NB:
I always write in malayalam language in my blog, but decided to write this in English so that all my non malayalee friends can understand as well.
SPOILER ALERT: Please read this after watching the movie in theater so that you can easily connect to the moments shared
Four days since the release of our super star Rajini's latest movie
Kabali which has broken all the box office records and definitely is bringing back money to the producer as well as distributors worldwide. Such a box office hit was pending for sometime now. Even though the movie is doing very well in box office, the response from the audience seems to be varying from fantastic to very poor. To me, Kabali was a treat, as a ardent fan of good movies and Rajini.
I have been monitoring Kabali since the first poster release, there were so many rumours about what the movie is and what to expect etc etc. But because of my previous experience watching Linga, I kept my expectations low, but was very happy that Thalaivar decided to do a project with Pa Ranjith who has given us 2 fantastic movies with less drama but more realism. When the first look poster was very impressive followed by a mass trailer which went viral and set huge expectations in each and every Rajini fan. The trailer was addictive and was played in loop forever in my house. Now, what happened was most of the people stopped following the details after the trailer release because Kalaipulli Thanu, producer of the movie, did a marketing gimmick that kept boosting in fact misleading the expectations, everywhere the news was filled with Kabali Fever and all carried only "Neruppu Da" feel, can't blame him coz it's one chance for the producer to turn things around to generate as much money as he can using Rajinism after the previous flops.
Santhosh Narayan's music was the one that communicated to me what to expect from the movie, Maya Nadi and Vaanam Parthen songs made me feel, hey, looks like the story is deep and emotional, if you can understand the lyrics it's filled with pain, regrets, loss, hope etc etc these songs, for me, were really haunting. My wife felt addicted to Vaanam Parthen song and me for Maya Nadi. Then I started listening to the interviews from all the actors and technicians and had a very clear understanding what the movie was about. Pa Ranjith repeatedly said in all his interviews, this movie is an emotional one and not the usual Rajini stuff and Rajini wanted to do something different and the reason to choose this movie. He also made it clear he did not compromise the story to include usual dramatic gimmicks that we see in Rajini movies, which actually was relieving for me as I know the real fans of Rajini actually want him to see as realistic he is and we don't want him to make 100 goons fly in his one kick followed by a punch dialogue. This statement doesn't mean I do not like his punch dialogues, I know most of them by heart and even when I do a
dubsmash with Rajini dialogues there is fire automatically ignited inside me which reflects in my eyes, I see a different myself when I do Rajini dubsmashes, I consider the recent
Kabali Dubsmash was the best I did so far and that's how much I am influenced by and emotionally connected to this humble human being.
Rajini was always fascinating to me, especially his humble behaviour and simplicity. I really don't know how can a human being achieve such humbleness and behave so simple being such a super star, and that makes him different from any other celebrities. I cannot control my tears when I hear his speeches it's so emotional for me and many of us. I did not notice much and even made fun of his movies when I was in school. I still remember after a sports meet in 8th standard my friend Suresh left to watch
Arunachalam FDFS and I was thinking why is this guy so crazy about Rajini until I watched padayappa in Tenkasi, TN, when I went to visit my aunt. That was the first movie of Rajini I watched in a theatre in TN and I could feel how crazy the fans were, Padayappa was so into me and since then I started following Thalaivar and never missed any of his movies watching in theater since then, and all of them except Kochadaiyan first day itself.
Now back to Kabali, I was quite disappointed with his previous movie Linga, where I went in with huge expectations and felt the film makers misused Rajini's name and fame to make a movie which had no solid script, just some emotional dramas, misfitting punch dialogues and very unrealistic stunt scenes. I felt like Rajini should not act in movies again, if the movies are gonna be like this, then came news for Kabali. I was lucky enough to get tickets for the premier show of Kabali in Singapore (Thanks to Ajithettan and Smithaechi) which made it more exciting, that I was gonna watch the movie first in the whole world.
The feel of FDFS
Fortunately we were with a crowd of ardent Rajini fans (most of them) so the vibe was so exciting. I could scream and call
Thalaiva as many times as I wanted and it only made others happy and not making me feel odd. In the first 15 mins director gave us many moments to cheer for Thalaivar and after that the movie got us involved with the story until the interval, which left us with a shock, followed by a heavy hearted 2nd half and a Rajini way climax fight and an unexpected open end climax (
Director's brilliance again, to avoid burning the theater may be, remember Mani Ratnam had to change the climax of Thalapathi :)).
Mission of Kabali
The movie mostly shows the emotional side of a gangster, I dunno whether I can call Kabali a gangster coz he was more like the people's leader who stood for them to fight their rights. Through the movie Kabali was very much connected to me for some reason and I could feel the pain he was going through while searching for his family.You know, that feeling when you went ahead to do good but end up loosing your life and family and you don't even know what really happened to them. The movie is clearly about a gangster who is in search of his past life he lost, Kabali if you observe is not really there for taking revenge or showing his power he want to make things right, especially his loss.
