Prema Baraha (transl. Script of love), titled Sollividava (transl. Shall I say it) in Tamil, is a 2018 Indian romantic drama film written and directed by Arjun Sarja. It was produced by his wife Niveditha Arjun under his home studio of Sree Raam Films International and made simultaneously in Kannada and Tamil languages. The film stars Chandan Kumar and Aishwarya Arjun with different ensemble casts for the two versions. Jassie Gift composed the soundtrack and score. H. C. Venugopal was the director of photography and Kay Kay edited the film. The two versions of the film were released worldwide on 9 February 2018. It had a grand opening and became a commercial success at the box office of Karnataka, but had a decent run in Tamil.
| Prema Baraha | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster in Kannada | |
| Directed by | Arjun Sarja |
| Written by | Arjun Sarja |
| Produced by | Niveditha Arjun |
| Starring | Chandan Kumar Aishwarya Arjun |
| Cinematography | H. C. Venugopal |
| Edited by | Kay Kay |
| Music by | Jassie Gift |
Production company | |
Release date |
|
| Country | India |
| Languages | Kannada Tamil |
Plot
editSanjay (Chandan Kumar) and Madhu (Aishwarya Arjun) are two journalists from rival news organizations who do not have the best equation. However, when the two of them are forced to work together while covering the Kargil War, a bond is forged between them.
Cast
edit| Actor (Kannada) | Actor (Tamil) | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Chandan Kumar | Sanjay | |
| Aishwarya Arjun | Madhu | |
| Suhasini | Madhu's aunt | |
| K. Viswanath | Seenu | |
| Prakash Raj | Army man's father | |
| Avinash | Ram | |
| Sadhu Kokila | Sathish | Sanjay's friend |
| Pandi | Sanjay's friend | |
| O. A. K. Sundar | Subhendar Ganesan | |
| K. Viswanath | Seenu | |
| Rangayana Raghu | Rajendran | Narayana |
| Mandya Ramesh | Manobala | Apartment president |
| Kuri Prathap | Yogi Babu | Madhu's friend |
| Bonda Mani | ||
| Jeet Raidutt | Jeet | |
| — | Nellai Siva | Traffic police officer |
| Arjun Sarja | Special appearance in "Jai Hanumantha"/Flight captain | |
| Darshan | Shobi Paulraj | special appearance in "Jai Hanumantha" |
| Chiranjeevi Sarja | ||
| Dhruva Sarja | ||
- Tamil version
- Yogi Babu as Yogi
Production
editIn December 2015, Arjun announced that he was set to produce and direct a bilingual Kannada and Tamil romantic film featuring his daughter Aishwarya Arjun in the lead role. He had initially narrated three stories to his daughter, who was most satisfied with a script on two journalists falling in love during the Kargil War of 1999. While he was working on the screenplay, Arjun spent a week in the studios of Asian News International and went through all the material they had on Kargil.[1][2] Kannada actor Chetan Kumar was signed on to feature as the lead actor in the project, thus making his debut in Tamil films.[3] In May 2016, Chetan Kumar backed out of the project, unhappy with his characterisation in the film, and was replaced by another Kannada actor, Chandan Kumar.[4] For her particular role, Aishwarya Arjun carefully observed the style and characteristics of Barkha Dutt who worked as a journalist during the 1999 conflict.[5]
The film was launched in May 2016 with promotional stills from a shoot released shortly after.[6][7] The film's first schedule was completed in July 2016 with Suhasini and K. Viswanath also joining the cast. It was then shot in Dharamsala, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kerala, Mumbai, Switzerland, and Italy. In August 2017, the Tamil title was changed from Kadhalin Ponveedhiyil to Sollividava.[8] The Kannada title of Prema Baraha is derived from Arjun Sarja's song Prema Baraha Koti Taraha from the film Prathap (1990).[9]
Soundtrack
edit| Prema Baraha | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 2017 | |||
| Recorded | 2017 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Label | U1 Records (Tamil) Divo (Tamil/Kannada) | |||
| Producer | Jassie Gift | |||
| Jassie Gift chronology | ||||
| ||||
Jassie Gift has composed the score and songs for the film, with Divo releasing the soundtrack in Kannada and U1 Records in Tamil. The heroine introduction theme included in the album was composed by Aruldev. The title track is based on the song "Prema Baraha" from the Kannada film Prathap (1990).
