan” (Not a stranger, but one among us).
18 Responses to “Evano Oruvan: Not a stranger, but one among us”
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Venky, Thanks for always putting the Tamil scene here on the PFC Map. I wish there were more Tamil movie enthusiasts here. Guess everyone here is so obsessed with Bollywood or their own world of movies…
Happy for Nishi… and I hope this brings that punch back in Tamil cinema!
First thing I am going to do when I get back to Mumbai is to watch Dombivli Fast. I have neglected it far too long and now there won’t be any excuses.
Oz..the only problem that regional cinema is not being spoken about so much is the lack of viewing opportunities. Imagine, in Pune I have to depend on a Hot Chips merchant for my quota of Tamil / Malayalam or Telegu movies through VCDs. This is the pits!!!!
Neel, Same situation here. Living down south and depending on family and friends in pune or mumbai to give me the low down on marathi films and theatre. Luckily a local wholesale dvd store does stock marathi dvds. Unfortunately not many…as for Dvd libraries :((
Rarely do I get to travel. And it was on one such rare occasion that I happened to catch Dombivili Fast, in a nearly empty mumbai theater.
It did not matter that local trains are not a part of my life…what hit me was the fact that the cricket bat could easily have been swung by my hands..or my neighbour’s..or, for that matter, the harried bus conductor during rush hour…
Why it doesnt swing? because even today a Hyderabadi wisecrack will defuse the situ and lower all raised tempers and BPs :d:d touchwood
Waiting to see this version….
Oz “I wish there were more Tamil movie enthusiasts here”
i and tani shouted from the roof tops promoting paruthiveeran on PFC….tani wrote a fantastic review of tamil ma…saw the film and was blown…also mentioned the current happennings of the tamil scene here….Oram Poo..the film to watch out for….Bala was discussed here….in a week then someone wrote on Gautam Menon..then mani ratnam….infact it’s malayalam that needs more space here….some great films have been made there…be assure of tamil film fanatics….just that the tamil screaming dies out fast out here…the fact that it’s been promoted time and gain here and still no one notices
I have been trying to lay my hands on Paruthiveeran and Veyil for a long long time now but alas I am limited few snippets in all those tv channels. Evano Oruvan has even more personal premise as I lived and studied in the same Nanganallur and took the train from Pazavantangal for my classes at one point of time and later for work. Then I am not sure if it is ethical to download the torrent versions from the web , further heartburns.
hey me too tryin my best to see PARUTHIVEERAN and VEYIL !!
i hope they release it soon on DVD!!
hey guys most of the MANI RATNAM and KAMAL classics available on Moserbaer!!
but does ne one here know where i wud get tamil DVD’s of moserbaer in mumbai???? :(
i somehow managed the malayalam DVD’s !!!
@vasan…
paruthiveeran i finally got to see…
and felt it was commendable albeit faar tooo overhyped..
and mallu philum….
we had 3 posts on mallu phillums this month….
so it aint that bad…
also (as far as i know) not too much to write home about these days in malayalam…
does anyone know if there are online dvd libraries to get these movies in the US? I can’t find any of these tamizh movies. malayalam is impossible to come by and i have never watched marathi.
it may have been mentioned before but similarities to Falling Down?
hey i have heard of this [EDITED
dabba dvds tho door ki baaat hai…
consider urself lucky if u get a good print at ur grocers….
[hg// RTFM!!
@george
i think Landmark at infiniti mall, versova has a good collection of ‘moser baer’ tamil dvds. you can always call and find out.
@ DPac -
i know. i used to visit the patel grocers a few years ago, and i was so fed up with the pirated versions, that i stopped watching indian movies for a while. it’s better now, but they need to put out more DVDs of regional cinema. there’s money to be made!
dabba, you gotta be kidding me man.. don’t tell me you haven’t heard of italkies.com yet! i’ve been with them for almost 3yrs and i love their variety with hindi and tamil movies. sign up with them now!
itching to watch this one.. it didn’t release in DC, so will have to wait for dvd.. but dombivli fast is one of the few movies that left me teary-eyed, so i won’t be surprised if evano does the same to me
@# vinayhkamath
thanks dude !! will check it out !!!
@ striker -
this is why i’m here at PFC. for info like that. i got another email too giving me a legit website. will check these guys out.
@Dabba
Italkies lele yaar….they have all original copies and their collection is awesome…you wont regret it….There are 5 or 6 PFCites presently using Italkies…..