Wikipedia

Nandhaa

This article is about the film. For the actor, see Nandha Durairaj. For other uses, see Nandha (disambiguation).

Nandhaa is a 2001 Indian Tamil-language action drama film written and directed by Bala. The film stars Suriya in the lead role,[1] while Laila, Rajkiran, Saravanan, and Rajshree play other supporting roles. The film also marked the debut of comedian Karunas. The soundtrack was composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja with cinematography by R. Rathnavelu and editing by Suresh Urs.

Nandhaa
Directed byBala
Written byBala
Produced byGanesh Raghu
Karthik Radhakrishnan
Venky Narayanan
Rajan Radhakrishnan
StarringSuriya
Laila
CinematographyR. Rathnavelu
Edited bySuresh Urs
Music byYuvan Shankar Raja
Production
company
Aparajeeth Films
Release date
  • 14 November 2001 (2001-11-14)
Running time
125 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Nandha is a story about a young man from a borstal coming back to a society and his family he had left many years ago. It is about a battle of love and life, and how a misfit tries to fight to fit into the usual social circus, a fight to earn his mother's love, and a fight to live the second chance he has given himself.

Plot

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The plot opens with a mother and her children arriving at Rameshwaram. The elder child, Nandha, is sent to a rehabilitation center for murdering his father as a boy after witnessing his father's illicit affair with a prostitute and abuse towards Nandha's mother when she finds out about it. He returns home to his mother, who is deaf and mute, and his younger sister, who are still in a state of shock after what has happened to their family.

Nandha decides to start life afresh by trying to study in a college. Having the record of being an ex-convict, he finds it difficult to get a seat in the college. He then meets Periyavar, a very rich disciplinarian who runs an arts and science college with an iron hand. Periyavar's forefathers were the kings of the Ramanathapuram kingdom and fell in line in with the Britishers. After independence, all of their palaces and titles were taken by India's government, but a lot of other material wealth was in their hands. He still thinks himself a guardian of people and helps many poor people. He even goes to the extent of providing justice when the law and police cannot or will not.

Periyavar develops a soft corner for Nandha and guides him like his own son. Kalyani, a Sri Lankan Tamil refugee from Jaffna, meets Nandha, and both fall in love. Meanwhile, the villain Durai asks Periyavar, who currently helps the students in his college a lot to aid an antisocial element, but Periyavar refuses outright.

One of Periyavar's betraying sidekicks agrees to help Durai. Meanwhile, Periyavar falls sick and gets admitted in the hospital. Nandha stays around to look after his mentor and guide. Fearing what he has done might be out in the light, Durai pulls out Periyavar's oxygen tube in the hospital when Nandha is not around and blames Nandha for murdering his father-in-law. Nandha, having to deal with the pain of losing the only man who gave him a second chance to live, struggles the fray of being convicted of murder once again and chooses to kill Durai in the court campus. However, the case is dismissed due to the lack of evidence. Finally, Nandha is acquitted as there are no eyewitnesses to the murder.

After being acquitted for Durai's murder, Nandha returns home. However, his paranoid mother, thinks that her son still has murder instincts, so she waits at home to feed him a meal, which she has poisoned herself for him. Nandha finds out that the food is poisoned when he eats it, but continues to do so with a satisfaction that he is being fed by his mother. Nandha dies in his mother's lap and when his friend Lodukku Pandi, his sister, and Kalyani come out to see what has happened, they realize that both Nandha and his mother are dead, and the former three mourn the latter two's deaths.

Cast

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Production

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The title role was initially offered to Ajith Kumar, who rejected the film citing that Bala had not fully developed the story and screenplay before narrating the terms to him.[3][4] Ajith's departure meant that the film's proposed producer, Poornachandra Rao, also backed out.[5] Suriya was selected as his replacement instead.[6] The director also tried to rope in Sivaji Ganesan for a character role in the film, but his unavailability led to Rajkiran being cast.[7] Despite initial reports that Jyothika would work on the film, Laila was signed on as heroine to play a Sri Lankan Tamil refugee, Kalyani.[8][9]

The role required Suriya to undergo physical change, so production was delayed until Suriya had finished filming for Friends and Uyirile Kalanthathu.[10] The first look of the film created media anticipation, with both Suriya and Rajkiran sporting looks which they had not portrayed before.[11] Post-release, Suriya has stated "when Nandha happened, everything changed. I became a serious actor, and director Bala instilled in me the discipline to work without committing errors."[12]

Soundtrack

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Nandha
Soundtrack album by
Yuvan Shankar Raja
Released
21 October 2001 (India)
Recorded2001 at Kalasa Studio (Chennai)
GenreFeature film soundtrack
LabelFive Star Audio
Roja/Mass Audios
ProducerGanesh Raghu
Yuvan Shankar Raja chronology
Manadhai Thirudivittai
(2001) 		Nandha
(2001) 		Seshu
(2002)

The soundtrack was composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja, son of noted composer Ilaiyaraaja, who usually scores the music for a Bala film. The soundtrack was released on 21 October 2001 at Hotel Connemara, Chennai by actor Kamal Haasan and director Bharathiraja.[13] It features 6 tracks, out of which two were sung by Ilaiyaraaja. The songs "Amma Endrale" and "Orayiram" are based on the raaga Pantuvarali.[14] The lyrics of five songs were written by five different lyricists, while "Maayane Andha"'s lyrics were derived from the Thiruppavai written and sung by Aandaal.

