Surya- Underrated and Brilliant
When i saw his initial movies, my opinion was just another star kid trying his luck in Tamil movies. Nandha made me notice him for the first time as a good actor, Kaakha Kaakha increased my admiration for him, and the way he managed to hold his own against Vikram’s fiery brilliance in Pithamagan made me like him even more. Movies like Aayitha Ezhuthu, Perazhagan made me like his acting even more, but with Vaaranam Ayiram, i have become his total hard core fan.
The actor I am referring to is Surya Sivakumar aka Surya, son of popular actor , and the person who played the lead in the Tamil original of Aamir’s Ghajini. And yes by the way, he also played Ajay Devgan’s role in Aayitha Ezhuthu, the Tamil version of Yuva. Surya does not have the rugged masculinity of an Ajith or Vikram, nor does he have that charismatic mass appeal of a Vijay. In fact in an industry where hero worship is the norm, and actors indulging in self praise on screen is mandator, Surya, stands out, bringing in a kind of restraint and understated brilliance to his roles. Unlike his other counterparts, Surya does not have a specific image, and that makes him effortlessly switch between tough guy roles in Kaakha Kaakha to tragi comic roles like Pithamagan and more emotional roles like Vaaranam Ayiram.
But for a major part of his career, Surya was stuck to acting in down and out mediocre movies. He made his debut in 1997, co starring with Vijay, Kausalya and Simran in Nerruku Ner, directed by Vasanth and produced by Maniratnam. Though Vasanth, had given some great movies like Keladi Kanmani, Aasai, Nerukku Ner was a standard potboiler, about two feuding youngsters who join hands later. The movie however was a commercial success. After success of Nerukku Ner, Surya appeared in a couple of movies Poovellam Kettupar( where he first co starred with Jyothika), Uyrilie Kalatanthu, Friends( again co starring with Vijay). Friends was a success at the box office, but Surya was still not as big a star as Vijay, Ajith or Vikram.
It was Bala again who turned around Surya’s career with Nandha in 2001. Incidentally in 2000, it was Bala’s Sethu, the Tamil original of Tere Naam, that went on to become a sleeper hit, and most important, it gave Vikram a new lease of life, turning him from a B actor to a top star and one of the best actors. Nandha would do for Surya, what Sethu did for Vikram. Surya plays the titular role, of a youth who kills his philandering, abusive father, and is sent to a juvenile detention center. After release from jail, his mother refuses to accept him back, and he is treated as an outcaste by society, seen as a murderer. Rejected and lonely, Surya, finds solace in Periyavar(Raj Kiran), the local Don who rules over the small town. Surya becomes Periyavar’s right hand man, while the latter treats him like his own son. In the mean he also finds love in Kalyani(Laila), a Sri Lankan Tamil girl living in a refugee camp. Things however take a tragic turn later, when Periyavar is killed by his own son -in-law and Nandha is accused of murder. If Bala dealt with the sordid reality of mental hospital inmates in Sethu, and the ganja smuggling in interior rural Tamil Nadu, in Nandha, he takes a look at the Sri Lankan refugees living in the coastal towns of Tamil Nadu.
Nandha was the movie that totally turned Surya’s career around. It was his first major success as a solo hero, and most important it marked him as an actor of calibre. S
urya’s major strength is his ability to express and emote solely through his eyes. And he shows it in Nandha. As a son yearning for his mother’s love, as a toughie who faithfully carries out his master’s orders, as a tender romantic, and as a lonely young man, carrying pain in his heart, Surya, is first rate, showcasing a fabulous performance. Be it pain, anger, sorrow, love, Surya uses his eyes to express a lot, bringing in a lot of understatement and restraint to the role. He makes you feel every inch of his pain, and you emphathize with him all throughout. Not surprisingly Surya ended up winning the Best Actor award from the State Govt for his performance.