- Kannada version
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Prema Baraha" | Hamsalekha | Armaan Malik, Palak Muchhal | 5:05 |
| 2. | "Manase Manase" | Arjun, Kaviraj | M. M. Keeravani, Harini | 5:16 |
| 3. | "Jai Hanumantha" | Vijaya Narasimha, Gotturi | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Tippu | 5:07 |
| 4. | "Rama Rama" | V. Nagendra Prasad | Haricharan, Anitha Karthikeyan | 3:58 |
| 5. | "Paan Banaras" | Ghouse Peer | Karthik, Priya Himesh | 4:12 |
| 6. | "Prema Baraha (Mashup mix)" | — | Jassie Gift, Arjun Sarja, Chandan Shetty, Harini | 2:48 |
| 7. | "Manase Manase (Solo)" | Arjun, Kaviraj | M. M. Keeravani | 5:15 |
| 8. | "Introduction theme" | — | Instrumental | 1:15 |
- Tamil version
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mashup Mix" | — | Jassie Gift, Arjun Sarja, Chandan Shetty | 2:48 |
| 2. | "Uyire Uyire" | Madhan Karky | G. V. Prakash Kumar, Harini | 5:16 |
| 3. | "Jai Hanumantha" | Vijaya Narasimha, Gotturi | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Tippu | 5:07 |
| 4. | "Rama Rama" | Viveka | Haricharan, Anitha Karthikeyan | 3:58 |
| 5. | "Paan Banaras" | Pa. Vijay | Karthik, Priya Himesh | 4:12 |
| 6. | "Uyire Uyire (Solo)" | Madhan Karky | G. V. Prakash Kumar, Harini | 5:15 |
| 7. | "Heroine Introduction Music" | — | Instrumental | 1:15 |
| 8. | "Sollividava" | Madhan Karky | Sathyaprakash Dharmar, Harini | 5:03 |
Critical reception
editKannada version
editA critic from The Times of India wrote that "Watch this film if you're a fan of the stereotypical commercial fare, replete with comedy, sentiments, action and romance".[10] A critic from Deccan Chronicle opined that "Unfortunately, the brilliant actor Arjun Sarja falls short in deploying the right force and making use of the right kind of ammunition for this kind of lovely mission".[11]
Tamil version
editA critic from The Hindu said that "What lets the film down is Arjun's unfocussed writing, un-missable lectures on nationalism and using stock Kargil war footage liberally instead of staging the war".[12] A critic from The New Indian Express stated that "On the whole, it's just a run-of-the-mill romantic film which has almost no redeeming factors".[13]
References
edit- ^ "As a director, I should be open to directing all genres: Arjun Sarja- The New Indian Express". 5 February 2018. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
- ^ Ramanujam, Srinivasa (7 February 2018). "The "message" in a film is as important as the characters, says Arjun - The Hindu". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 30 March 2018. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
- ^ "Arjun Directs Daughter Aishwarya". Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ "Prema Baraha by Arjun Sarja". Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "Challenging role for Aishwarya in Solli Vidavaa". 30 January 2018. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "Prema Baraha launched". Archived from the original on 30 September 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ "Arjun's big effort for his daughter – Tamil Movie News – IndiaGlitz.com". 22 May 2016. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- ^ "Kadhalin Pon Veedhiyil is now Solli Vidava". 12 June 2017. Archived from the original on 17 August 2017. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "Prema-Baraha-by-Arjun-Sarja". newindianexpres. 16 May 2016. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016.
- ^ "Prema Baraha Review {2.5/5}: Watch this film if you're a fan of the stereotypical commercial fare". The Times of India.
- ^ "Prema Baraha movie review: War & love for a song!". 10 February 2018. Archived from the original on 15 September 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ Naig, Udhav (10 February 2018). "Sollividava review: Love in the time of Kargil war". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ "'Sollividava' movie review: A wannabe Dil Se". Archived from the original on 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
External links
edit- Prema Baraha at IMDb
- Prema Baraha on Facebook