''Thalaivaa'' () is a 2013 Indian
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
-language
action thriller film
Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...
written and directed by
A. L. Vijay
A. L. Vijay, known professionally as Vijay, is an Indian film director who works in the Tamil film industry. An assistant director with Priyadarshan, he debuted as director with films such as '' Kireedam'' and the critically acclaimed ''Madr ...
. It stars
Vijay in the title role. The film, produced by Chandraprakash Jain, features background score and soundtrack composed by
G. V. Prakash Kumar with cinematography and editing handled by
Nirav Shah
Nirav Shah (born 16 November 1974) is an Indian cinematographer. He has worked on a number of major box office hits in Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam since his debut with the 2004 Hindi film '' Paisa Vasool''.
Career
After having worked as an as ...
and
Anthony
Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...
respectively. The story revolves around a dancer who takes over his father's duty as a
crime boss
A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization.
Description
A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...
after his death.
The film, which commenced production in November 2012 in Mumbai, was released on 8 August 2013 on the occasion of
Eid-ul Fitr
, nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast
, observedby = Muslims
, type = Islamic
, longtype = Islamic
, significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan
, dat ...
. The film received mostly positive reviews from critics and audience. The film upon its early release was successful at the overseas box office and also successful in Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka box office. Due to opposition from the ruling
AIADMK
The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; AIADMK) is an Indian Regionalism (politics), regional political party with great influence in the Federated state, state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry (union territory) ...
as insisted by the then Chief minister
J Jayalalithaa
Jayaram Jayalalithaa (24 February 1948 – 5 December 2016) was an Indian politician and actress who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for more than fourteen years over six terms between 1991 and 2016. From 9 February 1989 to 5 December 2 ...
, the film had a delayed release in Tamil Nadu on 20 August 2013 and its performance was affected at the Tamil Nadu box office.The film went on to be remade in
Punjabi as
Sardar Saab
''Sardar Saab'' is a 2017 Indian Punjabi-language action film directed by Amit Prasher and written by Daljeet Kalsi. It stars Jackie Shroff, Guggu Gill, Daljeet Kalsi, Neetu Singh, Sudesh Berry, Shivendra Mahal, Karamjit Anmol, Sardar Sohi & ...
in 2017.
Plot
A riot occurs in
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
where Ratnam and his son Logu are attacked. However, Ramadurai arrives and saves them. After the riot, Ratnam decides to leave Mumbai and start a new life somewhere else. Ramadurai asks him to stay, but Ratnam says it is best that he moves away. Suddenly that night, Ramadurai's house gets attacked by his opposite gang Bhadra. While trying to save him, Ramadurai's wife Ganga dies on the spot. Enraged, Ramadurai kills Bhadra. He takes his son Vishwa to Ratnam who is in a train and asking him to take Vishwa with him, because he doesn't want Vishwa's life to be wasted by Ramadurai's action and sends him away with Ratnam.
Vishwa is a dancer who lives in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia and also manages a water distribution business in the name of Ganga with his childhood friend Logu and his dance team members. Ramadurai is a
crime boss
A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization.
Description
A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...
, who fights for the rights of migrated Tamilians. He keeps in contact with Vishwa as he grows up and lies to him about his profession. Vishwa falls in love with Meera, the daughter of a
restaurateur
A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...
, who is one of his customers. Meera reciprocates Vishwa's feelings and joins his dance team, helping them win a dance competition. She soon proposes to Vishwa, who agrees. Meera's father agrees to the marriage, but wants to discuss the matter formally with Ramadurai. They leave for Mumbai, where Vishwa finds out about Ramadurai's true profession and that he is currently in hiding due to several false charges registered against him by his arch-enemy Bhima, who is Bhadra's son. Vishwa also finds out that Meera and her father are
Crime Branch officers, who lured him to Mumbai so that they could arrest Ramadurai. Ramadurai is arrested, but just after he enters the police van, a bomb planted by Bhima in the van explodes, killing him. Vishwa is distraught over his father's death and decides to stay back in Mumbai and take over his father's crime syndicate. He dons the title of ''Thalaivaa'' and provides his own brand of justice for the helpless and downtrodden.