2002 saw Surya in a relatively softer role in Vikraman’s Unnai Ninnaithu, co starring Sneha and Laila. It was a standard Vikraman fare, which had the hero with a heart of Gold, who sacrifices everything for his love, is misunderstood by all and sundry, and finally ends on a happier note. The movie was a total about turn from the tragic, sombre mood of Nandha. Surya and Laila are in love, but circumstances, force her marriage to a totally unscruplous crook. Surya’s attempts to reveal the truth to Laila, end up making him look bad in Laila’s eyes, and she asks him to go away from her life. Totally heartbroken, Surya, finds solace in his employer’s daughter Sneha, who loves his good natured ways, and slowly they are drawn to each other. Laila however comes back, cheated and ditched by her husband. Well the movie ends in a way most Vikraman movies do, kind of feel good and happy. The movie however did well enough at box office. As did Surya’s next opposite Trisha, Mounam Pesiyadhe, directed by Ameer, who would later direct Paruthiveeran. I have not seen this movie however, and not have much idea about it.
2003 was the year, that finally confirmed Surya as one of Kollywood’s best actors, with 2 different roles. Gautam Menon’s Kaakha Kaakha, a story about a
team of encounter groups, who take on a dreaded gangster, firmly catapulted Surya into the top ranks. As Anbuchelvan, a lonely cop, who is totally ruthless and dedicated to his duty, Surya delivers a performance that is just top class. Surya being a method actor, has the habit of getting into the skin of the character. And he looks every inch the tough cop with his cropped hair cut, his swagger, his mannerisms. One of the best scenes for me in the movie, is when he roughs up a group of eve teasers, on the request of Maya( Jyothika). No mannerisms, no over the top action, no shouting, very cool, very casual, a cop just doing his duty. And not just the action scenes, he was brilliant even in the romantic track between him and Maya. Especially the scene where she proposes to him, and he tells her that he is not prepared for marriage, his expressions are fabulous. The movie also had a great chemistry between Surya and Jyothika, and was marked by another stunning performance from Jeevan as the gangster Pandya.
Bala’s Pithamagan saw him as an extroverted, smooth talking con man Sakthi, in sharp contrast to his introverte
d, loner role in Kaakha Kaakha. Pithamagan was an out and out Vikram movie, with the actor delivering a performance of sheer brilliance as the graveyard keeper Chithan, a man living on his animal instincts literally. It is to Surya’s credit that he does not allow himself to be overshadowed by Vikram’s brilliance here, and apart from holding on his own, he still makes an impact as Sakthi. He in fact proves to be the counterpoint for Vikram’s character, bringing in the much needed comic relief in an otherwise dark movie. Sakthi is crucial to the movie, as he is the person who makes friends with Chithan, and is able to bring out the human being in him. The bonding between Surya and Vikram is as crucial to the movie, as was Vikram’s role. Pithamagan took a clean sweep of the Filmfare Awards for Tamil Cinema, winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor(Vikram) while Surya ended up winning the Best Supporting Actor.
While Surya’s performance in Perazhagan was critically acclaimed, again have not seen this movie, so don’t have much idea of it. He was however fantastic in Ayitha Ezhuthu, the Tamil version of Yuva directed by Mani Ratnam. Surya here played the role of Michael, which was done by Ajay Devgan in Hindi version. While Ajay did a fairly good job, i must say that it is Surya, who has done the far better job here. Ajay for one never even looked like a university student, and his performance had the hangover of his previous Bhagat Singh role. Surya on the other hand looked very much the part, and was totally natural in his role. Doing the role of an idealistic student leader, it would have been easy to reduce it to a caricature, but Surya once again brings a natural charam to his role, and makes you actually believe in his ideals. He is especially brilliant in his encounters with the corrupt minister( Bharathiraja) and Inba(Madhavan), playing the role Abhishek Bachan did in the Hindi version. Both Surya and Maddy were brilliant in Ayitha Ezhuthu, making the movie worth a watch just for them.
Ghajini in 2005, was again a huge hit, and firmly established Surya as one of the top stars now. Both in the romantic episodes with Asin, as well as the revenge seeking hero, suffering from Short Term memory loss, Surya was the life of this movie. Incidentally Ajit, Vikram, Vijay and Maddy were considered for the role, but finally director Murgadoss selected Surya. The same year also saw Surya co starring with Trisha in Aaru, where he played the role of Aarumugham, a local hoodlum. The movie was a standard Tamil potboiler, starring Surya in an entirely mass role. But due to the Ghajini effect, Aaru also benefited and went on to become a major hit, capping another succesful year. Sillunu Oru Kaadhal(2006) was a love triangle starring Surya, Bhoomika Chawla and Jyothika. Not a very great movie, the movie however did well, and also had a good score from A.R.Rehman. This was the last movie in which Surya and Jyothika co starred after which they got married. Theirs was indeed one of the hit jodis of Kollywood, appearing in 7 movies of which Kaakha Kaakha, Perazhagan and Sillunu Oru Kaadhal were the big hits.
