tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post4236045005621500999..comments2024-03-18T23:23:28.279+01:00Comments on Old is Gold: Mouna Raagam (1986)Bollyviewerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-8420239395596493402017-07-26T10:54:40.736+02:002017-07-26T10:54:40.736+02:00My favorite movie I just luv it.I need like this l...My favorite movie I just luv it.I need like this life .Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09700977604921933896noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-24293525464296686732011-12-13T08:40:13.869+01:002011-12-13T08:40:13.869+01:00Romance brings romance home? :D That is so cute, G...Romance brings romance home? :D That is so cute, <b>Guru</b>!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-61224588470593823902011-12-07T07:55:22.827+01:002011-12-07T07:55:22.827+01:00I love each and every nuance of this movie. The co...I love each and every nuance of this movie. The common love for this movie brought me and 'special friend' close!;)Gurunoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-70402895023321010922010-12-01T05:11:40.448+01:002010-12-01T05:11:40.448+01:00subbu, the "comments spanning two and a half ...<b>subbu</b>, the "comments spanning two and a half years" just highlight the film's enduring appeal! :) And hey, what is wrong with escapism? Isn't that what all entertainment is - escape into an alternate (and fun) world? Why rule out older films on that count?Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-16700565294044479982010-11-28T09:51:08.461+01:002010-11-28T09:51:08.461+01:00Just had a 2 hour session watching this movie on g...Just had a 2 hour session watching this movie on google video. A quick search led me to this blog post (comments spanning two and a half years, wow!). Thanks for capturing a lot of the feelings that I had watching this. <br /><br />In general, I feel a little bit guilty about dwelling on comfort movies/songs from the past (fear of escapism perhaps) but this one was worth it. <br /><br />-Subbusubbuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01789970738541710817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-26430705951036010072010-10-15T07:25:46.936+02:002010-10-15T07:25:46.936+02:00As a teenager, I wasn't very keen on college r...As a teenager, I wasn't very keen on college romances, so killing of the first love worked perfectly for me! :D<br /><br />Just read up <i>Ankuram</i> on wikipedia. It sounds very interesting but I can see that it's not the sort of film that would inspire adolescent Revathy-fandom! Which reminds me that I do have <i>Anjali</i> and need to get to it, ASAP.Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-72217427420513747382010-10-12T05:04:36.420+02:002010-10-12T05:04:36.420+02:00The most serious movie I remember is 'Ankuram&...The most serious movie I remember is 'Ankuram' (Telugu 1992), and about doing the right thing. It was so intense and realistic that it really scared me. 'Anjali' didn't help the matters either. The first half is so fun and the second half, we were crying buckets (me and my sister). There is then 'Gaayam' (Telugu 1993). <br /><br />Compared to those, I agree that Mouna Raagam is light fare. But for teenagers, killing off first love doesn't make an entertaining movie, no? :)<br /><br />-VioletAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-91750143152479396972010-10-11T09:14:57.582+02:002010-10-11T09:14:57.582+02:00"When I was young, I didn't particularly ..."<i>When I was young, I didn't particularly like Revathi's movies because they were all soo serious.</i>" Even this? I saw it at a very young age, but was instantly in love with it. Now I need to find some of her other "serious" films, because if they are anything like this one, they should be seriously good! :DBollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-73868977768166682062010-10-10T23:28:07.075+02:002010-10-10T23:28:07.075+02:00I think Revathi can't go back to her father...I think Revathi can't go back to her father's house before divorce. Because, then they will try to stop the divorce. After it is legal, there isn't much they could do. <br /><br />When I was young, I didn't particularly like Revathi's movies because they were all soo serious. I appreciate her more now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-20988598661831608592010-09-02T10:03:02.708+02:002010-09-02T10:03:02.708+02:00Thanks for that, anonymousperson. I will certainly...Thanks for that, <b>anonymousperson</b>. I will certainly look out for <i>Marupadiyam</i>. It sounds really nice!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-71028876103179202072010-09-02T03:21:49.180+02:002010-09-02T03:21:49.180+02:00Hi Bollyviewer,