Meanwhile, Bhima instigates riots in Mumbai which kill many people and leave several others injured. Vishwa arrives at the scene and saves several others, including a Bhojpuri woman named Gowri, whose marriage was nullified due to the riots. Although there is seemingly lack of evidence that Bhima is responsible, a video recorded by a cameraman Kumar, highlighting Bhima's involvement in the riots is stolen by a
Bhojpuri
Bhojpuri (;[Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries](_blank)
, Oxford U ...
-speaking
pickpocket
Pickpocketing is a form of larceny that involves the stealing of money or other valuables from the person or a victim's pocket without them noticing the theft at the time. It may involve considerable dexterity and a knack for misdirection. A th ...
. Vishwa and his gang manage to reclaim the tape from the pickpocket and publicize it, leading to Bhima's arrest. Vishwa also kills the corrupt
CM of Maharashtra, who had given Bhima and his gang free rein, and puts the blame on Bhima. However, Bhima soon escapes from prison and kills most of Vishwa's henchmen on the night of
Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivaratri (IAST: Mahāśivarātri) is a Hindu festival celebrated annually in honour of the god Shiva. The name also refers to the night when Shiva performs the heavenly dance called Tandava.
In every month of the luni-solar Hindu ca ...
including Gowri, with the help of Vishwa's uncle Ranga, who is Vishwa's second-in-command. When Vishwa enters a fort after hearing Ranga is being "held hostage" there by Bhima, he is stabbed by Ranga, who immediately informs the police that Vishwa is "dead" and leaves the fort with his physically handicapped son, who is Vishwa's cousin and driver. When Ranga's son hears about his father's treachery, he becomes enraged and drives the car into a
petroleum tanker
An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined cru ...
, killing them both. Meanwhile, Vishwa, though injured fights with Bhima's henchmen and kills them one by one. After a bitter fight, he kills Bhima by stabbing his throat. Meera soon arrives at the fort and realizes that Vishwa killed Bhima, but she acts quickly and shoots the corpses of Bhima and his henchmen to imply that she killed them, thus saving Vishwa from prison term.
Meera eventually quits her job after realizing her love for Vishwa, and marries him. With Bhima and his gang out of the way, Vishwa is now the unchallenged crime boss in Mumbai.
Cast
Production
Casting
![Tamil-movies-vijay-thalaiva-movie-on-location-stills08](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Tamil-movies-vijay-thalaiva-movie-on-location-stills08.jpg)
After watching
A. L. Vijay
A. L. Vijay, known professionally as Vijay, is an Indian film director who works in the Tamil film industry. An assistant director with Priyadarshan, he debuted as director with films such as '' Kireedam'' and the critically acclaimed ''Madr ...
's period drama film ''
Madrasapattinam
''Madrasapattinam'' () is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language historical romantic drama film written and directed by A. L. Vijay. The film stars Arya and Amy Jackson, in her feature film debut, while Nassar, Cochin Hanifa, Lisa Lazarus, and Ale ...
'' (2010), Vijay was impressed by the film and contacted the film director for a new project. A. L. Vijay later narrated the ''Thalaivaa'' story to Vijay and he agreed to play the role within 15 minutes.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu and
Yami Gautam
Yami Gautam Dhar (born 28 November 1988) is an Indian actress known predominantly for her work in Hindi films. She sprang into prominence after doing some commercials for Glow & Lovely and began her acting career in television shows, followed ...
were initially approached for the lead female role. Later
Amala Paul
Amala Paul (born 26 October 1991) is an Indian actress who mainly appears in Tamil cinema, Tamil, Malayalam cinema, Malayalam and Telugu cinema, Telugu films. She made her acting debut by appearing in a supporting role in the Malayalam-language ...
was selected.
Vijay Yesudas
Vijay Yesudas (born 23 March 1979) is an Indian playback singer and actor. He has sung over 1000 film songs. Vijay works predominantly in the South Indian film industry, mostly in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Hindi. He is the son of ...
was reported to be finalized for the antagonist role in this film, but he denied it as rumour.