Vaaranam Ayiram, marks Surya’s total maturing as an actor. Playing a double role of a father and son, Surya depicts the many phases wonderfully, a caring and friendly father, a love struck happy go lucky youth, a heartbroken lover who takes to drugs, a loving husband, a daring army man, Surya manages the transition wonderfully from one phase to another. In fact so deep does he get into the character, that at times i found it difficult to identify him as Surya. I only saw him as the father Krishnan and son Surya. Surely, this year Surya, should be getting his shelf ready for the awards and accolades that are going to pour in. An actor who speaks more through expressions and emoting, than just indulging in dialog baazi. And also a versatile actor, who is not hampered by an image, and who can switch effortlessly from one role to another, Surya is indeed one of the best actors right now in Kollywood.
Tags: Bala, Gautam Menon, Pithamagan, surya, Tamil Cinema
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Nice one Ratnakar: But I dont think Surya is underrated anymore!
In spite of a knock out performance, I rate Kakka Kakka as his best performance. He really shocked me – I kept asking myself – is this Surya??
Oops – it should read, in spite of a knock out performance in Vaaranam Aayiram!
Surya was just fantastic in Kakka Kakka, cool, understated, restrained. He looked every inch the tough cop, and yet when it came to showing his tender, romantic side, he was equally good too.
Great write-up Ratnakar.
But need to point out that Sillunu Oru Kadhal was a flop.Some more details about the movie- it was a home production & had gained a lot of publicity as the movie was released around the time of Surya-Jyothika wedding and also had music from ARR.But the movie wasnt well received at the b.o probably since the audience couldnt accept the theme ( a bit bolder than they would have wanted).Even ARR’s music was a let down- only 2 good songs- Newyork nagaram & Munbe Vaa.
Am not sure if it was exactly a flop, in Bangalore, the movie ran well. I think it was an average grosser, not a very big hit. Also dont understand what was bold about the theme. I mean it was like many of the 70’s and 80’s Tam movies, dealing with marital problems. On the whole i think, it was just a so so movie.
Two more movies of Surya deserve strong mention- Mounam Pesiyadhe & Vel.Mounam Pesiyadhe was Ameer’s debut movie as director.The movie made Surya very popular for the character played by Surya- a restaurant owner with some uncoventional views on love.The movie also bought Trisha in the spotlight.Vel,directed by Hari had Surya doing a double role for the first time & had Asin as the heroine.This was a mass masala formula movie which released during Diwali 2007 & emerged a grand success.This movie enabled Surya to reach out to the B & C centres also.
Hmm did hear about Mounam Pesiyadhe but missed it out. Interestingly Surya’s brother Karthi played the main role later in Ameer’s Paruthiveeran.
Ratnakar-the movie did decent business in Chennai and Bangalore but not so in the other locations.What was bold about the movie? well the audience found it hard to accept Jyothika ( wife)allowing Surya ( husband) to spend a day with his former lover.I would call it a little unconventional & not really bold.But for the audiences in T.N it was considered a bit too much.
Even I feel it was a so-so movie.
Jo allowing Surya to spend a day with his ex lover- Bold??
Wonder what the audiences would have felt about Pati Parameshwar, where Sudha Chandran actually takes Shekar Suman on a wheel chair, so that he can enjoy Dimple’s company. LOL.
Ratnakar
Paruthiveeran & Sillunu Oru Kadhal were both home productions.yes I’m sure the audiences in T.N would freak out with a Pati Parameshwar kind of a subject
Ratnakar – Sethu: The concept is not bold. It is just an adapatation from the story of Nalayani in Mahabharat who carried her husband in a basket to a Vesi(Sex Worker)! (And Roja was Satyavan Savitri!)
And fyi Nalayani was reborn as Draupadi!
God man, Anand, i dont even think that concept was bold in any way. And Pati Parameshwar was the most regressive movie i had seen.