A Weak Gangster with a Strong Wife
Kabali looked weak through the movie until he found his family, except some incidents where he had to hold up to his gangster status to motivate those depending on him and those scared of him, which again to me was director's brilliance. I felt Kabali often regretted what he did, the scene where he tells Amir "En prachanaikalum oru kanavu maathiri ezhunthathum mudinju veliye vara mundinchiruntha evalavu nalla irunthirukkum" (how good it would be if my problems were like dreams, that when you wake up it's over) and the scene where he apologises to Thamizh Kumaran for killing his father and the scene where he feels very deep when Meena comes and tells him how useless he is as a Don who couldn't save his pregnant wife.
Emotional Moments | The best part in Kabali | The actor in Rajini
To me it's been ages since a Rajini movie has made it to the heart so emotionally. Thalapathi was the previous Rajini movie which touched me mostly by the situations not Rajini's acting skills. But Kabali touched me with Rajini's acting skills, a huge thanks to Pa Ranjith just for this. Let me quote some moments in the film where you can see an actor in Rajini and how emotionally affected Kabali is in the order it appears
- When Kabali visits his house and feels Kumutha valli welcoming him (this scene really soaks your eyes) each and every reaction Rajini gives in this scene is very touching. You see a lost man inside the tough don. Emotions reflected in his face starts with confusion, to enthusiasm, to happiness to sadness / reality.
- When Rajini sits on the table and asks Amir to leave him alone, he keeps tapping the table reflecting a wavering mind, gestures of his hands and his sitting posture after Amir leaves, you can feel Kabali is trying his best not to get broken down.
- When Kabali is lost in thoughts looking at the cemetery (Probably thinking what might have happened to his wife, is she really dead. He expresses this to Amir in a scene as well and confesses he is confused and disturbed.)
- When Meena calls him Appa. followed by Rajini asks Amir "Antha ponnu enne appaanu koopputta alla? Enakku oru ponno payyano irunthiruntha intha vayasirunthirukkum" (that girl called me dad right? If I had a son or daughter he/she would've been of her age)
- When he describes his past, and gets into details of his wife. "Ava peru kumutha Valli (pauses) {with a smile continues}, evalavu azhagaana perille?" (Her name is Kumutha Valli, how beautiful is her name right?)
- The above scene sets the feel that how important his wife was in his life, the scenes followed by Kabali saying "Eppovum motivate panninde iruppa, chinna chinna vishayankal koode" (She keeps motivating me, even for small things) shows us Kumuthavalli was Kabali's strength and Kabali is incomplete without her, the reason for his lost thoughts in most scenes.
- When Meena comes and scolds him for not protecting his wife (he really gets broken here and regrets about the fact that he couldn't save his wife)
- The scene where Yogi calls him Appa, the reaction on his face, mind blowing, this scene pierces our heart. Again change in emotions in one single scene, from surprise to happiness to responsibility, one of the most felt scenes in the movie.
- When Yogi tells Kabali that his wife is still alive, the shock in his face by holding the breath. And after listening to the doctor's comments about how she was living with the hope that he will come back to fetch her one day, the moment of realization that he can get back with his pillar of strength followed by the scene he walks slowly to the yard kneels down and start crying. Here if the director showed Kabali crying sitting there it would never be the same feel, remember Kabali is a strong man and through the movie he controlling his emotions and maintaining that impression, but this moment makes us realize he is a normal human being too like me you and anybody else. There are no close up shots of Kabali crying which again was brilliant, the emotions were left to the audience to decide.
- When Kabali meets the bungalow owner and when the owner was going to hang up and the daughter suddenly picks the call, you should see the sudden reflex in Rajini's face looking for hope and saying in haste "eduthuttaanga.. eduthuttaanga.. pesunga" (she picked up, please talk)
- When Kabali couldn't find Kumuthavalli in the first house in Pondycheri
- The excitement in the guy who is helping them in India, when he rushes in to say "Naan paathen sir, unga kumuthavalliye naan paathen sir" (I saw sir, I saw your Kumutha Valli sir)
- When Kabali waits through the night to meet her standing there and saying "Ivalavu naal engayo doorathilirunthom, ippo ivalavu pakkathile" (These many days we were living very far, now we are this close)
- Next day coming out with a clean shaven face, the pride and happiness on his face.
- Deep breath in the car on the way to meet her, again that enthusiasm while going inside the house.
