Naan Mahaan Alla (2010 film)

Naan Mahaan Alla (transl. I'm no saint) is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language action film[1][2][3] written and directed by Suseenthiran. It stars Karthi, Kajal Aggarwal, Jayaprakash, Vinoth Kishan and Soori. Actor Vijay Sethupathi makes a cameo appearance in the film.[4] It features music scored by Yuvan Shankar Raja and cinematography handled by R. Madhi and was produced by K. E. Gnanavelraja and distributed by Dayanidhi Azhagiri's Cloud Nine Movies.[5]

This article is about the 2010 film. For the 1984 film, see Naan Mahaan Alla (1984 film).

Naan Mahaan Alla
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySuseenthiran
Produced by
Written by
Starring
Music byYuvan Shankar Raja
CinematographyR. Madhi
Edited byKasi Viswanathan
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • 20 August 2010 (2010-08-20)
Running time
131 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Set in Chennai, the narrative revolves around Jeeva, an unemployed and carefree young man whose father becomes the target of a gang of young criminals after witnessing a kidnapping. When attempts on his life are made, Jeeva undergoes a serious transformation as the gang continues to plan and eliminate his father with the help of a professional killer.

The film, not related to the 1984 film of the same name[6] and based on a real-life incident,[7] released on 20 August 2010 to positive reviews, with critics praising the performances, action sequences and realistic tone. It was later dubbed in Telugu as Naa Peru Shiva (transl. My name is Shiva) and released across 230 screens in Andhra Pradesh, where it was also commercially successful.[8][9] The acclaimed climax fight sequence would later go on to become the benchmark for the makers of Karthi's 2019 action film Kaithi.[10]

Plot

Jeeva is a Chennai-based youngster who hails from a middle-class family. His father Pragasam is a call taxi driver and the family's sole breadwinner. Jeeva meets a woman named Priya at their friend's wedding and soon they fall for each other. Upon meeting Priya's father, Jeeva is asked to get a job first in order to get married. Jeeva accepts, taking the job but soon gets fired. However, Pragasam, who had witnessed a girl being taken away by a group of 5 young men, gets attacked by them. He is admitted to hospital where they try to kill him again in absence of Jeeva but fail to do so. Pragasam is brought home and Jeeva starts taking responsibility for his family by reclaiming his lost job and maintaining all the accounts. Looking at the news reports of the girl that boarded his taxi and got mutilated by the 5 guys, Pragasam calls Jeeva to accompany him to the morgue where he helps the investigating officer by providing him clues about the killer. Sensing trouble, the gang enlists the help of Pey Babu, the uncle of one of the members, to plan and kill Pragasam after explaining how they killed the girl and her lover. When Pragasam and Jeeva go out to shop for the latter's sister's wedding, one of the men calls Jeeva on behalf of a store, thus separating him from his father. The men then create a stampede by throwing bottles as one of them stabs Pragasam with a piece of poisoned glass shrapnel. Pragasam instantly dies in Jeeva's arms and following his cremation, Jeeva tells the cops not to pursue the killers anymore as it would bring nothing but trouble for his middle-class family.

However, Jeeva undergoes a violent transformation and decides to take the law into his hands, fearing the gang might commit more inhumane crimes if left free. He recalls one of the men, during his father's death, looked the same as Pragasam described him during his visit to the morgue. Jeeva enlists the help of his friend Kutti Nadesan, a Chennai gangster, to track down the gang. Kutti Nadesan with his influence asks his gang to bring all the guys who plan for a murder in Chennai, so that Jeeva can identify him. While Jeeva is busy identifying the killers, Pey Babu leaves upon being questioned by Nadesan. Jeeva realizes Pey Babu was the man who delivered pamphlets at his home before Pragasam's murder. A chase ensues, and Jeeva succeeds in capturing Pey Babu after a brief fight. He orders him to call the boys and tell them to stay in front of their college. Jeeva succeeds in capturing his father's killer and tries to escape, but the gang gets alerted and ends up freeing their friend from Jeeva's custody following a glass bottle attack. One of the gang members stabs Pey Babu to his death. Jeeva chases the attacker near a railway line where the two brutally fight, resulting in the attacker getting run over by a train.

Jeeva visits the deceased gang member's funeral to catch his friends, who escape before Jeeva sees them. They go to the beach and Nadesan is also there along with his henchmen. The gang gets drunk and vows to kill Jeeva, who contacts Nadesan to find out about the four remaining boys. However, noticing the boys yelling, Nadesan asks for specifics and confirms the gang's location at the beach. While trying to confront the gang, Nadesan and his henchmen are lured into a trap where they're all eliminated one-by-one before Jeeva arrives. A brutal fight ensues, leaving the gang members fatally wounded. Jeeva throws them into a pit and departs after burying all of them alive.

