Anjaneya (film)
Anjaneya is a 2003 Indian Tamil-language action film directed by N. Maharajan, featuring Ajith Kumar, Meera Jasmine in lead roles, alongside an ensemble cast. The film, produced by S. S. Chakravarthy, had its score and soundtrack composed by Mani Sharma. The film opened in 2003 Deepavali releases with Vijay's Thirumalai and the film gained negative reviews with critics[1] and failed at the box office.[2][3] The film was later dubbed into Hindi under the same name in 2012.
| Aanjaneya | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | N. Maharajan |
| Produced by | S. S. Chakravarthy |
| Written by | N. Maharajan |
| Starring | Ajith Kumar Meera Jasmine Raghuvaran Seetha Jaya Prakash Reddy FEFSI Vijayan Ramesh Khanna Anu Hasan Girish Karnad Mansoor Ali Khan Ponnambalam |
| Music by | Mani Sharma |
| Cinematography | P. Selvakumar |
| Edited by | B. S. Vasu-Saleem |
Production company | Nic Arts |
Release date | 24 October 2003 |
Running time | 174 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Plot
ACP Paramaguru (Ajith Kumar) is an efficient police officer who fights with the scum of the society. He later masquerades as a thief to infiltrate into the underworld. The bad guys are surprised to find that Paramguru is the ACP and is out to get them, so they all gang up against him. In this process, a thrilling encounter takes place between the good and the evil. Paramaguru is helped in his fight against injustice by Divya (Meera Jasmine), who falls in love with him.
Cast
- Ajith Kumar as ACP Paramaguru
- Meera Jasmine as Divya
- Raghuvaran as Venketeaswaran, Paramaguru's father
- Seetha as Prabhakaran's mother
- Jaya Prakash Reddy as Jaya Prakash
- FEFSI Vijayan as Vettu Ramasamy
- Ramesh Khanna as Kolai
- Kovai Sarala as Old Thief
- Adithya Menon as Siva
- P. Vasu as DGP
- Anu Hasan as Anu, Paramaguru's sister
- Ilavarasu as Eshwarapandiyan, Paramaguru's uncle
- Mohan Raman as Divya's father, Advocate
- Girish Karnad as Retired Judge
- Mansoor Ali Khan as Contractor
- Ponnambalam as Veerapan
- Mahanadi Shankar as Kulithalai Samy
- Thalaivasal Vijay as Government Employee
- Vietnam Veedu Sundaram as Paramaguru's neighbor
- Manivannan as Paramaguru's neighbour
- Rajesh as Education officer
- Besant Ravi as Jaya Prakash's henchman
- LIC Narasimhan as Judge
- Sampath Ram as Palani Mani
- Ravikanth as Police
- Rathi special appearance in "Pavadai" song
Production
The leading female role was eventually handed to Meera Jasmine even though Reemma Sen was also approached earlier for the film.[4] The film feature Ajith Kumar in his first role as a police officer, before further appearances in Aegan, Mankatha, Arrambam and Yennai Arindhaal.[5] The film was shot within 47 days, with Ajith reportedly working extra time to complete scenes. Producers downplayed any publicity for the film, releasing the audio with little fanfare and not releasing a teaser trailer.[5]
Soundtrack
| Anjaneya | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |
| Released | 22 July 2003 |
| Recorded | 2003 |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Length | 28:46 |
| Label | Star Music |
| Producer | Mani Sharma |
The soundtrack features 5 songs composed by Mani Sharma and lyrics were written by Vairamuthu and Kabilan.[6]
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Agap Porula" | Kabilan | P. Unnikrishnan, Sujatha | 5:52 |
| 2. | "Ovvoru Naalum" | Kabilan | Tippu, Chorus | 6:05 |
| 3. | "Paavadai Panjavarnam" | Kabilan | Shankar Mahadevan, Chorus | 5:15 |
| 4. | "Paisa Gopuram" | Vairamuthu | Karthik, Anuradha Sriram | 5:30 |
| 5. | "Vennila Vennila" | Vairamuthu | Udit Narayan, Harini | 6:04 |
| Total length: | 28:46 | |||
Reception
Made on a high budget of ₹10 crore, Anjaneya received high negative reviews from audience and critics, with the critic from The Hindu that “Ajith's acting was immatured” also claiming"the lack of consistency in the affects the film no end", criticizing Maharajan's direction.[7][8] The movie ended as a flop at the box office. The satellite rights of the film were sold to Jaya TV. The movie stopped playing in theaters within a week. Meanwhile, Thirumalai, which released alongside this film became a blockbuster and started his rival Vijay's ascendancy.
Prior to release, Telugu actor Rajasekhar bought the remake rights of the film, however plans were dropped after the commercial failure of the film.
This film, along with Alwar, are considered Ajith's worst films ever.
References
- "ஆஞ்சநேயா - தமிழ் திரைப்பட விமர்சனம்". thiraipadam.com. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
- Vignesh (29 October 2017). "Ajith Hit, Flop, Blockbuster Movies | Thala Ajith Kumar Films List". Scooptimes - Latest Online News. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
- roar.media https://roar.media/tamil/entertainment/thala-ajith-flop-movies/. Retrieved 15 January 2019. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - "Meera Jasmine confirmed! 'Anchaneya's confusions end". www.ajithkumar.fr.fm. 28 June 2003. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
- "Variety fare for Deepavali". The Hindu. 24 October 2003. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
- Anjaneya Tamil Movie Songs Download & Listen To Music By Mani Sharma – Listen High Quality mp3 Anjaneya – Songs Free @. Starmusiq.com. Retrieved on 5 February 2017.
- "Anjaneya". The Hindu. 7 November 2003. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
- HostOnNet.com. "BizHat.com — Anjaneya Review. Ajith, Meera Jasmine, Raghuvaran, Anu Hassan, Manivannan". Movies.bizhat.com. Retrieved 30 July 2013.