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{{Short description|2012 Indian film by Ramji S. Balan}}
{{No plot|date=November 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| image = Udumban poster.jpg
| caption = Poster
| native_name = 
| director = Ramji S. Balan
| writer = Ramji S. Balan
| screenplay =
| story =
| based_on = 
| producer = S. Jaganathan
| starring = {{plainlist|
*[[Dilip Rogger]]
*[[Radhika (Malayalam actress)|Sana]]
*[[Ansiba Hassan|Geethika]]
*G. Sunil
}}
| narrator =
| cinematography = Kichas
| editing = M. Sunil Kumar<br /><small>'''Editing Supervisor:'''</small><br />[[V. T. Vijayan]]
| music = Ramji S. Balan
| studio = Modern Cinemas
| distributor = 
| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2012|2|17}}
| runtime =
| country = India
| language = Tamil
| budget =
| gross =
}}
'''''Udumban''''' ({{translation|[[Monitor lizard]] man}}) is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language [[action drama film]] written and directed by Ramji S. Balan and starring [[Dilip Rogger]], [[Radhika (Malayalam actress)|Sana]], [[Ansiba Hassan|Geethika]], and G. Sunil.<ref name="ni">{{Cite news |date=20 February 2012 |title=A tighter script would have helped! |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/review/2012/feb/20/a-tighter-script-would-have-helped-341662.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708233120/https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/review/2012/feb/20/a-tighter-script-would-have-helped-341662.html |archive-date=2022-07-08 |access-date=2022-08-30 |work=[[The New Indian Express]]}}</ref>

== Cast ==
{{Cast listing|
*[[Dilip Rogger]] as Udumban
*[[Radhika (Malayalam actress)|Sana]] as Isaipriya, a [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]] student researching education
*[[Ansiba Hassan|Geethika]] as a [[saree]] thief, who is engaged to Udumban
*G. Sunil as Kaalai, Udumban's elder brother who is allergic to lizard meat
*Senthil as Maari, Udumban's friend
*Chellakuri as Inspector Courtallam
*Kambam Meena as Udumban's mother
*[[Paravai Muniyamma]] (special appearance in the song "Ange Idi Muzhangathu")
}}

== Production ==
Bike racer [[Dilip Rogger]] debuted as an actor with this film and trained for six months for the role.<ref name="Audio">{{Cite web |last=Kumar |first=S. R. Ashok |date=21 January 2012 |title=Audio Beat: Udumban |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Audio-Beat-Udumban/article13375340.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708231808/https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Audio-Beat-Udumban/article13375340.ece |archive-date=8 July 2022 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref> Rogger's character was based on Paruthi Vooran from Paruthi-Oor (previously depicted in ''[[Paruthiveeran]]''), who actually existed according to the director.<ref>{{Cite news |date=22 November 2010 |title=Udumban, the next Paruthiveeran |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/regional/movie-details/news-interviews/udumban-the-next-paruthiveeran/articleshow/6964592.cms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711113854/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/regional/movie-details/news-interviews/udumban-the-next-paruthiveeran/articleshow/6964592.cms |archive-date=11 July 2022 |work=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> The film was shot in the same locations where Paruthi Vooran allegedly lived.<ref name="getting real">{{Cite web |last=Raghavan |first=Nikhil |date=27 November 2010 |title=Itsy-bitsy |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Itsy-bitsy/article15718351.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708233740/https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Itsy-bitsy/article15718351.ece |archive-date=8 July 2022 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref> A [[monitor lizard]] (''udumbu'' in Tamil) plays a prominent role in the film.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 January 2011 |title=On the Tinsel Track |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2011/jan/12/on-the-tinsel-track-218817.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708234717/https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2011/jan/12/on-the-tinsel-track-218817.html |archive-date=2022-07-08 |access-date=2022-07-10 |website=[[The New Indian Express]]}}</ref> Malayalam actress [[Radhika (Malayalam actress)|Radhika]] was cast opposite Rogger in the role of a researcher and Kerala model [[Ansiba Hassan|Nachathra]] as the second heroine,<ref name="getting real" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Raghavan |first=Nikhil |date=3 September 2011 |title=itsy Bitsy |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/itsy-bitsy/article2420908.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102203851/http://www.thehindu.com/arts/cinema/article2420908.ece |archive-date=2 November 2012 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref> and they were rechristened as Sana and Geethika, respectively.<ref name="Audio" /> The film was shot in the interior villages of [[Madurai]] and [[Karaikudi]],<ref name="Controversy">{{Cite news |date=3 February 2012 |title=Udumban in trouble |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/telugu/movies/news/udumban-in-trouble/articleshow/11738851.cms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708233309/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/telugu/movies/news/udumban-in-trouble/articleshow/11738851.cms |archive-date=2022-07-08 |access-date=2022-07-10 |work=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> and was shot for three years because when it rained the land would get wet and not look authentic.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Raghavan |first=Nikhil |date=8 January 2011 |title=Itsy-bitsy |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Itsy-bitsy/article15511664.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708233742/https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Itsy-bitsy/article15511664.ece |archive-date=8 July 2022 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref><ref name="Audio" />

