Vaaranam Aayiram
Vaaranam Aayiram is a 2008 Indian Tamil-language musical romantic drama film written and directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon. Suriya plays dual lead roles as father and son, with Simran, Divya Spandana, and Sameera Reddy. The film had been under production since late 2006, and was released worldwide on 14 November 2008.
The film illustrates the story of a son recollecting different parts of his life with his father upon hearing about his death. As a tribute to the father of the director, the film opened to critical acclaim. Produced by Venu Ravichandran, the score was composed by Harris Jayaraj, making Vaaranam Aayiram his final project with Gautham Menon before the formal break-up of their partnership, until they worked together again in Yennai Arindhaal. It won a number of awards, including the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil. The film was also a commercial success, eventually becoming the biggest hit in Suriya's career at that time.
Plot
An elderly Krishnan returns home after a haircut, vomits blood, and passes away. His son Suriya, on his way to Kashmir on a rescue mission learns of this and reminisces memories of the past.Krishnan and Malini both attend Madras Christian College in the 1970s. They get married and a year later, Suriya is born. Krishnan and Suriya grow as friends rather than a father-son. Years later, after completing Mechanical engineering in Trichy, he meets Meghna on the train back home and falls head over heels for her. But Meghna doesn't believe in love at first sight. Suriya soon learns that she is soon leaving for Berkeley to get her master's degree.
Meanwhile, Krishnan suffers his first heart Attack. Reality strikes Suriya and he decides to take care of his family. He starts a design firm with his friends and also does some concerts to earn money.. Suriya and his sister earn enough to complete their father's dream home. Later, on his father's advice, Suriya tracks down Meghna in the San Francisco. Though surprised by his daring move, Meghna makes him stay with her and they start to understand each other. Convinced Suriya is the right guy, and also because her father would accept a person like him, Meghna proposes to Suriya, much to his and his family's delight. She then leaves for Oklahoma city on a project. Unfortunately the Oklahoma City bombing takes place, in which Meghna is killed.
Depressed Suriya decides to go back to India, and meets Businessman Shankar Menon on the way, who consoles and encourages him. Weeks pass by, yet Suriya tries hanging out with friends, and meets Priya, his sister's friend but is unable to cope with thoughts of him and Meghna. He starts drugs, Malini and Krishnan support him even though they lock him in his room to break his habit. Once he starts withdrawing, Suriya goes on a trip to rejuvenate to Kashmir,where he learns Aditya, Shankar Menon's son, has been kidnapped in Delhi. He decides to find Aditya and after days of roaming the city and investigating, he finds Dabbu Malik who directs him to the kidnapper, Asad. With no preparation and falling into all mess alone, he overpowers them intelligently and rescues Adithya. He receives critical praise from around the country.
Back home, Priya proposes to Suriya and also confesses that she was in love right from their childhood, but Suriya is stunned and does not respond. Suriya understands that the only way to forget the pain is to train his body and prepare for bigger things. He goes on a strict workout training and joins the army. Now Major K.Suriya, after six years, thinks of Priya and to his surprise, meets Priya who comes to Dehradun. She has been selected as a female officer in the Army office. She proposes again and this time they end up marrying and have a son. Suddenly, Krishnan is diagnosed with throat cancer and given a year to live. After some days, Suriya is called upon to go on a mission to rescue a journalist, which brings the scene back to the present day.
The military mission is completed with the help of a masked man and Suriya returns home. Suriya, Shriya, Malini, and Priya release his father's ashes in the sea, and Malini relates her husband's life to Suriya by uttering a verse from a verse, "Vaaranam aayiram soozha valam sethu", The film ends as the four walk conveying "Whatever happens, life has to go on."
Cast
- Suriya as Krishnan and Maj.K.Suriya
- *Varun as three-year-old Suriya
- *Hiren as six-year-old Suriya
- *Sachin as eleven-year-old Suriya
- Simran as Malini Krishnan
- Sameera Reddy as Meghna
- Privithiraj as Asad
- Deepa Narendran as Shriya Krishnan
- *Laasya as five-year-old Shriya
- Karthik as Mahesh
- Ajay as Ajay
- Akanksha Midha as Namradha Dutt
- Jayshree as Aarthi
- Dany as Priya's father
- Ganesh as Shriya's husband
- Deenadalayan as Shankar Dayal Sharma
- Gautham Menon as Commando Informer
- Indra as Priya's mother
- Neelakandan Ganesh as Librarian
- Ravi as Daboo Mauik
- Rajeevan as Meghna's father
- Shanker Kolandi as Shankar Menon
- Swetha as Swetha
- Sathish as Sathish
- Veera Bahu as Commando
- Aditya as Aditya
- Shreya as Shriya
- Amitash as Krishnan's friend
Production
Development
Following Kaakha Kaakha in 2003, the director Gautham Menon and Suriya expressed their desire to work together on a film. In early 2005, the pair got together for a film tentatively titled Chennaiyil Oru Mazhaikaalam which featured Asin Thottumkal in the lead role and Daniel Balaji in a supporting one. However, after a photo shoot, the film was delayed and then subsequently called off. Nevertheless, in 2006, producer Venu Ravichandran signed up the pair for a new film, which they confirmed was not going to be a sequel of their previous venture; it was going to be a romantic thriller. Initially titles such as Naan Thaan and Udal Porul Aavi were considered for the project, but Menon announced the title was Vaaranam Aayiram, title derived from "Nachiyar Thirumozhi" with the literal meaning of "the strength of a thousand elephants". According to Menon, he received the news of his father's death while he was travelling in an aeroplane in 2007; this incident inspired him to direct Vaaranam Aayiram which begins in a similar manner.served as shooting spot in "Adiye Kolluthe" song
Before the start of shooting, technical crew members were signed up, and the shoot commenced without a leading lady on 24 November 2006 at a nightclub in Chennai. In 2007, it was announced that a 10-day shoot in Afghanistan would be followed by shooting in Malaysia, Russia and the United States. However, the film only completed a shoot at the University of California, Berkeley in Berkeley, US, and shooting was not held in Afghanistan.
