Thamizhan

From Bharatpedia, an open encyclopedia


Thamizhan
File:Thamizhan.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMajith
Produced byG. Venkateswaran
Screenplay byS. A. Chandrasekhar
Story byMajith
StarringVijay
Priyanka Chopra
Music byD. Imman
CinematographyN. K. Ekambaram
Edited byV. T. Vijayan
Production
company
Release date
12 April 2002
Running time
162 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Thamizhan is a 2002 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by debutant Majith and produced by G. Venkateswaran. The film stars Vijay and Priyanka Chopra as the lead. Priyanka Chopra made her debut in Indian cinema through this film. She made her debut as a lead actress in the film.[1] Revathi, Nassar, Ashish Vidyarthi and Vivek also play pivotal roles in the film, while the film's score and soundtrack were composed by D. Imman.[2] The story involves solving several corruption cases by a lawyer named Surya in the process fighting against a criminal boss and finally making Indian law basics available as a free book to common people. The film released on 12 April 2002. It received mixed reviews, but was a commercial success at the box office.[2][3]

Plot[edit]

Surya (Vijay) is a happy go lucky guy and often gets involved in petty fights. He falls in love with Priya (Priyanka Chopra). His brother in law Sakthivel (Nasser), advises him to join as a junior to senior lawyer Lakshminarayanan (Delhi Ganesh). He becomes a upright lawyer who values and tries to redress things the legal way. Sakthivel, is killed in the process of upholding justice by an corrupt bigwig GK (Ashish Vidhyarthi).

He takes up a mission to make the layman understand his legal rights and learn the Indian law basics. So, Surya is seen as a hero by the people. GK's dairy factory gets sealed by Surya for violating food safety norms. Surya's sister Jaya (Revathi) also meets a pitiful end at the hands of GK's goons, but Surya refuses to give up. GK's goons start a riot in a village and put the blame on Surya. Surya is arrested and beaten up by the corrupt cops, and retaliates in return. Surya is summoned at the court and fights up legally, suggesting several reforms in the judicial system of India. After Surya gets released, GK attempts to shoot him but gets thrashed by the people. Surya tells GK to reform before he gets punished. For his service, Surya is honoured by the President Of India. Finally, it is shown that Surya's dream had come true.

Cast[edit]

Production[edit]

In 2001, producer G. Venkateswaran signed on Thirupathisamy to direct Vijay in an action film titled Velan. The film, a remake of the director's Telugu film Azad, saw Priyanka Chopra, winner of the beauty pageant Miss World 2000, being brought in by Venkateswaren to make her debut and play the lead female role.[1] However, before production began, Thirupathisamy died in an accident and Venkateswaren duly decided to give debutant Majith a chance to direct a film with the same cast.[4] To prepare for her role in the film, Priyanka watched Tamil films and tried to pick up a Tamil accent.[5][6]

Gautami was initially selected to play Vijay's sister in the film, but was later replaced by Revathi.[7] Vivek was signed on to film comedy scenes for a sum of ₹15 lakh.[8] A new technical team of music director 18-year-old Imman, who had scored for serials earlier, and cinematographer Ekambaram, who had apprenticed with Jeeva, were also selected. Furthermore, the sets were designed by Sabu Cyril, dance choreography was by Raju Sundaram, and stunts were arranged by Super Subbarayan.[9][10]

A scene for the film featured the producer and lyricist Vairamuthu making guest appearances as themselves during a book launch event.[11] The patriotic nature of the film led to a postal stamp being released with Vijay's face on it.[12] The similarities of title and release date between Thamizhan and the Prashanth-starrer Thamizh created confusion, with the producers of both films unable to accommodate any changes.[13]

Release[edit]

The film released on 12 April 2002. Made on a high budget of ₹5 crore, Thamizhan was sold for ₹11.5 crore[14] to distributors.

The movie was later dubbed in Telugu as Dammunte Kasko and in Hindi as Jeet - Born To Win (2009).[15][16]

Critical reception[edit]

The film opened to mixed reviews from film critics.[17] Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu praised Vijay's image change and claimed he acts out a "creditable portrayal", while adding that "dialogue is a strong point of the film". Though she also mentioned that "debutante Priyanka Chopra has precious little to do" and that Revathi's role was of a clichéd elder sister. In comparison, a reviewer from Bizhat.com stated that "the message conveyed leaves you exhausted and stressed", giving the film an average review.[18][19][20]

Soundtrack[edit]

Thamizhan
Soundtrack album by
D. Imman
Released2002
GenreFeature film soundtrack
LabelStar Music
D. Imman chronology
Thamizhan
(2002) 		Sena
(2003)

The soundtrack of the film was composed by D. Imman, who with the soundtrack made his debut at 19 years old.[21] Actress Priyanka Chopra sang a song in the film, with Vijay recommending her after he had heard her humming to a tune.[22]

Track-list
No. TitleSinger(s) Length
1. "Hot Party"  Tippu, Mathangi 04:38
2. "Lala Law Mudichom"  Shankar Mahadevan, Lavanya 05:09
3. "Mattu Mattu"  D. Imman, Anuradha Sriram 05:03
4. "Tamizha Tamizha"  Karthik 04:43
5. "Ullathai Killathe"  Vijay, Priyanka Chopra 05:04
Total length:
 24:37

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "From beauty pageant to celluloid". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://www.rediff.com/movies/2002/apr/26tam.htm
  3. ↑ "'Shajahan' - 2001". The Times of India. 17 June 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  4. ↑ "rediff.com, Movies: Priyanka Chopra heads South". rediff.com.
  5. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20020806191344/http://tmcafe.com/interviews.php
  6. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20020809150423/http://tmcafe.com/interviews2.php
  7. ↑ "ARTS & CULTURE". tamilguardian.com. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2011.
  8. ↑ "Should Rajini be fined Rs". itgo.com.
  9. ↑ "Tamil movies for the New year". itgo.com.
  10. ↑ "Chennai-The Heritage Capital". indiaprofile.com.
  11. ↑ "Going places, literally". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 4 July 2003.
  12. ↑ "rediff.com, Movies: Vasundhara's no glam doll". rediff.com.
  13. ↑ "rediff.com: Movies: An interview with Prasanth". rediff.com.
  14. ↑ Thamizhan sold for record 11.5c
  15. ↑ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/Tamizhan-dubbed-in-Telugu/articleshow/21101165.cms
  16. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AdRDNwr7I
  17. ↑ "Thamizhan review by Prabhu". Lollu Express. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  18. ↑ "BizHat.com - Tamizhan Review. Vijay, Priyanka Chopra, Revathy". bizhat.com.
  19. ↑ "Ushering in the new year". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 4 July 2003.
  20. ↑ "Awaiting superhits". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 4 July 2003.
  21. ↑ The Hindu : Five composers for GV's film
  22. ↑ "She's getting vocal". India Today. Archived from the original on 25 July 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2012.

External links[edit]

Information red.svg
Scan the QR code to donate via UPI
Dear reader, We kindly request your support in maintaining the independence of Bharatpedia. As a non-profit organization, we rely heavily on small donations to sustain our operations and provide free access to reliable information to the world. We would greatly appreciate it if you could take a moment to consider donating to our cause, as it would greatly aid us in our mission. Your contribution would demonstrate the importance of reliable and trustworthy knowledge to you and the world. Thank you.

Please select an option below or scan the QR code to donate
₹150 ₹500 ₹1,000 ₹2,000 ₹5,000 ₹10,000 Other


Retrieved from "https://en.bharatpedia.org/index.php?title=Thamizhan&oldid=137409"