Sathyaraj
Rangaraj Subbiah (born 3 October 1954), professionally known as Sathyaraj, is an Indian actor, producer, director and a media personality who has predominantly appeares in Tamil cinema and Telugu cinema, Telugu Cinema. His 240 films also includ ...
was also selected to be a part of this film. A. L. Vijay's brother
Udhaya
''Udhaya'' is a 2004 Indian Tamil-language action drama film which was directed by Azhagam Perumal which released on 26 March 2004. The film stars Vijay and Simran, while Vivek, Nassar and Rajesh play supporting roles. The soundtrack for the ...
has been selected to feature in a prominent role.
G. V. Prakash Kumar will be the music director, while
Nirav Shah
Nirav Shah (born 16 November 1974) is an Indian cinematographer. He has worked on a number of major box office hits in Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam since his debut with the 2004 Hindi film '' Paisa Vasool''.
Career
After having worked as an as ...
will crank the camera. R. K. Naguraj has been enrolled as
art director
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games.
It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...
. Rumors about a
Hollywood star portraying a singer, were refuted by Vijay.
Filming
The muhurta of the film was held in Chennai on 16 November 2012. The first schedule began in Mumbai from 23 November 2012. The title song "Thalaivaa Thalaivaa" was shot in Mumbai with 500 junior artists. A major portion of the film was shot in Australia. The first look and title was revealed on 14 January 2013. Additional posters were released on 26 January 2013.
As of 8 February 2013, 50% of total shootings were completed, with stunt scenes conducted by
Stunt Silva
Stunt Silva is an Indian stunt actor, action director and stunt co-ordinator who has worked in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Hindi and Sinhala films. He made his debut with the 2005 Telugu film '' Chatrapathi'', directed by S. S ...
.
Ragini Nandwani
Ragini Nandwani (born 4 September 1991) is an Indian actress. She became popular after playing the lead in the Hindi soap opera ''Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein'' (2011–12). She made her Bollywood debut with the crime thriller film ''Dehraadun ...
, who plays a North Indian, stated that all of her film sequences were shot in Mumbai over 25–30 days. They moved to Chennai and shot a song at Binny Mills. A last shooting schedule in Australia was completed by 24 April. They shot scenes at the
Bondi Beach
Bondi Beach is a popular beach and the name of the surrounding suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Bondi Beach is located east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council, in the Easter ...
in
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
. It was revealed that Vijay would portray a leader of a dance group based in Australia, performing dance styles of different genres including
tap dancing
Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perfo ...
with
Sathish Krishnan
Sathish Krishnan is an Indian actor, dancer and choreographer, who has worked in Tamil films.
Career
After winning the first season of the reality dance show, Maanada Mayilada, Sathish was first seen portraying Vinay Rai's friend in Jeeva's ...
(''June Ponal'' from ''
Unnale Unnale
''Unnale Unnale'' () is a 2007 Indian Tamil-language romantic musical film.The movie is directed and co-written by Jeeva and produced by Oscar Ravichandran. It stars Vinay, Sadha and Tanisha Mukherjee in lead roles; Srinath, Raju Sundaram and S ...
'' song fame), Karthik (Ungalil yaar
Prabhu Deva
Prabhu Deva (born 3 April 1973) is an Indian dance choreographer, film director, producer and actor who has worked predominantly in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, and Kannada language films. In a career spanning 32 years, he has performed and designed a ...
winner), and their dance schoolmates.
Music
The soundtrack was composed by
G. V. Prakash Kumar with lyrics by
Na. Muthukumar
Nagarajan Muthukumar (12 July 1975 – 14 August 2016) was a Tamil poet, lyricist, and author. Best known for his Tamil language film songs, he received the most Filmfare Awards for Best Lyricist in Tamil and was a two-time recipient of the Nat ...
, both teaming with
A. L. Vijay
A. L. Vijay, known professionally as Vijay, is an Indian film director who works in the Tamil film industry. An assistant director with Priyadarshan, he debuted as director with films such as '' Kireedam'' and the critically acclaimed ''Madr ...
for the fifth time. The soundtrack features five songs and two
theme music
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...
tracks.
As of 21 November 2012, he had composed two songs for the film. One song had been sung by
Vijay alongside
Santhanam Santhanam or Santanam ( te, సంతానం) is an Indian name that may refer to:
People
* K. Santhanam (1895–1980), Indian politician
* Madabusi Santanam Raghunathan (born 1941), Indian mathematician
* Maharajapuram Santhanam (1928–1992) ...