I am posting this comment very la...Hi Bollyviewer,<br /><br />I am posting this comment very late, but I saw your comment asking for Revathy reccomendations and I couldn't help posting this.<br /><br />I suggest you watch Marupadiyum.<br /><br />Much like how Mouna Raagam is a heroine's film, Marupadiyum, is also a heroine's film, which is extremely rare in this industry. And much like Mouna Raagam, Revathi has the opportunity to act as a character who develops slowly over the entire film and changes very much. <br /><br />The story, at first, seems like a domestic drama about extra-marital affairs, which usually aren't good, but as it keeps going, the true story is about a housewife who has to rebuild her life from scratch. It's very good.<br /><br />It may be hard to find since it's an old and forgotten film...though a subtitled version has recently made it's way onto the internet by one prashanth12.....anonymouspersonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-62150037578945736402010-01-21T05:25:54.548+01:002010-01-21T05:25:54.548+01:00Swathy, I certainly was joking about the kurta-pyj...<b>Swathy</b>, I certainly was joking about the kurta-pyjama. :-)<br /><br />As for going to her parents' home, she will eventually go there after divorce. If she expects them to accept her divorce eventually, she can start off before the divorce, too!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-3116417187151512632010-01-20T09:38:26.441+01:002010-01-20T09:38:26.441+01:00Hi ppl, nice to c u ppl spkng abt dis wonderful fi...Hi ppl, nice to c u ppl spkng abt dis wonderful film... wanted tell abt 2 things i noticed in ur review<br />1.)Or is it his habit of wearing a kurta-pyjama (instead of the lungi-shirt more favored in Tamil Nadu) that is putting her off?-- dress is not at all matter here... i think u said tat for joke coz lungi-shirt is jus a comfy wear not 'favored'<br /><br />and<br /><br />2.) She could of course, go back to her parents' and wait for the divorce there. But we wont quibble over such small details.-- yes she could hav gone but she dint go coz she was forcibly married to her dad's wish so hw can she expect her parents to support her on divorce - so she stays with him<br /><br />anyways ur review was goodAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-47845930952406239132010-01-12T20:25:33.620+01:002010-01-12T20:25:33.620+01:00That would be great, Filmbuff!That would be great, <b>Filmbuff</b>!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-57268291741497531832010-01-11T00:20:30.034+01:002010-01-11T00:20:30.034+01:00Wow Mathew, Roja and Ramayana - a new perspective ...Wow Mathew, Roja and Ramayana - a new perspective indeed! <br /><br />Bollyviewer, will let u know about tamil DVD outlets in Calgary soonFilmbuffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-39740712807874708992010-01-10T02:27:50.597+01:002010-01-10T02:27:50.597+01:00Matthew, thank you so much for that thoughtful exp...<b>Matthew</b>, thank you so much for that thoughtful exposition. Have you tried looking for similar footprints of the <i>Ramayana</i> in other films?<br /><br /><b>Ruchi</b>, ditto on the <i>Roja</i> - <i>Ramayana</i> connection! I wonder if the <i>Sangh Parivar</i> will take exception to a divine <i>Suhaagraat</i> being consummated onscreen and that too, to the tune of <i>Rukmini rukmini</i>!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-21080821315206543262010-01-08T16:25:36.245+01:002010-01-08T16:25:36.245+01:00Matthew, Wow, just came across your comment(s). Yo...Matthew, Wow, just came across your comment(s). You seem to have given Roja some very serious thought! I myself would never have detected the connection between Roja and Ramayana...do you think Mani Ratnam did?Ruchihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13844831404496051624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-74942580426322686842010-01-08T06:34:19.850+01:002010-01-08T06:34:19.850+01:00[#3 OF 3, CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST]
