''Vishwa Thulasi'' is a 2004 Tamil-language drama film directed by Sumathy Ram, starring

Mammooty Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail (; born 7 September 1951), known mononymously by the hypocorism Mammootty (), is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam films. He has also appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, H ...

and

Nandita Das Nandita Das (born 7 November 1969) is an Indian actress and director. She has acted in over 40 feature films in ten different languages. Das appeared in the films ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth'' (1998), '' Bawandar'' (2000), '' Kannathil Muthamittal' ...

. This film's score and soundtrack were composed by

Ilayaraaja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

and

M. S. Viswanathan Manayangath Subramanian Viswanathan (24 June 1928 – 14 July 2015), also known as M.S.V., was an Indian music director, singer and actor who predominantly worked in Tamil film industry. He was popularly known as ''Mellisai Mannar''. He compose ...

. The film was notable for having a female director.

Plot

The film, set in the 1940s and moving to the 1960s, revolves around the emotional story of Thulasi (

) returning to her village to become a dance teacher. She cannot bring herself to forget Vishwa (

Mammootty Muhammad Kutty Panaparambil Ismail (; born 7 September 1951), known mononymously by the hypocorism Mammootty (), is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Malayalam cinema, Malayalam films. He has also appeared in Tamil l ...

), a man she has been in love with for two decades. Memories of Vishwa haunt her constantly, and upon a chance meeting with him, she discovers he too is struggling with his love for her. Both are haunted by the memory of Thulasi's cousin, a figure who is unable to control his obsession for his cousin and hide his resentment at Thulasi's feelings for Vishwa. Thulasi comes to Sundarapuri after her guardians — her grandma and uncle — pass away, to work as teacher in a dance school. It is in Sundarapuri that Vishwa, the Zamindar whom she had met 20 years ago, lives. They meet again and the feelings that had blossomed in their hearts as teenagers, are revived. Vishwa is unmarried and Thulasi has gone through an unceremonious ritual in the name of matrimony, but fear of societal stigma and innate inhibition keep them asunder. Sensing their intense love for each other, Pattabhi (

Delhi Ganesh Delhi Ganesh is an Indian actor who mostly acts in supporting roles in Tamil cinema and serials. He has acted in more than 400 films from 1976 to present. Before films, he was a member of the Delhi-based theatre troupe, ''Dakshina Bharata Natak ...

), the manager at Vishwa's house, helps them overcome their fears. It is then that fate enters in the form of Shiva ( Manoj K. Jayan).

Cast

as Vishwa *

as Thulasi * Manoj K. Jayan as Shiva *

as Pattabhi *

Sukumari Sukumari Amma (6 October 1940 – 26 March 2013) was an Indian actress best known for her works in Malayalam and Tamil films. In a career spanning more than five decades, She has appeared in more than 2500 films predominantly in Malayalam, Tam ...

as Vishwa's mother *

Manivannan S. Manivannan Rajagopal (31 July 1953 – 15 June 2013), better known by his mononym Manivannan, was an Indian film director, actor and activist who worked mainly in Tamil cinema and also worked in a few Telugu & Malayalam films. In a care ...

Madhan Bob S. Krishnamoorthy (born 19 October 1953) professionally known as Madhan Bob, is an Indian actor and comedian, appearing in many Tamil films in supporting roles. Madhan Babu is known for his amusing facial expressions, laughter and protruding ey ...

Kovai Sarala Kovai Sarala is an Indian actress and comedian, who prominently plays supporting roles in Tamil and Telugu films. She has won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Comedian three times, for her performances in '' Sathi Leelavathi'' (1995), '' ...

Vaiyapuri Vaiyapuri (born 23 October 1968 as Ramakrishnan) is an Indian actor who has worked in Tamil-language films. He rose to fame by appearing in supporting roles in the late 1990s and early 2000s, often portraying supporting comedic characters. His ...

Kamala Kamesh Kamala Kamesh is an Indian actress in Tamil movies. She was one of the prominent supporting actress in late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s in Tamil movies. She has acted nearly 480 movies in Tamil. She is often seen in all of Visu's movies. Biography S ...

*Rajesh Vaidya *

Ambili Devi Ambili Devi is an actress from Kerala, India who appeared in many Malayalam cinema and serials. She has established herself as a lead actress in Malayalam Television Industry and has won the Kerala State Television Award for Best Actress in 2 ...

as Young Thulasi

Soundtrack

All the songs were composed and orchestrated by

. Background score of the movie was done by

Ilaiyaraaja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

Reception

Malini Mannath of ''Chennai Online'' wrote that "Though one can appreciate the debutant director's sincerity to give a clean, aesthetic, lyrical film, quite different from the dance-fight-romance routine, one feels 'Vishwa Thulasi' would have made a pleasant video-album. Stretching it to two hours, is stretching it a bit too much!"

Awards

The film has won the following awards since its release: 2005 WorldFest Houston (United States) * Won - Gold Remi Award - Music Score -

* Won - Gold Special Jury Award - First Feature - Vishwa Thulasi - Sumathy Ram

Tamil Nadu State Film Award

*Won - Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Second Best Film - Second Prize, 2004 *Won - Tamil Nadu State Film Award for best Choreography - 2004

References

External links

* {{TamilNaduStateFilmAwardBestFilm 2004 films Films set in the 1940s Indian romantic musical films Films scored by Ilaiyaraaja Films scored by M. S. Viswanathan 2000s Tamil-language films 2000s romantic musical films 2004 directorial debut films