Some more trivia about Surya-
There are quite a few important movies in Surya’s career which initially were to be done by someone else-
1. Nerruku Ner- his debut movie was to have been done by Ajith & since Ajith didnt do it- it became Surya’s debut film.
2. Nanda- originally to be done by Ajith- he didnt do it & the rest is history.
3. Unnai Ninaithu- Vijay was supposed to do it- but he dropped out as he felt it was supposed to be similar to his Poove Unakkagu done by the same director- Vikraman.
4. Ghajini- originally Murugadoss was supposed to do it with Ajith & the movie was called Mirattal.Ajith’s loss became Surya’s gain.
There are also unconfirmed reports that Ajith was slated to do Surya’s role in Ayutha Ezhuthu- but I’m not sure of the same.
All this confirms two things-
1. Surya has been lucky with his choice of movies
2. Surya is not known to have a star ego.That he would step into so many roles not done by others is proof of it.
Anand
I didnt say the concept of SOK was bold.I said the movie didnt click because the audience felt it was bold.For a filmy like me – bold means
…………….
Sethu: It also confirms one more thing: Ajith has a very poor script sense and he cannot visualise how a movie will evetually turn into.
Anand
We are not sure as to why Ajith did not do those movies.It may or may not be due to his poor script sense.But what I do know is that for a long time he was kind of trapped with a wrong set of people
( especially NIC Arts-S.S.Chakravarthy )and would blindly do any movie suggested by these people.But ever since he’s consciously moved away from these people, he’s become a more confident actor.
Actually at start of 2000, i was assuming Ajit would be the next Kamal, considering his performances in Valee, Mugavaari, Kandukondein Kandukondein, but this decade i dont know why, his choice of movies has been totally dumb. I really dont understand how he could choose flicks like Red.
Also Vikram and Surya were nowhere in the picture then. But right now both actors are firmly staking their claim to be the next Kamal. I would back Surya, considering Vikram again has not done much of note after Pithamagan, barring Anniyan. But again Mani’s Raavan starring Vikram, wud be worth a watch.
Yes Ratnakar I agree with your thoughts on Ajith,Surya & Vikram.While I dont have much hopes frankly from the over hyped Kandhaswamy of Vikram, Raavan should be interesting.BTW the movie’s yet to be titled as clarified by Abhishek Bachchan in an interview on T.V.Surya’s next movie-Ayan by K.V.Anand should be interesting too.
Ajith I think apart from getting caught with the wrong set of people as already mentioned somewhere got confused- should he go the Kamal way or the Rajni way.But he’s trying to regain lost ground.I’m looking forward to his next project with Venkat Prabhu after both of them finish their current assignments- Asal & Goa respectively.
Interestingly Simran was Surya’s first heroine in Nerukku Ner, and she is his heroine again in VA.
Not sure about AE, but Ajith was slated to do Ghajini, considering that his earlier movie with Murgadoss, Dheena was a big hit.
Sethu actually i think Surya’s biggest advantage is that he does not have a set image. This enables him easily to slip into any kind of role. So he can do pakka masala stuff like Aaru and Vel, as also the more classy stuff like VA.
Ratnakar while on Ajith , would request you to watch Varalaaru ( earlier titled Godfather) one of his recent big hits.While the movie is hardly great- formula movie ( Ajith in a triple role & Asin)- whats amazing about it is that one of the characters played by him has him as a slightly
effeminate Bharatnaytam dancer.This role made the movie click.For a non-dancer to pull off such a role called for brilliance.So the guy has potential as shown once in a while, but yes he needs to be more sure of the kind of movies he does.
Sethu have not yet seen Vaaralaru, but i have no second thoughts on Ajit’s talent. The way he expresses his evil intentions in Vaale, just by using his eyes and expressions was spine chilling. Even of late, i recall seeing him in Villian, a typical formula movie. There is a scene, when Ajith impersonates his mentally retarded brother to escape from the cops. He walks around crying like a kid, weeping, after he is beaten up by the cops. And after some time, he switches back to a normal mode. That expression, where he makes the change from a mental retard to a normal young man, was just brilliant. I mean for quite some time i was actually fooled, into thinking he was the other guy. Ajith still has that charisma and talent, just wish he gets the right kind of roles.
I think he was somewhat upset by the failure of Mugavari, where he gave one of his career best performances. And thats why he went totally mass based.
Yes Surya has consciously avoided getting into an image trap & hence Ratnakar you are right- he can slip easily into a mass or a class role ( as they say in A.P).Also he doesnt really have the star ego & hence is more approachable as per what I hear from sources.
