Aayirathil Oruvan - A different perspective
By Behindwoods Visitor Raghuraman R
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Hi,

Umberto Eco said 'Images are the literature of layman'. Books are often perceived as 'high art' because readers follow the vision of the writer more closely. The fact that reading a book needs far more patience than say seeing a movie, could be one reason. With a limited and probably more erudite audience, good reviews (not necessarily praises) and criticisms often come from responsible sources with a good background of the work in question.

It is not surprising especially in India that movies are subject to the easiest criticisms from most people. I do not see a good review of 'Aayirathil Oruvan' till date. The movie should be reviewed with the right perspective. Simplistic reviews of films like 'Pudhupettai' that 'it is too violent' do not give any sensible perspective. A reviewer cannot talk for the audience. Reviewer(s) should try to look at different perspectives of the product. More importantly, reviewer(s) have to go with the director (actually the 'Creator') in his product to first comprehend what he has made. At the end of the journey, they are in a position to comment on the journey and future ramifications, if any.

With this perspective, I went into a journey that is 1 in 1000. Aayirathil Oruvan is probably the first attempt in Indian cinema at a genre of fantasy and it would not be wise to compare with any non-Indian film or even non-Tamil films. Any review of this movie has to start with this perspective. Most films are pseudo-fiction because the viewers are either expected to know or assuming some 'truths' as given for the film. For instance, if one 'character' talks about going from Chennai to New York in a bus, it is treated as a flaw. It ideally should not be because it is
Aayirathil Oruvan
fiction. If 'truth's have such a value, morals do not come into 'picture'.

In this film, the director has chosen fantasy as the genre and for the journey of fantasy, he has taken a simple story. There are three principal characters, a manager, a scholar and a worker. A manager has taken up a project with a 'public' motive - to search one person (who is that?) and takes the help of scholar and lot of workers. A scholar has a 'protected' motive of searching for her missing parent. A worker leads his comrades for just earning his bread. The manager is ruthless and non-compromising in her goal. The scholar unravels the mystery and worker comes out of his shell to show his human side. The project has many downsides with worker shocked by the loss of colleagues and even wants to call it quits. The scholar is eager on the pursuit of knowledge. Most importantly, the manager is on the pursuit of self-interests. The worker has to follow suit and personal attraction to the humane scholar is an extra attraction.

The manager does whatever is needed to achieve her personal goal, whether it is seducing the workers or even the final 'person' in question. The scholar is able to reasonably predict the threats to come - snakes, hunger, thirst and even madness. The final man or the king or the client is aghast that the manager has duped him. He contemplates suicide but wants to give a final shot at the client(s). He dies in the process but the worker escapes with the next generation. It is not really known if the director wanted to give messages in the 'story' for the journey. History repeats itself and no matter how educated we are, the likes of manager have indelible 'hates' and would do ANYTHING to venture out to eradicate the same.

Well, almost!

My comment is that it is a splendid journey that director embarked upon and should not be nit-picked for chaste 'Tamil' or minor dubbing errors, for dialogues are not too many. Regarding blood or gore, the film is anyway certified 'A' and if people come with their family (that’s what I saw in the theatre), I can’t blame the director.

Raghuraman R
raghuraman.r@gmail.com
 

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