[This bei...[#3 OF 3, CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST]<br /><br />[This being a feel-good ending, we leave out the later part of the Ramayan<br />in which Ram (Roja?) banishes Sita (Rishi Kumar?) to Valmiki's ashram in the<br />wilderness -- but it does make one wonder who ends up wearing the pants in that<br />marriage!]<br /><br />The film has a great deal to say about the stratification of Indian society,<br />and how this stratification must yield to democratic socialism. After Roja<br />marries the professional Rishi Kumar the people of the village half-joke "You<br />are a memsahib now." Roja, pleading with the minister to intercede for her<br />husband's release, explains, "We are not influential people but we are citizens<br />of India." After Colonel Rayappa scolds Roja for her selfishness in wanting to<br />regain her husband, a man of status, at the cost of releasing Wasim Khan, who<br />surely will kill many more innocents of no status, Roja throws his argument<br />back at him by asking, "What if it were a minister's child?" Later, after the<br />deal for the exchange seems set, General Rayappa observes, "The minister will<br />earn a good name by getting an eminent scientist released."<br /><br />The script, of course, isn't the only great element of this film -- the<br />cinematography complements all of it, right from the beginning, when the<br />blue-grey of Colonel Rayappa's battle against Wasim Khan cuts to the warm<br />orange of sunrise in Roja's village. And in the middle, with the cuts between<br />Rishi Kumar's fantasies of Roja and the reality of his beaten and bleeding<br />body. And in the end, with the light of grace on Liyaqat as he begins to<br />become converted by Rishi Kumar after the sacrifice of Liyaqat's brother.<br /><br />Through it all, it's the women who rule -- the grandmother who prevails on her<br />son, Roja's father, to allow his other daughter Lakshmi to wed her sweetheart;<br />Rishi Kumar's mother, who prevails on her son to allow his new wife Roja to<br />accompany him to Kashmir; the Kashmiri woman who releases Rishi Kumar in an<br />attempt to ease the suffering that she sees all round her; and of course Roja,<br />who rules all with divine authority. The men, in contrast, are for the most<br />part a bunch of fools who are too fond of playing with guns. I think that my<br />favourite scene/song is the one at the very beginning, Dil Hai Chota Sa,<br />because in it Roja is a simple, provincial young woman, but already possesses<br />all the divine nature -- all the beauty and moral authority -- with which she<br />rules the rest of the story.<br /><br />This is an action film subordinated to a love story, a love story subordinated<br />to Indian nationalist political theatre, political theatre subordinated to a<br />progressive, social-democratic and feminist message. It has so many levels,<br />and says so much about India past, present, and future.<br /><br />Matthew BelmonteUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18089192264144866716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-80653714647205306152010-01-08T06:33:34.350+01:002010-01-08T06:33:34.350+01:00[#2 of 3, CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST]
Rishi Kum...[#2 of 3, CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST]<br /><br />Rishi Kumar goes searching for Roja, all ready to play the Ram hero, and finds<br />her at the shrine, where she has just met her sidekick Chajoo (another face of<br />Lakshman, the faithful companion). At this juncture, though, it is Rishi Kumar<br />rather than Roja who is kidnapped by an apparition of Ravan (the rebels led<br />by Wasim Khan). That is to say, Rishi Kumar has assumed the wife's role of<br />captive, leaving Roja to fill the hero's role. And fill it she does.<br /><br />Roja's divine nature as Ram is prefigured in her relationship with the gods,<br />and with God. It's she who visits her village's shrine to ask for Rishi<br />Kumar's marriage to her sister Lakshmi, and it's she who calls at the shrine<br />in Kashmir and says that all gods are one. Later, she says to the government<br />minister, "You are a form of God for me" -- in one reading this sentiment<br />reflects the awe of a simple country woman in the presence of a powerful man,<br />but in another, stronger reading it reflects her respect for all human beings,<br />who participate in the divine.<br /><br />An insistent Roja (now grown fully in the role of Ram) will not leave Kashmir<br />(Lanka) until she has rescued her spouse Rishi Kumar (Sita). With Chajoo<br />(Lakshman), she waits at the police headquarters for Colonel Rayappa<br />(Hanuman), who helps her pursue Rishi Kumar (Sita). At Roja's urging, the<br />government relents and agrees to release Wasim Khan in exchange for Rishi<br />Kumar, but when Rishi Kumar hears of this deal he resists trading the blood of<br />Wasim Khan's future victims for his own freedom (Sita refuses Hanuman's offer<br />to carry her back to Ram, unwilling to be touched by a male who is not her<br />husband). Instead he remains with his captors for months, and conversations<br />ensue where he tries to convince them to change their ways, and they try to<br />convince him of thei righteousness of their agenda.