Thalapathi

Thalapathi (transl. The Commander) is a 1991 Indian Tamil-language crime drama film written and directed by Mani Ratnam, and produced by G. Venkateswaran. The film stars Rajinikanth, leading an ensemble cast including Mammootty, Arvind, Jaishankar, Amrish Puri, Srividya, Bhanupriya, Shobana, and Geetha in supporting roles. It revolves around a courageous slum dweller who befriends a powerful don, and a district collector's attempts to thwart them.

"Thalapathy" redirects here. For the Indian actor referred to by the same name, see Vijay (actor).

Thalapathi
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMani Ratnam
Produced byG. Venkateswaran
Written byMani Ratnam
Starring
Music byIlaiyaraaja
CinematographySantosh Sivan
Edited bySuresh Urs
Production
company
G. V. Films
Release date
  • 5 November 1991 (1991-11-05)
Running time
167 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil
Budget₹ 30 million[2]

The theme of Thalapathi is based on the friendship between Karna and Duryodhana, characters from the Hindu epic, Mahabharata. The score and soundtrack of the film were composed by Ilaiyaraaja, in his last collaboration with Ratnam, and the lyrics were written by poet Vaali. The cinematography was handled by Santosh Sivan, and editing by Suresh Urs. Filming took place primarily in the state of Karnataka.

Thalapathi was released on 5 November 1991, Diwali day. The film emerged a critical and commercial success, and won two Filmfare Awards South: Best Director – Tamil and Best Music Director – Tamil. It was later remade in Kannada as Annavru (2003). It is also dubbed in Hindi as Dalapathi.

Plot

14-year-old Kalyani delivers a boy in seclusion, fearing societal backlash and incapacity. She abandons him, heavy-hearted, placing him inside a moving goods train, which a slum dweller finds. The slum procures him as their common child, naming him Surya and they collectively raise him honest. He grows up, intolerant of injustice especially to the poor, though he wonders why his biological mother had impetuously abandoned him. A yellow shawl was the only identity he had of his mother, which she had placed him in when casting him away.

Devaraj, a powerful don who is kind yet feared by most in the society, also fights injustice, but by violent means. Ramana, an auxiliary of Deva's, whose abusive demeanour led Surya to attack him, succumbs to his death. Surya gets apprehended for this. An exasperated Deva soon perceives Ramana's felony, realises Surya's cause was genuine and bails him out. Thus, Surya and Deva get to understand each other as both share similar social ideologies despite getting off on the wrong foot. Deva declares Surya his "Thalapathi" (commander) and best friend.

Arjun, the city's new district collector, wants to end violence by lawful means. He is the second son of Kalyani, now a doctor. After the abandonment of her firstborn, she wed a man who accepted her, despite knowing her past. Never did Kalyani let Arjun know the ordeal she faced as a teen, but is constantly grieved by thoughts of her long-lost first child. Meanwhile, Surya gets wooed by a Brahmin girl, Subbalakshmi who is smitten by his transparent nature, restraining crimes.

Surya's appraisal to Deva leads the people in the locality to pay utmost respect to both. Both of them continue objecting to societal incongruencies, which other dons, like Kalivardhan, incite through moles in governance. While Deva leads Surya to help curb those unlawful discrepancies, Subbalakshmi initially despises Surya's use of violence and tries to persuade him against it. Deva tries to get an alliance between Subbalakshmi and Surya, but her Orthodox father opposes her marriage to Surya, an orphan. Her marriage is subsequently arranged with Arjun.

Arjun turns to target Deva and Surya as they inflict violence, in the name of fighting organised crime. His attempts to chain them are futile. Meanwhile, Padma, Ramana's widow, makes Surya feel guilty for the sufferings he brought her by killing Ramana. Deva, understanding the pain a widow and single mother bears, shelters them. Padma, however, confesses that she is constantly troubled by the men surrounding her with dishonourable intentions, who concoct reasons to make advances towards her. Deva, considering Padma and her daughter's safety and Surya's future, requests both of them to accept each other. A guilt-ridden Surya marries Padma, and wins her child's affection eventually.

Later, at a medical camp, Kalyani meets Padma and her daughter along with the same shawl in which she wrapped Surya. Kalyani's husband, too, indicates that Surya was actually Kalyani's long lost son during a suspect identification. He secretly meets Surya and reveals the truth of his origin to him. Surya asks his stepfather to promise not to let his mother know of him as it would pain her to know that her son has grown to be a vigilante. Kalyani eventually finds Surya and meets him. Surya vows that he will not harm Arjun for her sake.

The long-standing feud between Deva and Kalivardhan, who is Deva's main rival, in due course of time, makes Surya admit the truth about his family when Deva doubts Surya's intentions after learning of his secret meeting with his stepfather and mother. Deva is pleased to know that, despite knowing Arjun was his half-brother, Surya still preferred to side with him and support him during unforeseen situations, thus valuing their friendship over family. As an outcome of this, Deva decides to surrender.

