English translation: A Tamil film
Director: C.S. Amudhan
Story: C. S. Amudhan and K. Chandru
Cast: Shiva, Disha Pandey
Music: Kannan
Time: 120 minutes
Bottom-line: Recommended if and only if you watch Tamil films regularly
Now there are tons and tons of people who like Tamil films. At the same, there are lots of people who criticize Tamil films for several things: the hero always winning, the superhuman stunts performed by the hero, many useless songs etc. Yet, we cannot do more than criticize. We cannot publicly show how lame these aspects are, as we are afraid of the people’s reaction. Now C.S. Amudhan has made something unique: a spoof film that ridicules and makes fun of many Tamil films that have been made.
The story: in a small village, male infanticide is common. However, one boy, Shiva (played by Shiva) is determined to escape. So, along with his grandmother (Paravai Muniyamma), he comes to Chennai to become a hero. Shiva does so after defeating a local gangster. He falls in love with a headstrong girl, Priya (Pandey). Meanwhile, a new villain, known as D, is troubling the city. Shiva attempts to find and confront D. The rest of the film combines several ideas from different films to complete the story.
Now, the main thing that is needed to enjoy the film is that you should be a regular viewer of Tamil cinema. The reason? Most of the comedy comes from showing the incidents that happen in the actual films in a comic way. For example, in the film Apoorva Sagodharargal, Kamal Haasan, as a dwarf, kills the villain using a Rube Goldberg Machine. Here, Shiva appears to be a dwarf, but we see that he is actually kneeling down. He tries several attempts to kill a bad guy, but fails every time. Finally, the bad guy gets so irritated that he shoots himself! So, if you see the original films, you can enjoy the comic scenes better.
There is no story in the film. Amudhan has taken ideas from several Tamil films, but what I like most is that he has managed to make a story out of them. However, you may understand and laugh at many of the jokes, but you will laugh even more when you see how Amudhan has made a spoof of the original film/dialogue. Even the song ‘Oh Maha Zeeya’ has lyrics taken from several other songs from various Tamil films!
I could understand several jokes only with the help of others. If you see it while you are new to Kollywood cinema, the jokes may seem dumb. But if you see it when you are already familiar with Tamil cinema, the jokes are excellent. So, the opinions may vary depending on how well you know the world of Kollywood. Yet, the film does a great job in spoofing other Tamil films. In several films, the journey of the hero becoming rich or becoming famous is shown in about 5 minutes. This unrealistic scenario is made fun of in a song that is about 2 minutes long. Priya’s father says that Shiva is not rich enough to be a suitor. Immediately, Shiva starts making money by ironing clothes, selling newspapers etc, and becomes rich enough to have his own beach!
To conclude, Tamizh Padam is one film that will receive ratings ranging from very poor to fantastic. To the Tamilians, this film is 100% pure fun and entertainment; this film has enough comedy to make you roll on the floor with laughter. To others who are not familiar with Kollywood, this film may be lame and boring; the jokes may seem weird and awkward. The fact that the jokes come only from spoofing other Tamil films make this favourable only among the locals. However, as a person who is familiar with Tamil cinema, I enjoyed the film very much; but of course, it is not really a film. There is no acting, no story, no good song… the only thing to look out for is the resemblance the comic scenes bear to the actual film.
So, to those who feel that they need to more about Tamil films, I suggest you find out about few films from which the scenes are taken from, and then watch the film. To those who are already followers of Kollywood, I say, go for it!
My Rating: 3/5
Director: C.S. AmudhanStory: C. S. Amudhan and K. Chandru
Cast: Shiva, Disha Pandey
Music: Kannan
Time: 120 minutes
Bottom-line: Recommended if and only if you watch Tamil films regularly
Now there are tons and tons of people who like Tamil films. At the same, there are lots of people who criticize Tamil films for several things: the hero always winning, the superhuman stunts performed by the hero, many useless songs etc. Yet, we cannot do more than criticize. We cannot publicly show how lame these aspects are, as we are afraid of the people’s reaction. Now C.S. Amudhan has made something unique: a spoof film that ridicules and makes fun of many Tamil films that have been made.
The story: in a small village, male infanticide is common. However, one boy, Shiva (played by Shiva) is determined to escape. So, along with his grandmother (Paravai Muniyamma), he comes to Chennai to become a hero. Shiva does so after defeating a local gangster. He falls in love with a headstrong girl, Priya (Pandey). Meanwhile, a new villain, known as D, is troubling the city. Shiva attempts to find and confront D. The rest of the film combines several ideas from different films to complete the story.
 |
| Shiva as Shiva |
Now, the main thing that is needed to enjoy the film is that you should be a regular viewer of Tamil cinema. The reason? Most of the comedy comes from showing the incidents that happen in the actual films in a comic way. For example, in the film Apoorva Sagodharargal, Kamal Haasan, as a dwarf, kills the villain using a Rube Goldberg Machine. Here, Shiva appears to be a dwarf, but we see that he is actually kneeling down. He tries several attempts to kill a bad guy, but fails every time. Finally, the bad guy gets so irritated that he shoots himself! So, if you see the original films, you can enjoy the comic scenes better.
There is no story in the film. Amudhan has taken ideas from several Tamil films, but what I like most is that he has managed to make a story out of them. However, you may understand and laugh at many of the jokes, but you will laugh even more when you see how Amudhan has made a spoof of the original film/dialogue. Even the song ‘Oh Maha Zeeya’ has lyrics taken from several other songs from various Tamil films!
 |
| Disha Pandey as Priya. A still from the song 'Oh Maha Zeeya' |
I could understand several jokes only with the help of others. If you see it while you are new to Kollywood cinema, the jokes may seem dumb. But if you see it when you are already familiar with Tamil cinema, the jokes are excellent. So, the opinions may vary depending on how well you know the world of Kollywood. Yet, the film does a great job in spoofing other Tamil films. In several films, the journey of the hero becoming rich or becoming famous is shown in about 5 minutes. This unrealistic scenario is made fun of in a song that is about 2 minutes long. Priya’s father says that Shiva is not rich enough to be a suitor. Immediately, Shiva starts making money by ironing clothes, selling newspapers etc, and becomes rich enough to have his own beach!
 |
| Shiva with M.S. Bhaskar. A scene from the spoof of the film 'Sivaji: the Boss' |
To conclude, Tamizh Padam is one film that will receive ratings ranging from very poor to fantastic. To the Tamilians, this film is 100% pure fun and entertainment; this film has enough comedy to make you roll on the floor with laughter. To others who are not familiar with Kollywood, this film may be lame and boring; the jokes may seem weird and awkward. The fact that the jokes come only from spoofing other Tamil films make this favourable only among the locals. However, as a person who is familiar with Tamil cinema, I enjoyed the film very much; but of course, it is not really a film. There is no acting, no story, no good song… the only thing to look out for is the resemblance the comic scenes bear to the actual film.
So, to those who feel that they need to more about Tamil films, I suggest you find out about few films from which the scenes are taken from, and then watch the film. To those who are already followers of Kollywood, I say, go for it!
My Rating: 3/5
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