<br /><br />After all this time dwelling with his captors and hearing their ideas, it's<br />unclear whether Rishi Kumar's ideological purity (Sita's physical purity) has<br />remained intact. This purity is tested when his captors set the Indian flag<br />alight, and Rishi Kumar rolls in the fire to put it out (the Agni Pariksha).<br />With the help of a Kashmiri woman who is the only free thinker in the bunch,<br />Rishi Kumar escapes, at risk to his life. After evading his captors, he<br />crosses the river (the ocean separating Lanka from the mainland) to be reunited<br />with Roja (Ram). At the end of their exile, the couple return to the kingdom<br />of Ayodhya (the united and indivisible republic of India).<br /><br />[CONTINUED IN NEXT POST]Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18089192264144866716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-20461751060429147042010-01-08T06:32:12.421+01:002010-01-08T06:32:12.421+01:00Good morning from Kolkata! (This comment is long ...Good morning from Kolkata! (This comment is long but I will cut it into three pieces so as to come under the 4096-character limit.)<br /><br />Bollyviewer wrote, "<i>I'd hardly call Roja a gender-reversed reworking of the Ramayan simply because the hero gets kidnapped by an evil man and his wife runs from pillar to post to free him!</i>"<br /><br />Actually, if one looks for it it's all in there. The element that hits one<br />over the head is its transformation of the Ramayan into political cinema with<br />current-day relevance -- one that seems politically conservative, but bears a<br />sometimes subtle and sometimes not-so-subtle feminist twist. The allusions<br />begin with an explicit mention of the Ramayan, by one of the old women of the<br />village -- one that's slipped into dialogue as though it were an irrelevant<br />detail, but which actually carries a great deal of significance: the Ramayan,<br />as an examplar of pan-Indian culture, is what knits together the village and<br />the city, all the provinces of India, and indeed much of South and Southeast<br />Asia in general. The main Ramayan tale begins after Rishi Kumar, his mother,<br />and Roja have left the village for the city:<br /><br />Ram (Rishi Kumar), having married Sita (Roja), is reluctantly exiled (sent<br />away on a mission to Kashmir) by his father King Dasaratha (Rishi's ailing boss<br />Mohan) who then dies of grief for Ram's absence (although Mohan doesn't<br />actually die in the film, he is in hospital). A virtuous Sita insists on<br />accompanying her husband into exile (Roja, on telephoning her sister Lakshmi,<br />realises her lapse of faith in her husband and insists on coming along with him<br />to Kashmir.)<br /><br />Here's where the gender reversals begin. Who, in fact, is the Ram figure?<br />Both Rishi Kumar and Roja participate in it, but as the film goes along it<br />begins to become clear that it's Roja who owns the role. Even the phonetics<br />give out this message: Roja/Rama, and sibling Lakshmi/Lakshman. Rishi Kumar<br />initially fears (and we fear with him, as we've not seen where Roja has gone<br />in the morning) that some harm has befallen Roja at the hands of the Kashmiri<br />rebels -- this scenario would be consistent with the gender roles in the<br />historical Ramayan and would place Rishi Kumar as Ram.<br /><br />(In yet another sense, Rishi Kumar is neither the Ram figure nor the Sita<br />but rather -- true to his name -- the character of the hermits (rishi) who<br />inhabit the wilderness. His conversations with his captors -- principally<br />the leader Liyaqat -- wax philosophical ("Is it justice to capture homes<br />after driving away the families in them?"), and Rishi Kumar's triumph is his<br />redemption of Liyaqat after the sacrifice of Liyaqat's young brother, turning<br />him from a mere agent of the irredeemably evil Wasim Khan (Ravan) into an<br />enlightened and merciful human being. At the end of the film Rishi Kumar<br />leaves Liyaqat with a benediction, "Wipe the tears of people, instead of making<br />them cry.")