Deva and Surya meet Arjun, who now knows who Surya is through his mother. Suddenly, Kalivardhan's men open fire, and Deva is killed in the shootout. Filled with anger and vengance on the death of his best friend, Surya murders Kalivardhan's henchmen and proceeds to murder Kalivardhan. He surrenders to the police, but is released due to lack of evidence. Arjun is later transferred and relocates to another city with Subbalakshmi, while Kalyani prefers staying with Surya.

Cast

Production

Development

Rajinikanth was a friend of Mani Ratnam's brother G. Venkateswaran, and they were talking about a film together. Ratnam had met him twice because he had expressed interest in working with him, although Ratnam did not have anything for him then.[6] He needed a film that would have scope for Rajinikanth's stardom but yet remain Ratnam's film. He wanted something right for both himself and Rajinikanth. He wanted something that Rajinikanth could not refuse, and something that Ratnam really wanted to do. And then the concept came up, of the story of Karna from the Indian epic Mahabharata, which thus laid the foundation for Thalapathi, written as a contemporary version of the Mahabharata told from Karna's perspective.[6] Ratnam wanted to present a realistic Rajinikanth, which he saw in Mullum Malarum (1978) minus all his style elements.[7] This was cinematographer Santosh Sivan's first film with Ratnam.[8][9] Editing was handled by Suresh Urs, and art direction by Thota Tharani.[1] Thalapathi remains the only collaboration between Ratnam and Rajinikanth.[10]

Casting

Rajinikanth played Surya, the equivalent of Karna. Mammootty's character Deva was the equivalent of Karna's friend Duryodhana, Shobana's character Subhalakshmi was based on Draupadi, while Arvind Swami (credited mononymously as Arvind) and Srividya played characters based on Arjuna and Kunti respectively.[11] This was Arvind's acting debut in film.[12] Jayaram was initially considered for the role of Arjun, but rejected the offer due to scheduling conflicts. It was Mammootty who suggested Jayaram to Ratnam.[13] Krishna was chosen to play the younger version of Surya, but the character was later scrapped because it affected the film's length.[14] Malayalam actor Manoj K. Jayan was cast after Ratnam was impressed with his performance in the Malayalam film Perumthachan (1990), thus making his acting debut in Tamil cinema.[15]

Filming
Rayagopura, Melkote seen in the song "Rakkamma"

Ratnam chose to shoot the beginning sequence in black and white instead of colour, because according to him, "Black and white gives the sense of this being a prologue without us having to define it as a prologue." He also refused to state who was the father of Surya, citing that the film "consciously avoids the who and the how of the underage girl's first love. It was the child, the son of Surya, who formed the story".[16] Rajinikanth recalled that he had a tough time while shooting for the film as Ratnam "was from a different school of film making and asked me to feel emotions even when taking part in a fight scene".[17]

The songs "Rakkamma" and "Sundari" were filmed at Rayagopura, Melukote and Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura in Karnataka respectively.[18][19] For the latter song, Rajinikanth donned Samurai apparel; according to The Hindu's S. Shiva Kumar, this was the closest Ratnam came to doing something like his idol Akira Kurosawa.[20] Thalapathi was the most expensive South Indian film at the time, with a budget of ₹30 million ($1.3 million in 1991).[2][21]

Music
Thalapathi
Soundtrack album by
Ilaiyaraaja
Released1991
GenreSoundtrack
Length32:30
LabelLahari Music
ProducerIlaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja chronology
Anjali
(1990)		 Thalapathi
(1991)		 Mannan
(1992)

The music score for the film was composed by Ilaiyaraaja,[22] in his last collaboration with Mani Ratnam.[23] The recording for "Sundari" took place in Mumbai with R. D. Burman's orchestra.[24] According to Santosh Sivan, Ilaiyaraaja finished composing the entire soundtrack in "half a day".[25] The original Tamil version of the soundtrack album features seven songs with lyrics written by Vaali, who also penned for the Malayalam version also. The Telugu version features lyrics penned by Rajashri.[26] The Hindi-dubbed version Dalapathi has six songs, where the rest of them have seven in album, and were penned by P. K. Mishra.[27]

The audio rights were sold to Lahari Music for ₹72 lakh (equivalent to ₹5.0 crore or US$700,000 in 2019), then a record price.[28] The soundtrack was included in The Guardian's 1000 Albums to Hear Before You Die.[29] The song "Rakkamma Kaiya Thattu", performed by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and Swarnalatha, was placed fourth amongst the songs listed in a BBC World Top Ten Popular Songs of All-time.[30] It was also featured in the 2012 Bollywood film Agent Vinod, and Lahari took "legal action" against the producer of the film Saif Ali Khan, because he used the song without permission.[31][32]

All lyrics are written by Vaali; all music is composed by Ilaiyaraaja.