Ratnakar- I remember the scene in Villain that you’ve mentioned very vividly & yes he rocked in it.Do watch Varalaaru sometime if you get a chance just for that one character of Ajith that I’ve mentioned earlier.
Here’s something for you & Anand to read.Speaks a lot about Surya’s humility that I was mentioning earlier.
http://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/dec/29suriya-on-aamirs-ghajini.htm
Sethu, very nice to hear Surya’s views. He is really one of the best persons around. The pleasure of reading that Rediff post, was however spoilt by some assholes in the comments section. I just dont understand what it is about Rediff, that seems to attract the worst kind of mental retards.
Of late, he’s my favourite Tamil actor. He’s certainly one of those actors who take their job very seriously, and don’t just thrive on their start status. His choice of films and his dedication certainly points to the fact that he’ll go a long way….more like a Kamal Hasan or Aamir Khan, his filmography would be super-impressive by the end of his career….
Yes I certainly feel Surya is a genuine person around & not just as an actor.Most people who’ve worked with him have gone on to feel the same.
And Ratnakar, I agree with your feelings about the Rediff comments section, they should do something about it.I stopped commenting there long back.Till then lets not fuss too much about it.
Ratnakar: Talking of Ajith, his performance in the climax of Kanukondein Kandukondein was superb. There was also a film called Poovellam Un Vaasam in which he starred along with Jyotika. Directed by Ezhil. The movie itself was so-so. But Ajith was such a natural in that film.
A well written post on Surya – and we are hijacking it by talking about Ajith; hope you dont mind :-)
Anand i dont mind, talking of Ajith, Vikram, Vijay et all. As long as u dont bring in Rakhi Sawant or Mallika Sherawat into the picture.
Have seen Poovellam, real boring movie for me. In fact i liked Citizen, though it had a Gentleman/Indian hangover, Ajith was really good in it. Post 2002, Ajith made some atrocious choices, Red, Raja, Jana to name a few.
But actually its an irony, that Surya who was nowehere close to Ajit, at start of 2000, has now overtaken him by a wide mile.
I guess Surya is more like the tortoise, slow and steady progress.
Depends on what you call as overtaking Ratnakar.If its the box office pull-then its still Ajith & Vijay ahead of Surya & Vikram.But yes in terms of moving up a la Kamal Haasan- Surya has moved ahead.
Anand- Ajith-Jyothika pairing & the music were the positives of Poovellam Un Vaasam.
Today the scenario in Tamil industry is like this – next to a Rajni & Kamal- you have Ajith & Vijay.While Vijay is a formula obsessed actor- Ajith is trying a balance – but needs some fine tuning.Then you have Surya & Vikram- who are both trying to be in the Kamal mode & doing a good job of it.You then have R.Madhavan – who’s also trying hard to strike a balance.
In case of Maddy it gets difficult.He has to balance tamil & hindi films.when it comes to tamil films he again has to balance an Arya with a Evano Ouruvan.So its tough for him.Then you have the younger brigade like Vishal ( formula obsessed), Dhanush ( tries to balance), Simbu
( formula obsessed).Actors like Bharath & Arya are promising- but Bharath is already in the formula trap- his last few movies like Pazhani,Nepali,Seval etc were all having him trying to be a superhero & failing miserably.
I hope Arya does well with Bala’s Naan Kadavul.That looks like an interesting project.
Sethu, overtaking as in i meant, the Kamal factor. Ajith was touted as Kamal’s next succesor in 2000, Surya was nowhere even close then. But now its Surya who is more closer to it.
after Pithamagan and Anniyan, expectations for Vikram have shot up manifold, am waiting for Mani’s Raavan.
As far as Vijay is concerned, he is looking to be the Ilaya Thalapathi, his focus is to be like MGR or Rajni, and to date he is doing a fine job of it.
good article ratnakar
really kakka kakka changed surya’s carrier and later pitahmagan and VA has cemented it. But i stay in chennai and can these the vast diff in fan following for surya when compared to ajith and vijay..and even vikram…
but its good to see that he is not under pressure to satisfy mass audience and rather is concentrating on quality movies with good story and subject
i used to like vijay earlier but stopped after ATM .nowdays he is strictly riding on popular telugu / hindi remakes. His next Villu is remake of Soldier by Prabudeva.