<br /><br />[CONTINUED IN NEXT POST]Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18089192264144866716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-31025777723316835022010-01-08T05:53:12.626+01:002010-01-08T05:53:12.626+01:00Filmbuff, I am based in Calgary. So any info about...<b>Filmbuff</b>, I am based in Calgary. So any info about video stores in the city would be very welcome!<br /><br /><b>Matthew</b>, I am glad you were able to see <i>Mouna Raagam</i> finally. It is a wonderful film and Revathy is the best thing about the film!<br /><br /><i>Anjali</i> sounds as heartwarming as I had supposed - will try harder to look for it.<br /><br />I dont know what the story of <i>Ravan</i> is, but I'd hardly call <i>Roja</i> a gender-reversed reworking of the <i>Ramayan</i> simply because the hero gets kidnapped by an evil man and his wife runs from pillar to post to free him!Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-48029398205114901102010-01-06T09:49:12.719+01:002010-01-06T09:49:12.719+01:00Hello all - sorry to have been silent for so long ...Hello all - sorry to have been silent for so long - I'm in Kolkata at the moment (Chitrakoot last week, Delhi and then London later this month, then back to New York). I did eventually find a subtitles file for Mouna Ragam on the web, a few months ago, so for the first time had a chance to watch all the way through understanding all the words. The story is such a visual one, and Revathy such an expressive actress in this role, that the words actually didn't add a huge amount (though it was nice finally to understand the joke when she was "teaching" Tamil to the car mechanic).<br /><br />I also have seen Anjali, on an old VHS video tape copy in the Cornell University library, though without subtitles. I must admit I cried when Anjali finally said "amma" - in part I guess because I also have a developmentally delayed sibling and the scene reminded me of my own mother.<br /><br />I will follow your recommendations and put Irruvar on my viewing list. I also recommend Kannathil Muthamittal - more of Ratnam's theme of individual acts of love pitted against institutional acts of terror; amongst other things I found it significant that in this film he added a twist to the stereotypical Bollywood rain scene by having it represent not carnal love but the platonic love between (adoptive) parent and child.<br /><br />I can hardly wait for Ratnam's current effort, Ravan. (He has of course been interested in the Ramayan at least since his gender-reversing, modern, and political retelling of the story in Roja.) Has anyone heard an update as to the anticipated release date?Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18089192264144866716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-78507802736091889342010-01-06T00:21:52.043+01:002010-01-06T00:21:52.043+01:00I think there are some video/DVD desi stores in Ca...I think there are some video/DVD desi stores in Canada where you can find good quality tamil films with sub titles esp those relesed by Ayngaran Video Company from UK. I can find out from my best friend in Calgary if u r interested and i ur based in CalgaryFilmbuffnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-62291133893276349402010-01-05T06:42:17.602+01:002010-01-05T06:42:17.602+01:00Iruvar has been on my list for a while. Its just s...<i>Iruvar</i> has been on my list for a while. Its just so hard to find subtitled Tamil films easily and at decent prices, here. Hopefully it will appear on the shelf of my local Indian video store, sometime...Bollyviewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17270927806254662068noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5149142221218445999.post-725545404833238432010-01-04T02:54:04.215+01:002010-01-04T02:54:04.215+01:00Looked like a Video has been converted into a DVD ...Looked like a Video has been converted into a DVD - print quality was sort of okay but I think the movie itself has been shot mostly at night. On my next visit to India, I am planning to buy Mani Ratnam movie DVDs from a shop in Madras that has been mentioned on his website "Madras Talkies" - lets see about the quality.<br /><br />BTW, I would strongly recommend "Irruvar" - a brilliant movie by Mani Ratnam. Aishwariya Rai's debut movie (though Jeans released earlier) with the super star of Malaylayam cinema Mohanlal. If u r familiar with T Nadu politics, u will easily recognise the main characters - MGR (Mohanlal), Prakash Raj (Karunanidhi), Tabu (K's girlfriend), Aishwariya (Jayalalita), Gautami (MGR's wife in real life)Filmbuffnoreply@blogger.com