"Ponniyin Selvan" by Kalki Krishnamoorthy is unarguably the greatest novel in modern Tamizh literature and first published as early as in the 50's, the novel is liked and discussed even to this date and has been eyed by many great filmmakers and actors for a screen adaptation.
Mani Ratnam, one of the most celebrated directors of these times, has finally succeeded in adapting it to the screen and the first of the 2 part adaptation is out on our screens from 30 Sep. Starring the who's who of South Indian cinema, the screen adaptation - "PS 1" for short - hits all the right buttons and provides a satisfying experience.
The movie starts with Adita Karikalan (Cheeyan Vikram) attacking the Rashtrakootas and annexing the kingdom to the Chola empire. He leaves the unarmed king (Babu Antony) free much to the amusement of his second in commands - his maternal grandfather (Lal), his friend Parthibendran (Vikram Prabhu) and Vandhiyadevan (Karthi Sivakumar), the friend who is close enough to be his brother. Immediately following the win, Adita wants Vandhiyan to meet the former's dad - the ailing Sundara Cholan (Prakash Raj) and his smart sister, Kundhavai (Trisha Krishnan) - to inform them about the impending danger to the kingdom.
The dangers are many - the Pandya rebels (led by Kishore and Riyaz Khan) want to settle scores with Adita since the former murdered their unarmed, wounded king (Nasser); the Pandya king's wife Nandini (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan), now the wife of Periya Pezhuvettaraiyar (R Sarathkumar), the chancellor of Chola kingdom is also scheming against the kingdom for the same reason; the Chola chieftains are unhappy with Adita being the king- in- waiting since they want Sundara Cholan's cousin Madhurantakan (Rahman) to be the king. Adita is aware of all the plotting but does not want to come to Thanjavur since he doesn't want to face his childhood sweetheart Nandini as the wife of Pezhuvettaraiyar (Sara Arjun plays the young Nandini).
On his way to Thanjavur, Vandhiyadevan stops at Kadamboor and realizes that the Kadamboor king (Nizhalgal Ravi) is also a part of Pezhuvettaraiyar's scheme. He also meets the loud Vaishnavite Brahman - Azhwarkadiyan Nambi (Jayaram) whose whereabouts are unknown. He is awed by Nandini's beauty but remains faithful to his friend's requests. He exchanges information as is expected but Kundhavai asks him to go to Lanka to meet her younger brother - Arulmozhi Varman (Jayam Ravi) and ask him to come to Thanjavur. He takes the help of the boatwoman Poonguzhali (Aishwarya Lakshmi) to get to Lanka but there are surprises waiting for him, Arulmozhi and the viewers in Lanka. The rebel Pandiyan warriors, the Lankan king defeated by Arulmozhi and a team from Thanjavur that is out to capture Arulmozhi at his father's behest are all on the lookout for him. Whether Arulmozhi and Vandhiyadevan are able to survive the onslaught of 3 sets of enemies is what the rest of the movie is all about.
The novel is peppered with characters and each of them are layered, textured and rooted which is why adapting them to the big screen remained a challenge for close to 70 years. Mani Ratnam along with his co - writers Jeyamohan and Elango Kumaravel - has succeeded in this almost impossible task and Jeyamohan's measured dialogues convey more than what is being spoken. “Nandini was golden-hued in complexion; Kundavai’s colouring was that of the red lotus. Nandini's face was round like the full moon; Kundavai’s was somewhat long and looked as if it had been carved by a skilled sculptor. Nandini's large dark eyes were like the outspread wings of a golden bee, Kundavai’s long blue-black ones almost touched her ears and glistened like the petals of the neelotpala, the blue lotus. Nandini’s nose was a bit flat and as smooth as ivory; Kundavai's was long, like the bud of the panneer flower. Nandini's full lips seemed like a coral cup, overflowing with honey; Kundavai's finer ones were like a pomegranate dripping honey. Nandini wore her hair in a kondai, decorated with an elaborate floral arrangement; Kundavai’s hair, piled up like a crown, proclaimed her a queen of beauty.”
The grand production design is in tune with the tone of the narrative while never popping out unnecessarily - it is this fine balance that is extremely difficult to achieve. Ravi Varman creates magic with his camera and imaginative lighting that highlights the beauty of his leading ladies with the same efficiency as capturing the war sequences and the chases.
A R Rahman keeps his best for Mani Ratnam and does not disappoint this time either. While the songs may not work in isolation, they work very well with the narrative though none of the songs play for their entire run time. I still thought Rakshasa Mamaney, Chola Chola and Sol were alluring nevertheless.
The ensemble cast delivers with each and every actor being cast according to the nature of the character and Karthi, Trisha, Jayam Ravi, Jayaram and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan stand out due to the length of their roles and the complexity of the characters that they portray.
Waiting for PS2.
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