Prashant, Surya i think has been consciously following the Aamir-Kamal path. He in fact considers Aamir as one of his big influences, so i think his direction is clear. Actually i was in Chennai during 2000-01, when Surya was not a big star yet. Even in Friends, it was Vijay who had the higher billing.
But even otherwise, Surya’s mass movies like Aaru and Vel, have done well enough, so i think he is going along fine now.
Pithamagan was a really great performance from Surya, it was an out and out Vikram movie, and to stand up against his intensity, and still be noticed calls for some doing.
And yes another name to be mentioned among the younger lot is Jayam Ravi.he’s a decent actor- made his mark initially with telugu remakes & home ventures.But with Dhaam Dhoom he seems to be coming out of it.His next movie called Peranmai should be interesting.Its directed by Jananathan who made the award winning Iyarkai ( brilliant movie – wish Sanjay Leela Bhansali could have follwed this in Saawariya ) and anothr decent movie called E.
BTW was not E supposed to be some sci fi kinda flick. Also what happened to Sriram( or is it Srikanth) who appeared in movies like Roja Kottam, and some other flicks. I thought he was a fairly decent actor. There was this thriller with him & Gopika, where he has this grand ambition of bringing water to Chennai, dont remember its name.
@ Ratnakar
Yes E was a sci fi kinda flick with Jeeva
( another decent actor among the younger lot).
Srikanth ( called as Sriram in telugu) is again a fine actor but not getting too many good movies.
But his recent movie “Poo” where he played second fiddle to the heroine Parvathy is being well appreciated.The Srikanth-Gopika-Prithviraj movie is Kana Kandein- K.V.Anand the cinematographer made his directorial debut with it.
One actor who has actually literally fizzled out of reckoning is Prashanth.Remember at one point he was nearly on the same level as an Ajith or a Vijay.He has done movies with most of the leading directors like Mani Rathnam ( Thiruda Thiruda),Shankar ( Jeans), Balu Mahendra
( Vanna Vanna Pookal) etc.He had a lull in the mid 90’s when Vijay & Ajith inched ahead.But he made a strong comeback in the late 1990’s with movies like Kanedhire Thondrinal,Kadhal Kavithai,
Parthen Rasithen ( 2000)etc.after doing scores of mindless movies in the last few years, he has now completely disappeared.He hasnt had a single release in 2007 & 2008.His much touted Pulan Visaranai -2 doesnt seem to be releasing anytime soon either.
Prashanth again i think lost out doing scores of rubbish flicks. He also acted in the Tam version of Bhoot, dunno if that movie was a hit or not. Also he worked in the worst movies of Maniratnam(Thiruda Thiruda) and Shankar( Jeans). Those movies in no way added value to his career. He was good in Appu, the Tam version of Sadak, but after that he messed it up with some absolute stinkers.
The tam version of Bhoot was called Shock & did fairly well at the B.O.it was an almost frame to frame remake of Bhoot.I shudder to even think of the last few films he did- yuck!!!
This guy is smart I thought. new breed, educated and some one who is uncomfortable dancing.
He is not loud which is a great help. Nice one ratnakar.
Surya’s definitely getting his dues, deservedly so.
He has proved his worth time and time again.
‘Nanda’ was the film that made me notice him initially.
I’ve heard so much about ‘Kaaka x2′ but I just can’t get into it for some reason.
‘Perazhagan’ really surprised me.
The film was average but Surya excelled!
‘Vaarunam…’ was a perfect opportunity for Surya to show his full range.
He was like an animal in ‘Ghajjini’!
Wonderful.
However, i’ve gotta lot of faith in Vikram.
Superb actor!
Ah!talking bout tamil cinema & with Steve my friend not being part of it- impossible right?
I’m not too keen on Endhiren ( Rajni,Aishwarya-Shankar movie).I am more keen on Kamal’s next-
Thalaivan Irukkiran with a superb star cast.similarly I’m not keen on Vikram’s Kandhaswamy,but keen on his next with Manirathnam.
I think K.V.Anand will do a decent job with Surya in Ayan.and I’m looking forward to the Ajith-Venkat Prabhu project.Gosh!looks like I’m on a forecasting spree- kya karen,control nahin hota.Its time for us to herald 2009 soon.
wah wah..nice article ratnakar…
Surya is who’s son?