- And the best emotional moment in the movie, meeting Kumuthavalli, Radhika Apte nailed this scene, standing still when Penelope pushes followed by her cry, phew, a releaf for the audience who were holding their breadth along with Kabali in search of Kumutha Valli. Kabali also cries after hugging Kumutha Valli but I noticed this only when I watched it the second time as for the first time I couldn't see coz of filled tears in my eyes :D
- Yeah, so, from the moment Yogi tells Kumuthavalli is alive until they meet each other, you feel your heart is squeezed and you travel along with Kabali with hope and anxiety. Brilliant direction here, those who say this was the draggy part in the movie might not have gone through emotional journeys in their life or probably not matured enough to understand the feel.
- After this the only touching moment I could remember is Jeeva's murder scene, very intense very raw, his way of maintaining attitude and confidence even when he knows he might get killed, and his end, really touching.
The Mass | Charisma in Superstar
Whatever it is, the charisma and screen presence our superstar has, nobody can ever beat it. Even though the movie does not have many punch dialogues or mass scenes, each and every time he appears on screen was a mass moment for me. The way he walks, smiles and sits all pakka mass. It actually should be that way, when you are a matured film lover you want to see the actor exhibiting charisma in a realistic way not very dramatic or something unconvincing. Remembering our own
Lalettan in Devasuram, that was his top mass character if you ask me and
Mammookka in Samrajyam / Kauravar, btw felt Kabali had so much similarity with
Kauravar, but Kauravar had a very tragic but convincing past for the hero
.
When we talk about mass, we cannot ignore the costumes of Kabali, Anu Vishnuwardhan has done a fantastic job here like in her previous movies. The linen suits to that cowboy look to the casuals Thalaivar wears, outstanding selection, everytime he comes on screen we are stunned to see the looks. My fav is the dark brown blazer + light blue linen shirt he wore when he went to meet Loganathan.
The Female Strength
Each and every female characters in the movie are very strong, I mean very very strong.
Kumutha Valli - Who is the motivator, pillar of strength of Kabali, a bold woman who is very proud about her husband. In the scene where Veerashekaran tries to remove Kabali's coat, you see Kabali is not really affected, he is rather concerned about his Kumatha Valli's life but on the other hand Kumutha Valli is deeply affected and is not able to accept her husband getting insulted and she drifts away from the grip of Loganathan and runs towards Kabali risking her life. Probably she knew she might get killed and she chose death above seeing her husband gets insulted, what a character. Each and every moment when Kumutha Valli appears on screen we could feel how bold she is and how attached she is to Kabali.
Kumutha Valli is my favourite for a reason, her character resembles a lot to my wife who keeps motivating me and has done a makeover in my personality and confidence level. She is the pillar of strength for me and I cannot imagine a world without her.
Yogi - Another bold character, who has took revenge for her adopted father and became a gangster herself. When Cheeni recommends Yogi to kill such a big Don, we get a picture how strong she is. Also her decision to protect her father and the decision to fight the goons all alone in Thailand establishes this.
Meena - Meena is not portrayed as a strong woman in the film, but she represents the Tamil youth in Malaysia. She tells us how difficult it is to survive there and to lead a good life and how easy is to become a Gangster. Everytime we see Meena we could feel helpless letting such things happen in the society.
Fathima - Even though Amir's wife Fathima comes in very few scenes, she is portrayed as a strong women, the way she dominates staffs and students in Free Life school shows her character.
Even
Jeeva's mom who claims she was very good in studies but since she couldn't get a good job and had to take family's responsibilities she started dealing drugs and ran the family, her responsibilities only made her stronger and not weak.
Something to notice in this movie is that, it never sold female actors' glam in it, no item numbers, no filthy language and no male domination or chauvinistic dialogues. This is really appreciated in the current generation of Indian cinema where, most not all the movies portray female characters only for selling tears or glamour.
