Suhasini inadvertently sparked off a debate when she said anybody who knows how to move a mouse has turned film critic and only qualified people should indulge in it. She’s a tad outdated. All you need is a smart phone and the reviews are uploaded reel by reel. News, good or bad travels real fast these days. The feedback of people who’ve paid to watch a film is definitely more honest though harsher than those who’re paid to air their views. Everyone has an opinion about everything anyway and a contrarian’s views are heard loudest. She should thank her stars she was not blamed for distracting Mani during the making of ‘Raavan’ and ‘Kadal’! Her concern is understandable but the fact is that nothing can stop a good film from doing well, just like positive reviews alone cannot turn the box-office fortunes of a film. She can, rest assured that Mani is one of the few directors whose films fans like to watch and form their own view. Mani, in his usual succinct style said that everybody is entitled to an opinion.
Censorship is like writing a math exam and getting it corrected by the physical education instructor! I was pleasantly surprised to read that Mani’s latest offering; ‘Oh Kadhal Kanmani’ has been referred to the revising committee. This film is not about terrorism but relationships. Has he shown something we’ve not seen or is he propagating a relationship that’s still anathema? I don’t think Mani is capable of making anything he wouldn’t be able to watch without squirming. His views about censorship are clear. “I’m not saying remove censorship tomorrow. If writers and short filmmakers are given the right to write and show what they want , if you’ve given them the freedom and think they’re mature enough to handle it then give the filmmakers the same right. Don’t carry an archaic system. A filmmaker is no less than a journalist. So why should he be treated as less cultured? Why am I treated as less socially responsible? In the long run we should have some kind of self-regulation. Not some government guy telling you this is okay and this is not,” Mani had said years ago.
Mani has seen the zenith with a string of hits and the nadir with turkeys like ‘Raavan’ and ‘Kadal’. I’m sure he’s made ‘OKK’ after a lot of introspection. He will want to prove that he’s not lost touch with his core audience, the youngsters. His films mirror his sensibilities. He hired the best technicians to embellish content not to hide the lack of it. He’s reticent and the economy of words in his dialogues is already Tamil cinema lore. The characters played by Anil Kapoor in ‘Pallavi Anupallavi’ and Karthik in ‘Mouna Raagam’ are his antithesis. The selection of Dulquer and Nithya may be seen as having an eye on the Malayalam rights but they are performers who suit his style. For an early morning shot in ‘Idhaya Koil’ a help had to give the hero coffee and a newspaper. Mani stopped shooting till a fresh newspaper was fetched. “It should look unread,” said the stickler for details.
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We’ll know the fate of the film in a few hours. Fans will be waiting with bated breath and so will industry hawks. The unqualified reviews will appear first. Mani will probably be packing to take a much deserved holiday.
sshivu@yahoo.com