Tamil[22]
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Yamunai Aatrile"Mitali Banerjee Bhawmik1:22
2."Rakkamma Kaiya Thattu"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Swarnalatha7:10
3."Sundari Kannal"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, S. Janaki7:14
4."Kaattukuyilu"K. J. Yesudas, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam5:32
5."Putham Puthu Poo"Yesudas, S. Janaki5:00
6."Chinna Thayaval"S. Janaki3:23
7."Margazhithan"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Swarnalatha, Chorus2:39

All lyrics are written by P. K. Mishra; all music is composed by Ilaiyaraaja.

Hindi[27]
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Yamuna Kinare"Sadhana Sargam1:22
2."Jaaneman Aaja Aaja"Kumar Sanu, Sadhana Sargam7:10
3."Sundari Yeh Jeevan Tera"Suresh Wadkar, Sadhana Sargam7:14
4."In Aankhon Ka Tu Tara" (Version 1)Kavitha Krishnamurthy5:32
5."In Aankhon Ka Tu Tara" (Version 2)Kavitha Krishnamurti3:23
6."Aayi Holi"Udit Narayan, Abhijeet2:39

All lyrics are written by Rajashri; all music is composed by Ilaiyaraaja.

Telugu[26]
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Yamuna Thatilo"Swarnalatha1:22
2."Chilakamma Chitikeyanga"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra7:10
3."Sundari Nuvve"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra7:14
4."Singarala"K. J. Yesudas, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam5:32
5."Mudda Banthi Puvvulo"Mano, Swarnalatha5:00
6."Ada Janmaku"P. Susheela3:23
7."Yamuna Thatilo" (Sad)Swarnalatha, Chorus1:47

All lyrics are written by Vaali; all music is composed by Ilaiyaraaja.

Malayalam
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Yamunayaattile"K. S. Chithra1:22
2."Raakkamma"M. G. Sreekumar, Swarnalatha7:10
3."Sundari Kannal"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, S. Janaki7:14
4."Kattukuyilin Manasinullin"M. G. Sreekumar, K. G. Markose5:32
5."Putham Puthu Poo"K. J. Yesudas, S. Janaki5:00
6."Kannippaal Nilaa Vettam"K. S. Chithra3:23
7."Seethaakalyaana Vaibhogame"Swarnalatha, Chorus1:47

Marketing

In a first-of-its-kind marketing strategy in India, G. V. Films launched "a whole range of consumer products" based on the lead character of Thalapathi. As part of the marketing strategy, all products would be "of the highest quality" and sport the film's name.[33]

Release and reception

Thalapathi was released on 5 November 1991,[34] during the festive occasion of Diwali.[35][36] On 8 November 1991, The Hindu said, "Moving his pieces with the acumen of an international grandmaster, the director sets a hot pace".[4] The same day, N. Krishnaswamy The Indian Express said, "One reason why Thalapathi, despite its visual grandeur is not as riveting as it should have been is that it does not have a strong antagonist."[37] On 1 December 1991, the review board of Ananda Vikatan praised Ilaiyaraaja's music, and called the film a mountain of a masala entertainer, adding that Rajinikanth had several scenes in which he could emote in a film and looked a caged lion left in the open.[38] Although Mammootty received good reviews for his performance, his fans were not happy to see him in a supporting role.[39] Despite facing competition from other Diwali releases such as Gunaa and Rudhra,[36] Thalapathi emerged a critical and commercial success.[40][41] At the 39th Filmfare Awards South, Ratnam won the Best Director – Tamil award, and Ilaiyaraaja won for Best Music Director – Tamil.[42]

Legacy

C. S. Amudhan said Thalapathi was "really ahead of its time" and called it "intellectual entertaining cinema". Karthik Subbaraj said that he watched the film during his childhood. Several references to the film are made in Subbaraj's 2015 blockbuster gangster film Jigarthanda. Rajinikanth's daughter, director Soundarya recalled, "I remember Thalapathy most vividly as that was the first time I went for a first-day-first-show ever".[43] Thamizh Padam (2010) parodied Thalapathi by featuring scenes with characters under dim light and one-word dialogues.[44] Atlee who directed Raja Rani (2013) cites Thalapathi was the main inspiration for him to consider cinema as a career.[45] Soundarya has stated that Rajinikanth's hairstyle in her directorial venture Kochadaiiyaan (2014) was inspired by his appearance in Thalapathi.[46] Baradwaj Rangan compared Kadal (2013) to Thalapathi as they both feature a character "who yearns for a lost mother and who is coerced into a life of crime".[47] The film was remade in Kannada as Annavru (2003),[48] and in November 2011, Bollywood producer Bharat Shah acquired the Hindi remake rights.[49]

gollark: "Good"/"not very" why? It is very arbitrary.
gollark: There are also patents.
gollark: What? *All* thought is "abstract ideas" and you can copyright that.
gollark: Yes, it is an arbitrary distinction.
gollark: I mean, I'm sure I could "dynamically link" it while putting it in the same file somehow, via bee.

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Bibliography
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