. A third song was completed on 11 February 2013.
The audio launch took place on 21 June 2013 in Hotel Connemara. The audio rights of Thalaivaa were bought by
Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...
.
The album received generally positive reviews from critics. ''Behindwoods'' rated it 3.5/5, stating "A true for the fans, high on energy and drama".
''
Oneindia
Oneindia.com is an Indian website established in January 2006 by BG Mahesh. The website provides news updates, information on sports, events, travel, entertainment, business, lifestyle, videos, and classifieds in seven different Indian language ...
'' said GV Prakash Kumar has composed the songs keeping new-age audience in mind. Thalaivaa album simply cannot be ignored. ''Indiaglitz'' said "Thalaivaa is all about energy and jive. Ranging from foot tapping to soul lifting, the album is elevating in all respects. For a crowd puller like Vijay, this album is aptly scored to be cheery and soulful. In all, GV Prakash has redefined music crafted for dance and rated 3.75 / 5 – Energy packed album. Get up and dance."
Release
''Thalaivaa'' distribution rights for the United States and Canada were bought by Bharat Creations. Ayngaran International acquired the overseas rights for ''Thalaivaa'' Tamil Nadu rights were bought by
Vendhar Movies
Vendhar Movies is an Indian film production and distribution company based in Chennai.
History
In 2012 The company first started as proprietary by B.Balagurunathan and become partnership with S.Madhan in 2013 August. The company first distrib ...
and Kerala rights by Thameens via
Vendhar Movies
Vendhar Movies is an Indian film production and distribution company based in Chennai.
History
In 2012 The company first started as proprietary by B.Balagurunathan and become partnership with S.Madhan in 2013 August. The company first distrib ...
. The music rights were sold to
Sony Music
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...
. Prior to Vijay's birthday on 21 June a theatrical film trailer was released by
Sony Music India
Sony Music Entertainment India Pvt. Ltd. is the record label operated by Sony in Chennai, India. The company began operation in 1997, and it was the first record company in India to be 100% foreign-owned, with Sony being a Japanese corporatio ...
on their
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
channel. Trailer got 1.2 million in 32 hours and 2 million views within 2 days on YouTube after its release. The film garnered totally 3.4 million hits on YouTube. The satellite rights of the film were secured by
Sun TV for a record sum of . The film's running length is 3 hours 2 minutes and was given a "U" certificate by the
Indian Censor Board
The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory film-certification body in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India. It is tasked with "regulating the public exhibition of films under the provision ...
. The film has been released on Friday, 9 August 2013 worldwide.
Reception
Box office
Thalaivaa opened well at international markets, especially in the US and UK.
[Thalaivaa USA and UK Box Office report – Thalaivaa USA And UK Box Office Report- Box Office Analysis- Thalaivaa- Kerala- Karnataka- Tamil NAdu- Thalaivaa Box Office- Thalaivaa Box Office](_blank)
Cinemalead.com (12 August 2013). Retrieved on 12 October 2015. In UK From the paid previews on Thursday till Saturday, Thalaivaa's gross in the UK is approximate from 34 locations and it is seen as a very impressive opening.
Vijay's films generally embark on a great start in the UK, and Thalaivaa is no exception.
[Thalaiva release , Box office release report of Thalaiva (aka) Thalaivaa outside Tamil nadu](_blank)
Behindwoods.com (12 August 2013). Retrieved on 12 October 2015. The film's UK collection is said to be in its opening weekend.
In UK "Thalaivaa" made an impressive start earning (£1,21,249) from 36 screens in the opening weekend. The film has made higher collections than Suriya's "Singam 2" in the UK. "Singam 2" earned around in the first week of its release. But
Vijay's "Thalaivaa" crossed "Singam 2" collections in its debut weekend. The film continued its dream run at the UK box office even in its second weekend. Its total UK collections are now pegged at .
At the end of the first weekend, the US gross of Thalaivaa from 44 reported locations is US$212,000 . A record total of 70 locations are screening Thalaivaa and the total gross for the first weekend is expected to be in the US$250,000 range
Thalaivaa fared well in Malaysia too. Thalaivaa has maintained exceptionally well in its second weekend in Malaysia. The film has become ninth highest grosser of all time in Malaysia's box office in just 10 days collection. In its second weekend the film has collected (MYR 579,153) on 60 screens and average working out per screens (MYR 9,654). Thalaivaa collected around in just 10 days at the Malaysian box office.
