MeiAzhagan - The real beauty of Humans
This emotional roller coaster was released more than a month ago! This is the first movie I really felt bad to have missed the theatrical experience.
What is so special in this movie? It is the way Humans live their life.
Initally, we are shown Arul, an adolescent fellow lying down in a temple. We get to know he has looked after the temple's elephant since its arrival. He is bidding goodbye to people, stating he has to leave that place since they have lost their house after partition issues.
A song in the background accompanies his cycle ride from temple to home. Almost, all eyes are wet by then.
Arul reaches home, his father, Arivudai Nambi, awaits his arrival to pack off. People standing with his father ask him to take care of Arul as Arul would be missing the house badly than anyone else. In the olden days, we had something called "ammi" (ancestor of mixie). Some people were digging it since it would be attached to the land. Arul gives a hand in lifting the ammi. What's there in this? Ammi says they have been living there for generations.
The house is going to be locked now. Usually the camera will be placed outside the home, where you can see people locking the house. But here, the camera is inside the house. It is evident that the director wants to convey that the house is going to miss the family more than the family is going to miss that house.
The darkness inside the house for a few seconds after Arul closes the door is the darkness inside each and everyone of us when all doors are closed. We are given a gap to realize those moments.
Arul is shown convincing his younger sister Buvana (Arul's sitapa's daughter) that they are moving to Chennai and that he would soon meet her.
Who is Arul? A guy with a lot of emotions who shares a bond with: his house, his cycle with which he roamed everywhere and his people including other living beings.
One could have never thought about such an emotional beginning for a movie.
The story shifts from 1996 to 2018.
Now, Arul is shown feeding so many parrots in his terrace. He informs them that he is leaving to his hometown for his sister's wedding. He also expresses his hesitation in visiting that place. But his wife, Hema, asks him if he is hesitant or afraid. She moulds his emotions saying that he can live alone all his life, but they have a daughter who needs relatives. She reminds him that if he doesn't make a move now, their daughter is left with only two people in her life - appa and amma. Hema's reminder hits hard on audience's head. We get to know about two more characters in Arul's house along with Arul's parents - his cat and his dog.
Arul starts his journey to his hometown. He gets down the train, takes a room to refresh and goes to the temple where he was lying on that day he left his native. He talks to his wife over the phone. This conversation gives a new ray of hope on husband-wife relationship - the depth of their understanding. Ideal couple in a nutshell!
Arul goes to the marriage reception via bus. We get to know that the conductor is his father's old student. The conductor helps an old lady lift her fruit basket and the lady gives him a fruit as a token of thanks. Humanity is still alive!
Arul reaches the hall.
1. We are introduced to Latha who calls Arul as "machan". There are specific words in colloquial language to express every relationship. Her happiness on seeing him again is evident how much she missed him. When she expressed that her life would have been good if she had married him, it knocked hard on Arul. The reason for her father not getting her married to Arul was because her father was not sure about his daughter's wellbeing in a distant place called Chennai. Though she is in her native place, today no one has time to check if she is happy or not. A reality that bashes out majority of parents' attitude in the groom/bride selection process.
2. Then comes a character, a naughty fellow, who closes Arul's eyes from backside and asks him to guess who he is. He calls Arul as 'Athaan'. Arul could not recollect, but just lies that he remembers this fellow. This fellow keeps roaming around Arul thereafter.
3. We are shown Sokku mama, with whom Arul shared a good bond previously. When Sokku enquires about his father, Arul immeditaley dials and hands over the phone to him. Bewildered initially, but Sokku manages to talk to Arul's father Nambi, inviting him to visit their hometown. After the call, we can see Nambi wiping his tears which makes it clear that Nambi, despite the betrayal he faced 22 years ago, still misses his people. In the initial scenes, when Sokku tries to curse Nambi's sister's family who betrayed them, Nambi would stop him stating they are still his family. Like father, like son moment it is. Arul got his good intentions from his parents. They have raised him well.
4. Then comes the main character, who is the reason behind Arul's visit to his place: his sister, Buvana.
Arul along with the 'stranger' fellow go to the stage. Buvana shows her excitement by opening Arul's gift for her on stage, where there was already a long queue to wish the couple. Queues in reception hall is a trend now a days. People who wait for long time in queues, may not acknowledge this emotion. Initally, we can see the dissatisfaction on the guests' face on making them wait. But when Arul places anklets on Buvana's legs, camera focusses on some women seated in the hall, with happy tears. That shift of emotion is captured well.
Then we see Arul, the unknown fellow and sokku mama move to dining hall. Latha serves him food and Arul asks her to eat. A one-line dialogue but a good shot. We often hear people asking us to eat in such functions. How many of us would have asked them to join with us? We don't right! Because we are now guests even in our family functions.
