Thulladha Manamum Thullum
Thulladha Manamum Thullum (transl. Even the heart that doesn't bounce, will bounce) is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by debutant Ezhil. It stars Vijay and Simran, while Manivannan, Dhamu and Vaiyapuri among others play supporting roles. The film is produced by R. B. Choudary and has its music composed by S. A. Rajkumar and cinematography performed by R. Selva.
Thulladha Manamum Thullum
N. Prasanna Kumar (dialogues)
Ezhil
Ezhil
R. Selva
V. Jaishankar
- 29 January 1999
152 minutes
India
Tamil
Thulladha Manamum Thullum was released on 29 January 1999. The film received positive reviews and became a huge commercial success. It was remade in Telugu as Nuvvu Vastavani, in Kannada as O Nanna Nalle, in Bengali as Sathi, and in Odia as I Love You.
Plot[edit]
Kutty is an aspiring but struggling singer who works for a local cable provider Mani. He is unable to get recognition and a stage to exhibit his musical talent. Rukmini "Rukku", a college student, is new to the locality where Kutty stays, and on hearing Kutty's voice, she becomes his fan and decides to seek him and encourage his talent as his voice resembles that of her late father. However, Rukmini always catches Kutty in negative situations and, not knowing that he is Kutty, develops a hatred for him as she thinks that he is a rowdy. Once, when Kutty is pickpocketed, he pursues the pickpocket to Rukmini's college. In the process, he accidentally drops a bottle of acid to the ground, which causes Rukmini, who is present at the spot where the acid bottle fell, to become blind.
Kutty is horrified when he finds out that he is the reason Rukmini had become blind. To make amends, he decides to become her close companion and help her in every way possible. Soon, love blossoms between the two. When Kutty's mother dies, he finds out that her eyes had been donated. He decides to arrange the operation to restore Rukmini’s eyesight with his mother's eyes, but as the price of the operation turns out to be very high, he accepts an offer from a Sikh man to donate a kidney for his Pune-based father for ₹40,000. Having paid for Rukmini’s surgery, Kutty leaves for Pune to donate his kidney. While waiting at the railway station to return back to Chennai, he is framed as a terrorist and arrested. He is then jailed in Pune prison.
Seven years later, Kutty is released from prison and returns to Chennai, only to find out that Rukmini had moved out of their locality and is now a collector, her eyesight having been restored as well. But Rukmini, on seeing Kutty and not knowing that he is Kutty, orders for him to be arrested, in revenge for his "rowdy activities" in the past and for making her blind. But when Kutty begins to sing, Rukmini realises that the "rowdy" she had arrested is none other than Kutty. She apologises for misunderstanding him, and they happily embrace.
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
The film saw director Ezhil, an erstwhile assistant to the duo Robert–Rajasekar, Panneer and Parthiban, make his debut as a filmmaker under R. B. Choudary's production house Super Good Films. The film's concept was inspired from Charlie Chaplin's City Lights (1931) that Ezhil had watched during a film festival. An earlier version of the script showed the lead character as a painter. The initial title for the film was Rukmanikkaga (transl. For Rukmani), but Choudary later changed it to Thulladha Manamum Thullum.[1]
Casting[edit]
Ezhil initially wanted comedian Vadivelu to play the lead role. Murali was also considered for the lead role before Vijay was selected. On the suggestion of his friends, Ezhil decided to make the film with a commercial hero and changed the entire script retaining only the emotional core of City Lights.[1] Prior to its release, the role of Vijay's mother in the film was kept under wraps with the media speculating who would play the role. Eventually, no actress played the role although the character played a pivotal part in the film.[2] Rambha was initially supposed to do the project, but as the project underwent changes, the actress opted out before she was replaced by Simran.[1]
Filming[edit]
Principal photography began with the "Dhuddu" song as the director felt it would give the team some time to gel, this was choreographed by Raju Sundaram.[1] The story takes place in Triplicane because Ezhil had lived there for a while in his uncle's house. The team scouted for a long time to find a suitable location that fit the story's requirements however a chance visit to the set of a Malayalam film at Murugalaya Studios convinced Ezhil that erecting a set would be far more cost-effective and thus set resembling Triplicane was erected.[1]
Legacy[edit]
The success of Thulladha Manamum Thullum led to more offers for Simran, who with Thulladha Manamum Thullum and Vaali, established herself among the leading actresses in Tamil films.[14] Vijay and Simran were also paired together in several other films after the film's success, with projects titled Priyamaanavale (2000) and Udhaya (2004) launched weeks after the film's release.[2] The film went on to be remade in Telugu as Nuvvu Vastavani,[15] in Kannada as O Nanna Nalle,[5] in Bengali as Sathi,[16] and in Odia as I Love You.[17]