Track Song Singer(s) Duration Lyricist Notes
1 "Mun Paniyaa" S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Malgudi Subha 5:47 Palani Bharathi
2 "Or Aayiram Yaanai" P. Unnikrishnan 3:35 Na. Muthukumar
3 "Engengo Kaalgal Sellum" Ilaiyaraaja 4:09 Pulamaipithan
4 "Maayane Andha" Rajalakshmi, Srimathumitha & Chorus* 2:49 Aandaal Based on Aandal's Thiruppavai
5 "Kalli Adi Kalli" Anuradha Sriram, Srimathumitha & Chorus* 4:06 Thamarai
6 "Amma Endralle" Ilaiyaraaja 4:32 Pa. Vijay
*The chorus consists of singers Ganga, Kanchana, Febi, Feji and Charulatha Mani

Release and reception

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The satellite rights of the film were sold to Sun TV.[15] The critic from The Hindu noted that "powerful performance by the lead artists, a neat screenplay and narration without any deviations in the form of dance or song make Nandhaa worth watching. Bala's direction makes viewing a gripping experience." The critic added that "Surya as the young rustic man has reached a new milestone in acting. Rajkiran shines in the role of Periyavar. A surprise, however, is Rajashri, who reveals great histrionic skills."[16] In comparison, Rediff.com stated the film failed to live up to expectations, likening it to Kamal Haasan's Aalavandhan and stated that "the screenplay is smooth and incident-driven. In the final analysis, it is the climax that may be the main reason why the audience does not lap up this film."[17] Visual Dasan of Kalki wrote the director, who has proved that he can deliver a vibrant film without the masala fragrance, is keeping the faith of the fans he earned with Sethu with Nandha.[18] K. N. Vijiyan of New Straits Times wrote "This is a moving story from director Bala who gave the runaway hit Sethu. If you liked Sethu, you'll probably enjoy this new venture".[19] Chennai Online wrote "Director Bala re-establishes his credentials again as a film-maker who moves away from the beaten track, and tries to bring in freshness by way of concept and narrative style. His 'Nandha' like 'Sethu', before it, is different from the routine films. The artistes are chosen well, irrespective of their market rating, and the locations have a freshness too. But the director could have avoided repetition of scenes and ambience, which give a sense of deja vu".[20]

In 2004, the film was to be remade in Telugu starring Nandamuri Kalyan Ram and Anu Mehta, but the film was later dropped.[21] The film has been dubbed and released in the Telugu language three times, firstly as Aakrosham (2006) and then as Pratheekaram in 2009. A third dubbed version titled Bala-Surya was released by Nagamalla Shankar in 2011, shortly after the release of Bala's Avan Ivan.[22]

Awards and nominations

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Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2001 Filmfare Awards South Best Tamil Director Bala Nominated [23]
[24]
Best Tamil Actress in Lead Role Laila Won
Best Cinematographer R. Rathnavelu
2001 Tamil Nadu State Film Awards Best Film (Special Prize) Nandha [25]
Best Actor in Lead Role Suriya
Best Cinematographer R. Rathnavelu
Best Actor in Supporting Role Rajkiran

Legacy

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Karunas's character in the film, "Lodukku Pandi", inspired the title of a 2015 film starring him.[26]

References

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  1. ^ "All conquering Nandaa". The Hindu. 13 June 2002. Archived from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  2. ^ Aravindan, M.R. (17 February 2003). "A pop singer in actor's costume". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 20 December 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Hot News4". Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  4. ^ "From 'Itihasam' to 'Mirattal': Check out 11 movies of Ajith that were shelved". The New Indian Express. 19 October 2019. Archived from the original on 28 July 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Tamilan - Tamil movie Planet: Hot News". 16 December 2000. Archived from the original on 16 December 2000.
  6. ^ "rediff.com, Movies: Gossip from the southern film industry". www.rediff.com. Archived from the original on 12 February 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  7. ^ "Priyanka Chopra". Archived from the original on 23 January 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  8. ^ "S U B A S". Archived from the original on 31 July 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  9. ^ "Minnoviyam Star Tracks". 17 October 2000. Archived from the original on 17 October 2000.
  10. ^ "rediff.com, Movies: Showbuzz! Domino effect hits Tamil industry". www.rediff.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Surya". Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  12. ^ "My first break - Suriya". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 9 May 2008. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  13. ^ "Nandha - audiocassette released". Archived from the original on 6 November 2001.
  14. ^ Mani, Charulatha (30 September 2011). "A Raga's Journey — Poignant Pantuvarali". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  15. ^ @SunTV (13 April 2015). "Watch #Nandha Superhit movie Starrer @Suriya_offl #Laila #Rajkiran Music By @YuvanMusical today at 11pm on Sun TV." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  16. ^ "Nandhaa". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 23 November 2001. Archived from the original on 22 December 2001.
  17. ^ "rediff.com, Movies: The Rediff Review: Nandha". www.rediff.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  18. ^ தாசன், விஷுவல் (2 December 2001). "நந்தா". Kalki (in Tamil). pp. 88–89. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  19. ^ Vijiyan, K. N. (14 December 2001). "A mother's punishing grief". New Straits Times. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  20. ^ Mannath, Malini. "Nandha". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 14 February 2004. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
  21. ^ "Muhurat Function - Production No.3 - Sri Mahaganapathy Films". Idlebrain.com. 6 May 2004. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  22. ^ "Suriya's Nandha to be dubbed in Telugu". The Times of India. 21 June 2011. Archived from the original on 1 January 2014.
  23. ^ "The 49th Annual Filmfare Awards Nominees". Indiatimes. 2002. Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  24. ^ Times News Network (6 April 2002). "Nuvvu Nenu wins 4 Filmfare awards". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 September 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  25. ^ "Tamil Nadu Announces Film Awards For Three Years". IndiaGlitz.com. 1 October 2004. Archived from the original on 24 October 2004. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  26. ^ "An emotional climax for Loduku Pandi". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 31 January 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
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