Socially Responsible Gangster | Malaysian flavor
It is really amazing to know how much research Pa Ranjith has done before writing the story. He has reflected the situation of Malaysian Tamilians really well and he has worked on minute details in each character's behaviour and language as well. The film totally felt like a Malaysian Tamil movie (there are lot of them, some really good ones, do check them out) the looks, the names, the characters, the sets and the slang was really convincing. Ranjith has managed to address many problems Malaysian Tamilians has been facing, but he is not showing what Kabali is gonna do to resolve their problems, most likely not to get it banned in Malaysia. Most of the issues are portrayed as if "it existed", that was a clever move again. Only in the climax of the movie he shows Kabali is settled to listen to the issues of some students, but again is not suggesting any solutions or promises. He makes a statement that
"naan oru rowdy'nu solraanga, appdeene vechukungale, enna konjam padichirukken, oru rowdy'yaale enna panna mudiyum ninakkireenga?" (Everyone says I am a rowdy, what do you think a rowdy can do in your situation?") The rest is left for us to imagine. It can be either,
- Kabali wants to lead a peaceful life and not get into any new problems or
- He is realizing being a gangster he is not able to help people or
- Probably he is asking the people to give him a call on what to do
The Climax
The climax gunshot can be defined in anyways, again director's brilliance, we can take it as
- Once you are a gangster there is no exit, or
- Police used Kabali to get rid of other gangs and later are worried that he might become the next don and finishing him (remember first scene a policeman says, if he becomes a problem we will deal it our way), or
- And for us fans we can also hope for Kabali 2 :) where Kabali leads people to fight for their rights
The Soul Touching Music
Hats off to Santhosh narayanan for such amazing songs and spine tingling BGMs. BGMs really carried the movie to a different level. That vaanam parthen BGM that comes through the search for Kumutha valli
The Brilliant supporting Actors
Each and every actor in the movie did their part really well, most remarkable acting was from
Attakathi Dinesh, because of his makeover I did not even realize it was him until I read a review which mentioned his name. His spontaneous reactions and quick mannerisms did give us some light moments through the movie and his loyalty made us feel heavy too. Tiger, Amir, that guy in chennai, the villains, Nazar, even though in a small role he did his best. Radhika Apte stands on top in acting and Dhanshika pulled it very well, with her looks, boldness and connection, we really feel at times they are really husband, wife and daughter.
What I felt was missing or wish was different
Please take these as a film maker's point of view who has greed towards good films :) There were many missing portions in the script, I am not sure whether it was edited during censoring or to keep the movie within 2.5 hours.
The Trailer - I wish the trailer had some scenes with Kabali's emotional moments and not just a punch dialogue, which would've definitely made the audience understand what the movie was about and not set high expectations. Probably that was producer's trick to boost the hype and make the initial collections strong but felt that it was unfair especially for those who were not following the details of the movie so closely.
Kabali's Intro - Director knew that fans are going to celebrate it, could've included some build up and punch dialogues. Editing wise, I felt, when the policemen were talking they could've mixed the scenes with prison scenes, this would've given a huge build up before the Kabali standing behind the bars with in his suit.
The Antagonists - The first scene Veerasekaran cuts the fish which gives him a cruel image but the story didn't carry it afterwards. The only villain who I felt influencing was Cheeni, who played his evil role very well, with no mercy. Tony Lee was trying hard to portray him as very cruel but the story had not many scenes establishing the same. This is a reminder that we are running short of terrific villains like we had in past.
Flash back - Not very well arranged, the build up Kabali has doesn't justify with the scenes in flashback, either they should've shown Kabali as a very furious guy trying to kill the gang members and getting arrested or how popular or established his empire was. Why Kabali is a threat to the other gangs and govt is not conveyed properly.
Cakewalk moments - Except the struggle for finding his wife, Kabali seldom has tough moments in the script, he always wins which makes all his opposers deliberately weak. A hero is a hero only when he fights to win, this part was missing in most of the scenes. This is where I felt flashback should've been more lengthy to show his fall which would've made us feel he deserves such cakewalks.
DOP - Not many frames to carry in memories except the intro frame Rajini in full suit getting out of prison gate, also some low angle shots from the first fight, rest looked quite clumsy and flat. Malaysia's cityscape is quite good, was expecting some aerial shots of cars in line for Kabali or Tony Lee or at least the procession after Cheeni was dead. Also no shots to establish the details of Pondycheri or chennai, mostly all were convenient indoor shots. Felt they did no go for any extra mile to get the shots interesting.
VFX - Really Really bad VFX, unless you watch from a back seat in a huge theatre, most of the places where they used VFX we could easily identify them. It's acceptable to use VFX in movies but they should've spent more money on it, when Thanu was ready to spend any amount of money for this movie it could've been much much better. That climax fight, I wonder why they had to use VFX, with Thanu's budget they could've got a real rooftop to shoot, ain't that the challenge? why do we need to compromise for such prominent moments, that too for a Rajini movie.
The Treatment - I really wish the movie was treated in a dark way, like in Anjathe, Madras, Aranyakaandam etc. Remember the Jeeva murder scene, that was one scene which push you into a gangster underworld feel, also the frame where Kabali gets the gunshots, the wide angle shot where an empty road is shown and everyone runs towards Rajini, back ground silence, that was so realistic. Wish there were more scenes with dim lights, would've given us a haunting feel. May be more night shots and less day shots would've escalated the movie to a different level. I've heard Rajini do not work on night schedules but he did for some scenes in this movie, and that might be one reason.
The conclusion
All in all I am very very happy that our superstar did this project, I won't say the movie is perfect and made use of his Rajini very well but it is a different kind of movie which was missing in his career. As an artist he definitely would've wanted to act and not only show off his style, and this, he could do in this movie. Treat for the fans, family and good movie lovers. To the haters with no reasons, I have only one thing to say, don't let your below average taste for movies kill good cinemas.
Magizhchi :)
