Dear Manirthanam,
I remember the day before Iruvar released. I was in 11th standard. Usually there would be a buzz in my school when a Mohanlal film was about to release. And this was no ordinary Mohanlal film. It was directed by you. Your previous film Bombay had been a blockbuster across the nation and also created a lot of controversies. Iruvar had Aishwarya Rai as Mohanlal's heroine. The music was by A.R.Rehman. It was obviously one of the biggest films of Mohanlal's career. But Iruvar did not create any buzz. I remember the film was not marketed very well. The posters had come in pretty late. Nobody seemed to know about it except for a few hardcore fans of you and Mohanlal. You did a great job hiding what the film was about (which might have worked against the film from a marketing point of view since Indian audiences usually like to know what they're going to watch).Minsaarakanavu was also releasing on the same day. That could also have been a reason for the lack of interest in Iruvar.
I first watched Iruvar a week after it had released and flopped. It had been relegated to playing at the small Sangeetha theater in Ernakulam. It was a spellbinding experience. The film had one of Mohanlal's greatest performances. Prakash Raj in an equally praiseworthy performance, measured up to Mohanlal. Aishwarya Rai made a great debut in two very different roles. Rehman's music was tremendous. His background score was the sort that most Indian filmmakers would kill for. And you used it to great effect to underscore the power of Aanandam and Tamil Selvam when they gave their speeches. I don't think the film is an authentic portrayal of MGR or Karunanidhi and their relationship. It is a film that looks at these giants as well ..... the towering figures they were. Without dwelling on their dark side. Adoor Gopalakrishnan said you were able to extract Mohanlal's greatest performance and I agree. He is so refined in this film. Iruvar is one of India's greatest commercial films even though it was a flop. This is the sort of film every Indian commercial filmmaker should aspire to make.
Best regards, Pimpin.
(9/10)
I remember the day before Iruvar released. I was in 11th standard. Usually there would be a buzz in my school when a Mohanlal film was about to release. And this was no ordinary Mohanlal film. It was directed by you. Your previous film Bombay had been a blockbuster across the nation and also created a lot of controversies. Iruvar had Aishwarya Rai as Mohanlal's heroine. The music was by A.R.Rehman. It was obviously one of the biggest films of Mohanlal's career. But Iruvar did not create any buzz. I remember the film was not marketed very well. The posters had come in pretty late. Nobody seemed to know about it except for a few hardcore fans of you and Mohanlal. You did a great job hiding what the film was about (which might have worked against the film from a marketing point of view since Indian audiences usually like to know what they're going to watch).Minsaarakanavu was also releasing on the same day. That could also have been a reason for the lack of interest in Iruvar.
I first watched Iruvar a week after it had released and flopped. It had been relegated to playing at the small Sangeetha theater in Ernakulam. It was a spellbinding experience. The film had one of Mohanlal's greatest performances. Prakash Raj in an equally praiseworthy performance, measured up to Mohanlal. Aishwarya Rai made a great debut in two very different roles. Rehman's music was tremendous. His background score was the sort that most Indian filmmakers would kill for. And you used it to great effect to underscore the power of Aanandam and Tamil Selvam when they gave their speeches. I don't think the film is an authentic portrayal of MGR or Karunanidhi and their relationship. It is a film that looks at these giants as well ..... the towering figures they were. Without dwelling on their dark side. Adoor Gopalakrishnan said you were able to extract Mohanlal's greatest performance and I agree. He is so refined in this film. Iruvar is one of India's greatest commercial films even though it was a flop. This is the sort of film every Indian commercial filmmaker should aspire to make.
Best regards, Pimpin.
(9/10)