He in the Tamil Yuva was magnificient…one look at him and i could tell..he was a leader..the way he prganizes the rallies, the way he motivates others around..the cool calculative genius..he did a far better job than Ajay Devgan..
Have to see Varanam…
@OM
Surya’s dad is Sivakumar. He was a famous actor during 70’s and 80’s, though not a very big star. He came in KB’s movie Sindhu Bhairavi, and in Sethu also as Vikram’s elder brother. And some TV serials.
Surya was fabuluous in Ayehta Ezhuthu, he gelled brilliantly into the role. The scene where he confronts Bharati Raja, no over the top screaming or challenges, just a cool facade and a wry smile.
Do watch VA, one of the best performances this year.
i was introduced to tamizh & telugu movies quite late whn a frnd lent me the anniyan dvd. was blown away,and then i got ghajini. i was hooked onto surya,and asked my frnd to lend me more of his movies. along came kaakha kaakha, pithamagan (it was a double whammy for me, coz i was already in awe of vikram and surya), and ayudha ezuthu. having stayed in kolkata during shooting of yuva, was morethan interested to see how the ‘other’ guys acted inthe same role, and while siddharth & maddy didnt impress so much as the counterparts, and the only ‘repeat’ actor, esha deol was ok, it was michael’s character that i felt surya did a better justice than AD in yuva.
i personally treat kamal like GOD (have watched most of his tamizh movies, btw), worship Rajni coz its the trend (havnt yet watched sivaji – the boss; cant get the DVD and missed out on its release), abhor the mindless vijay movies (i watched thirupachi and sivakasi, and they sucked), and am indifferent towards ajith (i didnt like him in ashoka with SRK) and he was good in Kandukondain Kandukondain, i LOVED surya in VA when i watched it a month back in Chennai. cudnt understand much, since it didnt have the DVD-style sub-titles, liked his acting immensely. waiting for it on DVD to catch up on the dialogues.
hv watched many other assorted tamizh movies, and simply love prakash raj. can some1 please do an article on him? (Ratnakar / Sethu – r u guys readingthis?)
just ona different note, i really loved the shock-value treatment of 7G, Rainbow Colony. wherez tht hero now?
Satyen, while i loved 7GBC, can’t say the same about hero Ravi Krishna, one of the worst actors ever seen. That guy was lucky enuf to act in it, but later all his movies have become big time duds, not surprisingly.
Well Kamal is GOD for me, love Rajni movies for the sheer entertainment value, but Sivaji was a bore for me. Yaar Vijay does a Rajni imitation in every movies. Ajith used to give some great performances earlier, but this decade vast majority of his movies have sucked.
Jha- great to see you here.Ok I’ll do a write-up on Prakash Raj- I have enough & more to write about him- he’s fabulous no doubt.
Regarding Ravi Krishna the hero of 7G Rainbow/Brindavan Colony- I agree with Ratnakar completely.He simply sucks.He’s basically surviving in the industry since his dad A.M Rathnam is a fairly big producer in Tamil & Telugu.
BTW i heard that A.M.Ratnam himself is in a bit of a mess as his last couple of movies have flopped.
Since OM has made me think about Surya’s dad Sivakumar let me tell you all that Surya’s humbleness & his genuiness is all due to his dad- Sivakumar.For years Sivakumar has been known for these qualities in the industry.KB’s Sindhu Bhairavi had him in a knockout performance.But he’s done countless other movies.Some of his other important movies- which I would recommend are Nan Padum Paadal,Marupakkam ( brilliant-narrowly missed the National Award for Best Actor to Big B-Agneepath),Agnisakshi,Annakili
( Ilayaraja’s debut movie),Rosapoo Ravikaikari,Bhuvana Oru Kelvikuri ( he played the villain with Rajnikanth as the hero- ).
Ratnakar- you are right about A.M.Ratnam- he is having a big struggle now & seems to have lost his midas touch.
@ sethu: thx for welcoming me ere, and thx in advance for tht write-up on prakash raj. loved him in bommarillu & mozhi more than anything else.
@ sethu & ratnakar: lemme clarify, i liked the movie 7G, not the hero. in fact tht heroine was cute. i didnt know the guy is his “father’s son”.