Baradwaj Rangan
Baradwaj Rangan is an Indian film critic, writer, and formerly the deputy editor of ''The Hindu''. He later became a senior editor of Film Companion. Rangan won the National Film Award for Best Film Critic in 2006. Before joining ''The Hindu'' ...
of the Hindu wrote "The director gets a lot of things right...this film has been made with some integrity, with respect for the story being told (and, to some extent, the audience too). After Vishwa's transformation, he's rarely shown smiling. Even when Santhanam makes a re-entry, there is no joyous reunion. Even after the heroine is separated from the hero for a while, there are no "dream songs".
"
Critical response
''
Oneindia.in
Oneindia.com is an Indian website established in January 2006 by BG Mahesh. The website provides news updates, information on sports, events, travel, entertainment, business, lifestyle, videos, and classifieds in seven different Indian language ...
'' stated that the film is a typical entertainer from
Vijay, and will make his fans proud to be his fans.
[Critics Review: Thalaivaa Gets Mixed Response – Oneindia Entertainment](_blank)
Entertainment.oneindia.in (10 August 2013). Retrieved on 1 June 2014.
Behindwoods.com. Retrieved on 29 December 2013. ''
IBN Live
Network18 Media & Investments Limited, (formerly SGA Finance and Management Service and Network18 Fincap Limited) commonly referred to as the Network18 Group and sometimes as the Network18–Eenadu Group, is an Indian media conglomerate owned b ...
'' gave it a 3/5 rating, stating that the film is a full-baked product. ''
Sify
Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology company providing end-to-end ICT solutions including telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation in ...
'' stated "Thalaivaa is good and the movie was racy and shorter". ''Metromasti.com'' gave the movie 3/5 stars, stating, "Thalaiva which runs for 185 minutes has very intelligent scenes and is expected to be a complete class hit entertainer movie of the year".
[Thalaiva Review Vijay's Thalaivaa a class entertainment hit film , Reviews](_blank)
Metromasti.com (9 August 2013). Retrieved on 29 December 2013.
'
Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, t ...
' gave it a 3/5, stating
Vijay is in top form when he's normal and menacing.
Sathyaraj
Rangaraj Subbiah (born 3 October 1954), professionally known as Sathyaraj, is an Indian actor, producer, director and a media personality who has predominantly appeares in Tamil cinema and Telugu cinema, Telugu Cinema. His 240 films also includ ...
as the don is effective. But the one who makes this arduous journey enjoyable is
Santhanam Santhanam or Santanam ( te, సంతానం) is an Indian name that may refer to:
People
* K. Santhanam (1895–1980), Indian politician
* Madabusi Santanam Raghunathan (born 1941), Indian mathematician
* Maharajapuram Santhanam (1928–1992) ...
, whose poker-faced humour provides relief in a largely grim story. ''MovieCrow'' rated it a 3/5, stating that the movie is a typical entertainer. ''
Ananda Vikatan
''Ananda Vikatan'' is a Tamil-language weekly magazine published from Chennai, India.
History and profile
''Ananda Vikatan'' was started by Late Pudhoor Vaidyanadhaiyar in February 1926 as a monthly publication. The issue for December 1927 wa ...
'' rated the film 42 out of 100. ''Bookmyshow'' rated the film 3/5, stating that "Overall, Thalaivaa is a very good movie to watch, not just for movie fanatics down south but all across the nation. If it's the one thing you learn from this flick is – If you're your father's son, you will follow his footsteps!".
Thalaivaa: Film Review
In.bookmyshow.com. Retrieved on 12 October 2015.
Accolades
References
External links
*
{{A. L. Vijay
2013 films
Films shot in Mumbai
Films shot in Sydney
2013 action drama films
2013 action thriller films
Indian action drama films
Indian action thriller films
Films directed by A. L. Vijay
Films scored by G. V. Prakash Kumar
2010s Tamil-language films
Films set in Mumbai
Films set in Sydney
Films shot in Chennai
Tamil films remade in other languages