== Soundtrack ==
The soundtrack was composed by Ramji S. Balan. It features five songs that were written by [[Bharathidasan]] and two written by [[Pattukottai Kalyanasundaram]],<ref name="Audio" /> and includes "Ange Idi Muzhangathu", a famous folk song dedicated to [[Karuppu Sami|Karuppasamy]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jeshi |first=K. |date=11 April 2013 |title=Of motorcycles and movies |url=http://www.hindu.com/mp/2011/03/17/stories/2011031751330400.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130411021917/http://www.hindu.com/mp/2011/03/17/stories/2011031751330400.htm |archive-date=11 April 2013 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref>
*"Ange Idi Muzhangathu" – Thekkampatti Sundarrajan and [[Paravai Muniyamma]]
*"Kaattrilellam" – [[Hariharan (singer)|Hariharan]] and [[Sadhana Sargam]]
*"Pallikoodam Muthal Mani" – [[Anuradha Sriram]] and Hariharan
*"Vaanukku Nilavu" – [[Shankar Mahadevan]]
*"Kandavudan Kaathal" – Hariharan
*"Paazhaai Pona Manam" – Shankar Mahadevan and Priya
*"Nallarukkum Pollarukkum" – [[Mukesh Mohamed|Mukesh]]
*"Oram Kizhinjalum" – Mukesh

==Release==
The film was scheduled to release on 10 February, but faced troubles as wildlife enthusiast P. Selvaraj sought to ban the film for violence against monitor lizards, an endangered species. Rogger claimed that the monitor lizard was only present during the first photoshoot and appeared in the film through the use of graphics.<ref name="Controversy" /> Although a court hearing was scheduled on 16 February, the film released on 17 February.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 February 2012 |title=Friday Fury-February 17 |url=http://www.sify.com/movies/friday-fury-february-17-news-tamil-mcrkr9bgbbh.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120219230525/http://www.sify.com/movies/friday-fury-february-17-news-tamil-mcrkr9bgbbh.html |archive-date=19 February 2012 |access-date=18 August 2012 |website=[[Sify]]}}</ref> Producer Jeganathan claimed to have obtained permission from forest officials before shooting with the monitor lizard. He filed a ₹1 crore defamation suit against Selvaraj.<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 February 2012 |title=Udumban team to file a defamation suit! |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2012/feb/05/udumban-team-to-file-a-defamation-suit-337198.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708233119/https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2012/feb/05/udumban-team-to-file-a-defamation-suit-337198.html |archive-date=2022-07-08 |access-date=2022-07-10 |website=[[The New Indian Express]]}}</ref>

== Reception ==
Malathi Rangarajan of ''[[The Hindu]]'' opined that "But isn't neat execution even more important [than a strong storyline] to make the film worth your while? It is in this area that Udumban falls terribly short".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rangarajan |first=Malathi |date=18 February 2012 |title=Udumban: Strong theme, weak script |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/udumban-strong-theme-weak-script/article2906963.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220708231808/https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/udumban-strong-theme-weak-script/article2906963.ece |archive-date=8 July 2022 |access-date=10 July 2022 |website=[[The Hindu]]}}</ref> Siddharth Varma of ''[[The Times of India]]'' stated that "The storyline is a little confusing as it tries to incorporate too many things – sibling rivalry, the rich becoming richer, police corruption, the plight of farmers and, yes, the education system too. Ultimately, it falls victim to the many flaws it wants to highlight".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Varma |first=Siddharth |title=Udumban Movie Review |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movie-reviews/udumban/movie-review/11949028.cms |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129153238/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movie-reviews/udumban/movie-review/11949028.cms |archive-date=29 January 2017 |work=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref> A critic from ''[[The New Indian Express]]'' wrote that "But what is consistent and holds up the film to a large extent, is the line of humour and satire that runs throughout. ''Udumban'' delivers much more that what one expected".<ref name="ni" /> A critic from ''[[Sify]]'' said that "On the whole, the film is well-intentioned, {{sic|humo|urous}} and criticizes the flaws of our education system and how anybody can start a school with prime focus on minting money in an entertaining manner. It addresses the topical issue about the challenge that parents go through to get their kids admitted to private schools".<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 February 2012 |title=Udumban |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/udumban-review-tamil-pcmapGdijbefe.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220630040333/https://www.sify.com/movies/udumban-review-tamil-pcmapGdijbefe.html |archive-date=30 June 2022 |website=[[Sify]] |access-date=10 July 2022 }}</ref> A critic from ''[[Dinamalar]]'' praised several aspects of the film including the performance of the cast, the music, the lyrics, the cinematography, the editing, but criticised the storyline of the second half of the film.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 February 2012 |title=உடும்பன் |url=https://cinema.dinamalar.com/movie-review/486/udumban/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810021549/https://cinema.dinamalar.com/movie-review/486/udumban/ |archive-date=10 August 2022 |access-date=1 November 2025 |website=[[Dinamalar]] |language=ta}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
*{{IMDb title}}
*{{Rotten Tomatoes}}

[[Category:2012 Indian films]]
[[Category:2012 Tamil-language films]]
[[Category:2012 action drama films]]
[[Category:2012 films]]
[[Category:Indian action drama films]]
[[Category:Tamil-language action drama films]]
[[Category:Tamil-language Indian films]]
[[Category:Films involved in defamation lawsuits]]

Udumban - Revision history

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