Cast

Production

Development

After his first feature film Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu, released in February 2009, became a success, receiving much critical acclaim as well, director Suseenthiran started to work on the script for his next film. Initially planning to do one titled Azhagarsamiyin Kudhirai, which failed to commence due to financial problems, he decided to first direct a film featuring a known lead actor, before coming back to that film.[12] He was ready with the script by August 2009, revealing details about the project. While his previous work was based on sporting incidents in a rural background, this one was said to be a "total city subject", shot entirely in Chennai.[13] An action family entertainer, it would deal about problems in city life, according to Suseenthiran.[13] On 19 August 2009, it was announced that the film was titled Naan Mahaan Alla and would be produced by K. E. Gnanavelraja under the banner of Studio Green, who earlier had produced Suriya's Sillunu Oru Kadhal and the award-winning Paruthiveeran by Ameer Sultan, which incidentally also starred Karthi in the lead role.[14] It was reportedly based on a real-life incident that happened to one of the relatives of director Suseenthiran.[15] He scripted the film for five months.[16]

Casting

While Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu (Suseenthiran's first feature film) starred mostly newcomers, he chose Karthi for the lead role in this film as he felt that Karthi has an "innocence in his face" that was needed for this role and that he could "convey charm, innocence and being jolly at the same time".[13] For the lead female role, Kajal Aggarwal, who had appeared in Tamil films like Pazhani, Saroja and Modhi Vilayadu, was roped in. Suseenthiran chose her after seeing her performances in the Telugu films Chandamama and Magadheera. He felt that her "cute expressions" were what he needed for that character.[13] While Karthi's character is a middle-class bank employee, Aggarwal would play an employee in a mobile phone company.[13]

Soori, who also played a comedic role in Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu was again included, while Jayaprakash, who played several supporting roles and rose to fame with his performance in Pasanga was chosen to play Karthi's father.[16] As in his previous film, Suseenthiran introduced several new artists,[16] such as five boys who played the villains with one of them being Vinod who played the younger character of Surya in Nandha.[17] According to the director, he found three of them "loitering on a popular road in the city", whilst cinematographer Vijay Milton's assistant Ramachandran Durairaj and cinematographer Aruldoss debuted and played pivotal roles.[18]

Filming

Filming began, after ten days of rehearsals,[16] on 4 September 2009 and was held in cities as Chennai, Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam.[14] In mid-September, reported locations included East Coast Road (ECR) near Chennai[19] and later in the environs of the highways near Poonamallee in Chennai.[20]

Soundtrack
Naan Mahaan Alla
Soundtrack album by
Yuvan Shankar Raja
Released16 July 2010
Recorded2009-10
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length24:21
LabelThink Music
ProducerYuvan Shankar Raja
Yuvan Shankar Raja chronology
Thillalangadi
(2010)		 Naan Mahaan Alla
(2010)		 Boss Engira Bhaskaran
(2010)
Singles from Naan Mahaan Alla
  1. "Iragai Pole"
    Released: 16 July 2010

The soundtrack of Naan Mahaan Alla is composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja, making this his third collaboration with Karthi, after scoring highly successful results with Paruthiveeran (2007) and Paiyaa (2010),[21][22] and his first with director Suseenthiran, who worked with V. Selvaganesh for his previous film. The soundtrack album, which was released on 16 July 2010 at Sathyam Cinemas, Chennai,[23] features five songs, with lyrics penned by Na. Muthukumar and Yuga Bharathy. The song "Va Va Nilava Pudichi" is repeated at the end of the album, with singer Rahul Nambiar credited for both. Nambiar, however, stated on his Facebook site that two versions were recorded featuring his and Haricharan's voice, respectively, but that both songs in the album were rendered by Haricharan only and his own version wasn't included at all. The songs were later dubbed for the Telugu version Naa Peru Shiva. The Telugu album was launched on 25 June 2011.[24]