Here is the latest info about Surya’s forthcoming movies-
http://sify.com/movies/tamil/fullstory.php?id=14827434
Jha- I understood that you liked 7G-the movie & not Ravi Krishna the hero.The heroine Sonia Aggaral is now married to director Selvaraghvan who is also the brother of actor Dhanush.
Looking at Surya’s line up Ayan must be good coming from K.V.Anand & being an AVM production.
Next in line Adhavan with Nayanthara directed by
K.S.Ravikumar will be a mass entertainer.K.S.R is the best guy in the tamil industry today when it comes to making mass entertainers with the top stars- look at his repertoire of films-
Tenali,Panchatantiram,Avvai Shanmughi & Dasavatharam with Kamal,Muthu & Padayappa wit Rajni,Villain & Varalaaru with Ajith, Nattamai,Natpukkaga & many more with Sarath Kumar, Minsara Kanna with Vijay,Aethiree with Madhavan,Saravana with Simbu, Sneha Kosam with Chiranjeevi & lots more with others.
Then Mugamoodi with Mysskin is a superhero project.Mugamoodi means mask in tamil.
Surya has been one actor who seems to be slowly and surely moving up the ladder in the tamil indusry.for me Kamal will always be the only god, so i wont surya to be the next Kamal, but someone who have chose his path the Kamal way. Its interesting that both Gautham Menon and Surya being biggest kamal fans themselves. Hope Surya continues the good work. Ajith as said was trapped with the wrong set of people and hopefully will give some decent stuff henceforth. Vikram comes close to Surya, but one advantage surya has is that he is much younger than vikram whom i believe will have utmost 5 years of cinema as a lead actor. Jeeva and Bharath both made some good choices and experiment with the scripts and the role they chose. Both seem to be trapped in some mass movie image rite now, hope they come out of it sooner or later.
and BTW the venkat prabhu – ajiths movie is the one after Goa. Goa is about four youngsters who land up on goa to spend the vacation and meet up with four goreigners and get hooked up. Venkat prabhu says its of American pie genre. Rumors had it that they were trying to rope in Jessica Alba
for a role as the movie is co produced by warner bros.
@ KPV Balaji
Yes Goa is supposed to be a fun frolic.I am aware that they are trying to rope in Jessic Alba.One thing I can say for sure- I’ve met Venkat Prabhu & his team of actors and I’m bowled over by the energy levels that they have.So be it Chennai-28 or Saroja, the movies worked because of the energy levels.
For me among the younger lot the directors to watch out are Sasikumar,Mysskin,Venkat Prabhu,Selvaraghavan & Vishnu Vardhan.
Sasikumar’s control over script & his level of detailing was a big high in Subramaniapuram.He is now turning a solo hero in a movie to be directed by Samudrakani ( the villain in Subramaniapuram) & will continue to direct and act.
Mysskin is one of the most well read authorities on cinema- he is a powerhouse of talent & energy.Loved his work in Chitiram Pesudadi & Anjathey.I am looking forward to his Nandalala & Mugamoodi.
Selvaraghavan has already proved his worth with his movies like Kadhal Kondein and 7G.He also proved he could go the masala route & be successful with Adavari Mataluku Ardhale Verule in telugu and its successful tamil remake- Yaaradi Nee Mohini.I am looking forward to his next movie- Aayirathil Oruvan with Karthi (brother of Surya) who made a smashing debut with Paruthiveeran and the movie also stars Reema Sen & Parthiban.
Vishnu Vardhan knows cinema very well.He was there as one of the kids in Anjali.He started with a disaster called Kurumbu ( Allari Naresh) but then got into his element with a fine movie- Aridhum Ariyamalum- Prakash Raj,Arya & Navdeep.
It was followed by Pattiyal- though an inspired movie, it was a brave attempt.With Billa he revolutionised style & technology in tamil cinema.
Billa not only resurfaced Ajith’s career, it also
consolidated tamil cinema’s position globally which was taken to a new high with Sivaji.I personally found Billa – 2007 to be a lot more stylish than even SRK’s Don.
great analysis ratnakar . U can,t say actor surya is underrated .Mind blowing performance .Great to see legend actor , who is doing variuos roles . FROm heart u say , u got any actor like surya ,with this talented acting skill? i must say definitely not . IT,s time for us to watch the legend show . surya is only actor got the ability to dominate whole india , infact he will be consideres as a leader for acting . proud for a tamilian .