When Arul expresses dissatisfaction on seeing those relatives who betrayed them, his anger shifts to the unknown fellow. It's because this fellow shows those people to Arul. Sokku also joins Arul in expressing his anger on that poor fellow. This frustration makes Arul knowingly give a wrong mobile number to that fellow. But that fellow volunteerly writes his mobile number on the back of a card that was in Arul's wallet.
In all these places, Arul attempts to get the fellow's identity from others, but in vain.
Now, Arul and this fellow come out of the hall, collect the sapling as thamboolam (return gift) and Arul makes a call to his wife. Hema asks whom she is hearing nearby. Arul says he is not able to recognize that fellow. All of a sudden, that fellow gets Arul's phone and talks to hema. Hema was quite shocked with this gesture but persuades Arul to find his identity soon. Accepting someone is easy, but accepting a person along with his family, is the way to show how much we value that person. This aspect of human is vanishing little by little.
From there, that fellow takes Arul to the bus stand but drags the time by drinking tea, in order to make Arul miss the bus so that Arul can stay in his home one night. He succeeds in his plan but this irritates Arul but eventually both of them move to his home. On the way, that fellow calls his wife and informs that Arul is going to stay that night in their home.
5. Now, we are introduced to Nandhini, that fellow's wife, who receives Arul well. She expresses how much her husband likes him and how he would cherish this night all through the year. This adds to Arul's guilt who is still not able to recognize him. This small conversation tells that Nandhini and her husband are also an ideal couple (just like Arul and Hema).
Then we get into a beautiful conversation between Arul and that fellow. Though I cannot elaborate those discussions here, I do have a list:
- That fellow says that he is living in his in-law's house. When his father-in-law expired, Nandhini's siblings were keen on selling the house. But Nandhini was not wishing to sell the place where she was born and brought up. So, he arranges money and settles for her siblings, ultimately registering the house in Nandhini's name. It is not about the house here, it's about how that fellow values his wife's feelings.
- There is a bull in the backyard. There are memories where the bull is treated with humanity and given training for jallikattu.
- There is a cobra snake with 4-5 young ones. When Arul asks why that fellow is growing snakes, that fellow would say, we live in this house, in the same way, cobra also lives with its family. In fact, he addresses the cobra as the senior member of the house.
- That fellow has treasured Arul's favorite cycle. There go for a ride too.
- That fellow expresses his wish to name his unborn child after Arul.
After the conversation, they get drunk and return home. That fellow wishes for two things from Arul:
(1) To forgive those betrayed relatives. (He says if Arul is hurt, they would pay heavy price for it.
(2) To call him by his name
This accrues Arul's guilt and he leaves the home immediately without telling anyone. His walk to the nearby temple from that home goes with a background song. Another moment of mandatory wet eyes.
It was an early morning time and we see people putting kolams in front of their houses. He reaches the temple.
6. Here, we are introduced to a woman flower vendor. She asks Arul to get inside the temple. He says he didn't take bath. She says that it's our God, it won't mind all such things. What a dialogue again! People often are present physically inside temple. But what she stressed is, we need to be mentally present. She offers him a place to sit and asks if he needs a tea. He again avoids stating he didn't brush. He was awake all through the night. What is the use of brushing? The woman will ask him why he is hurrying to leave even without brushing and taking bath.
When Arul says he might miss the bus, the woman says even if he misses this bus, there are still more buses which he can take. Sometimes, we need to be adaptable when things do not work the way they have to.
Arul returns to Chennai but could not come out of the guilt of not recognizing the fellow. His daughter Jhanvi, overhears the conversation between her parents. She finds the card with the mobile numbers and dials it. The phone is now with Arul. On hearing his voice, Arul says it's him. That fellow says he tried calling his number but someone responded. Arul says he gave the wrong number. But that fellow takes it on himself stating he might have written the wrong number, which totally breaks Arul!
At last, Arul makes the move! Arul gathers his courage and asks for his identity. That fellow who never expected that, got shattered and cried for sometime. Whoever cried with this fellow are the ones who are not recognized by their close ones.
Later he consoled himself atleast now Arul has got the idea of knowing his identity.
He started explaining how he is related to Arul. Arul gets back his moments one by one. In one of the vacation time (1994), this fellow had spent nearly a month with Arul. They have cherished lots of moments along with their cousins. That fellow tells that Arul is his inspiration of what he is today as a human. Arul thanks him for reminding him to realize who he is. Somehow, that fellow gives clues to find his name and Arul finds it.
Arul rushes to that fellow's place the next day and calls him by name. The title of the movie flashes. That fellow opens the door calling "Athaan". The end credits start!
Any dialogue or gesture thereafter, wouldn't satisfy the audience.
The director wants us to carry those emotions with us. That's why he didn't capture any emotions later. IMO, it is intentionally done!
- 10 would definitely be toxic,
- 10 would be genuine souls and
- the rest 80 would be in between both the extremes.
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