Only three songs were used in the film in their entirety, with "Oru Maalai Neram" being left out completely. The album received extremely positive reviews, with "Iragai Pole" in particular, sung by composer Yuvan Shankar Raja, becoming hugely popular, topping the charts for several weeks.[25] Before the soundtrack release, Yuvan claimed on Twitter that the song was one of his favorites, on which he had worked for days.[26] After seeing the entire film, he was said to have remixed and completely reworked that song, altering the orchestration inter alia, to match it with the visuals.[27] He garnered accolades for the film's score as well. As per Suseenthiran, the music was "crucial" in the second half of the film, which was the reason for opting for Yuvan Shankar.[16] According to Karthi, Yuvan had worked for 12 days for the score of the second half, which has "hardly any dialogues", adding that he was the one "who narrates the story in the second half through his music".[27]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Va Va Nilava Pudichi"Na. MuthukumarHaricharan04:47
2."Iragai Pole"YugabharathiYuvan Shankar Raja, Tanvi Shah05:19
3."Oru Maalai Neram" (Not featured in the film)Na. MuthukumarJaved Ali, Shilpa Rao04:46
4."Theivam Illai"YugabharathyMadhu Balakrishnan04:41
5."Va Va Nilava Pudichi II"Na. MuthukumarHaricharan04:47
Total length:24:21

Release

Reception

Naan Mahaan Alla received positive reviews, with Top10Cinema.com labelling Naan Mahaan Alla as "outstanding", proceeding to highlight that "almost everything works: the plot and screenplay, performances, technical panoramas",[28] while Pavithra Srinivasan of Rediff.com described it as "almost perfect", giving it 3 out of 5.[29] Sreedhar Pillai of Sify.com also gave a very positive verdict, stating that director Suseenthiran comes up with a "rocker of a film" that is "refreshingly fresh, innovative and packaged in a breezy manner within the commercial format", adding that it is "engrossing and racy".[30] Furthermore, he praised lead actor Karthi's "power packed" performance, citing that he "nails the character to perfection" and "carries the film to its winning point". Similarly Times of India reviewer Bhama Devi Ravi, gave 3.5 out of 5, claiming the film to be "entertaining almost till the end", whilst addressing high praise to both Suseenthiran, who according to her is "turning out to be a treasure", and Karthi, whose performance she described as his "best work yet".[31] Behindwoods gave the movie 2.5 out of 5 and said "Although there are a few slow patches, Suseendiran should be appreciated for coalescing the energy and entertainment of a mainstream film with a sensitivity of a realistic one. He has the wholesome attention of the audience in most parts."[32]

Box office

The film opened well,[33][34] and made a steady progress in the Chennai box office,[35][36][37] eventually becoming a very successful venture.[38] In five weeks Naan Mahaan Alla made a collection of ₹ 5 crore; 4.47 crore was collected in Chennai city alone.[39]

Accolades
Award Category Name Outcome
2011 Edison Awards[40]
 Best Character Actor Jayaprakash Won
Best Villain Mahi, Anbu, Iman, Vinoth and Arun Won
Best PRO (Public Relations Officer) John Won
Best Supporting Actress Neelima Rani Won
58th Filmfare Awards South[41]
 Best Music Director Yuvan Shankar Raja Nominated
Best Male Playback Yuvan Shankar Raja for Iragai Pole Nominated
5th Vijay Awards
 Best Actor Karthi Nominated
Best Villain Vinoth Kishan Nominated
Best Art Director Rajeevan Nominated
Best Stunt Director Anal Arasu Won
Best Editor Kasi Viswanathan Won
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References
  1. "Heroes turn real again". The Hindu. Retrieved 2 October 2010. Naan Mahaan Alla is a realistic action film that tries to fight off formula with its vulnerability and raw, street treatment.
  2. "Naan Mahaan Alla (2010) - Susindran". AllMovie.
  3. "Director Suseenthiran's film undergoes a title change". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 16 August 2017. Like my earlier movie Naan Mahan Alla, this is also an offbeat action film where I have touched upon a social issue.
  4. "Vijay Sethupathi played a role in 'Naan Mahaan Alla'". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  5. "Karthi — Tamil Movie News — Dayanidhi opts for Karthi... Udhayanidhi prefers Arya – Karthi | Arya | Naan Mahaan Alla | Madharasapattinam". Behindwoods.com. 22 June 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  6. "Eagerly awaiting Karthi's Naan Mahaan Alla: Rediff.com Movies". Movies.rediff.com. 18 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  7. "Actor Karthi — Tamil Cinema Actor Interview – Karthi | Naan Mahaan Alla | Kajal Agarwal | Paiyaa | Tamannah — Behindwoods.com". Videos.behindwoods.com. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  8. Anupama Subramanian DC chennai (12 August 2011). "Karthi hits T'wood big time". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  9. "Naa Peru Vasudev is a success". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2012.
  10. "I didn't want to be a one-film wonder: Lokesh Kanagaraj". The Indian Express. Retrieved 15 November 2019. We were shooting live-action sequences, and Karthi had to perform risky stunts on a moving lorry. Our benchmark was the Naan Mahan Alla climax portions.
  11. "Vijay Sethupathi played a role in 'Naan Mahaan Alla' - Times of India". The Times of India.
  12. "Director Suseendiran — Tamil Cinema Director Interview — Suseendiran | Vennila Kabbadi Kuzhu | Naan Mahaan Alla | Azhagar Saamiyin Kudirai | Gautham Menon — Behindwoods.com". Videos.behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  13. "Karthi is My Hero - Susi". top10cinema.com. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
  14. "It's Naan Mahan Illai for Karthi!". Times of India. 19 August 2009. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
  15. "Bride hunting starts for Karthi — Tamil Movie News". IndiaGlitz. 30 July 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  16. Rangarajan, Malathi (1 July 2010). "Good tidings continue". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  17. "Suseendran's fantastic five — Tamil Movie News". IndiaGlitz. 3 September 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  18. "Suseenthiran to release a telegu film?". The Times Of India. 3 September 2010.
  19. "Naan Mahaan Alla shooting in ECR". Ayngaran. Retrieved 17 September 2009.
  20. "Karthi Shoots For Naan Mahaan Alla". top10cinema.com. Archived from the original on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  21. "Naan Mahan Alla — Movie Preview". Southdreamz.com. 1 June 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  22. "NAAN MAHAAN ALLA MUSIC REVIEW — NAAN MAHAAN ALLA MP3 DOWNLOAD — TAMIL MOVIE NAAN MAHAAN ALLA MUSIC REVIEW - TAMIL SONGS DOWNLOAD — TAMIL FILM MUSIC — NAAN MAHAAN ALLA MP3 - NAAN MAHAAN ALLA SONGS". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  23. "Naan Mahan Alla audio launched!". Sify.com. 16 July 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  24. "Naa Peru Shiva Audio Release". Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  25. "Naan Mahaan Alla Has Been Passed With 'U/A' | News — General". Top 10 Cinema. 4 August 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  26. "I have sung one of my favourites in NMA: Yuvan - Tamil Movie News". IndiaGlitz. 7 July 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  27. "Actor Karthi — Tamil Cinema Actor Interview - Karthi | Naan Mahaan Alla | Kajal Agarwal | Paiyaa | Tamannah - Behindwoods.com". Videos.behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  28. "Naan Mahaan Alla | Movie Review". Top 10 Cinema. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  29. "Naan Mahaan Alla is almost perfect: Rediff.com Movies". Movies.rediff.com. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  30. "Movie Review:Naan Mahaan Alla". Sify.com. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  31. Bhama Devi Ravi (21 August 2010). "Naan Mahaan Alla movie review: Wallpaper, Story, Trailer at Times of India". The Times of India. TNN. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  32. "Naan Mahaan Alla Movie Review". Behindwoods. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  33. "Naan Mahaan Alla - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Top Ten Movies - Naan Mahaan Alla | Karthi | Kajal Agarwal | Suseendran | Yuvan Shankar Raja | Cloud Nine". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  34. "Naan Mahaan Alla - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Top Ten Movies - Naan Mahaan Alla | Karthi | Kajal Agarwal | Suseendran | Yuvan Shankar Raja | Cloud Nine". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  35. "Naan Mahaan Alla - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Top Ten Movies - Bale Pandiya Vamsam Naan Mahaan Alla Inidhu Inidhu Irandu Mugam". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  36. "Naan Mahaan Alla - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Top Ten Movies — Inithu Inithu Bale Pandiya Drohi Naan Mahaan Alla Boss Engira Baskaran". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  37. "Naan Mahaan Alla — Behindwoods.com - Tamil Top Ten Movies — Bale Pandiya Drohi Vandae Maatharam Naan Mahaan Alla Boss Engira Baskaran". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  38. "Naan Mahaan Alla - Behindwoods.com — Tamil Top Ten Movies - Bale Pandiya Drohi Vandae Maatharam Naan Mahaan Alla Boss Engira Baskaran". Behindwoods.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  39. "TOP 20 CHENNAI BOX OFFICE COLLECTION OF 2010 - Behindwoods.com - Tamil Movie Slide Shows - Endhiran | Nandalala | Myna | Singam | Paiyaa | Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa | Naan Mahaan Alla | Uthama Puthiran | Angadi Theru". Behindwoods.com. 20 August 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  40. "4th Edison Awards 2011 Winners". reviews.in.88db.com. 14 February 2011. Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
  41. "Nominees of Idea Filmfare Awards South". Indiaglitz. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
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