In November 2007, Gautham Menon decided to send the reels back to Chennai from San Francisco. Two of the production managers were assigned the task of bringing the reels to the producer's office. But they stayed in Singapore for a couple of days before returning to Chennai. Following their arrival, it was understood the reels went missing in the hotel they stayed in at Singapore, but a search by the police proved unsuccessful. The whole crew of Vaaranam Aayiram was in a fix as the reels held fight scenes, songs and other scenes worth $500,000. Soon after, the reels were found with the Singapore airport authorities. The film finished its shoot in August 2008.
A song was filmed by an assistant cameraman with a high-tech camera, costing about Rs. 1.5 crore, fastened to his hip. While the assistant was moving behind the actors canning the shots, he tripped unexpectedly and the camera broke to pieces. The shot resumed a day later with a similar camera.
Vaaranam Aayiram was believed to be based on the Dutch film by Mike van Diem, Character; others have claimed that it is inspired by the 1994 Hollywood film, Forrest Gump, starring Tom Hanks. Menon too admitted the film will draw inspirations from Forrest Gump but would be fixed to suit the Indian audience. Furthermore, Menon stated that Surya Sivakumar will be seen playing the dual roles of a 21-year-old and his father and that the film will be society themed. It was set to release in 2007 and was delayed for a 14 November 2008 release. The audio of Vaaranam Aayiram was released on 24 September 2008. Menon has described the film as "autobiographical and a very personal story and if people didn’t know, that 70% of this is from my life". Suriya lost weight without using capsules and prepared a six-pack for the film through an eight-month fitness regime.
Casting
For Surya's father Krishnan's role, Menon initially approached both Mohanlal and Nana Patekar, but it did not worked out as there was an issue about how they would portray the character's younger age in the flashback scenes and that is when Suriya expressed interest in portraying the character himself. After the cancellation of Chennaiyil Oru Mazhaikaalam, originally starring Surya Sivakumar, Asin Thottumkal and Daniel Balaji, keeping the male leads the same, Gautham Menon wanted to opt for a new heroine to begin Vaaranam Aayiram. Deepika Padukone was first approached for the role, but she backed out to be part of Bollywood film Om Shanti Om. Soon after, another confirmed heroine, Andrea Jeremiah, was dropped from the film for unknown reasons. Asin expressed her desire to be a part of the project, but the male lead, Surya, refuted her offer citing that she had walked out of his previous film, Sillunu Oru Kadhal and refused to act opposite him.The producers then announced the film with Divya Spandana, who was making her comeback to Tamil films and Genelia D'Souza in the lead roles. Soon after the start of the shoot, Genelia decided to walk out, after Menon refused to pay the hefty salary that she was demanding and was receiving in Telugu films allowing Sameera Reddy to act in her first Tamil film. Simran signed and completed her shoots swiftly after she was selected to portray the mother of Surya, after Tabu had rejected the role.
Soundtrack
The film has seven songs composed by Harris Jayaraj. All lyrics except one track are penned by Thamarai. The songs from the albums were released to four leading radio stations in Chennai, with one song per station, in attempt to popularise it five days before the official launch. The move by Sony BMG was the first of its kind in Indian cinema.Critical response
The album received positive reviews from music critics. Indiaglitz stated "'Varanam Aayiram' is no doubt one of the best from Harris Jeyaraj and Gautham duo. It is energetic and entertaining. A must listen musical score that is serene even while repeated." Malathy Sundaram from Behindwoods gave a 4/5 rating and praised the album calling it a "blockbuster" further citing "The guitar simply enthralls you. So do the native drums. There is a slight monotony in the instrumentation, but it doesn’t seem to affect the overall effect. Thaamarai needs to be complimented for the soft lyrics." Pavithra Srinivasan from Rediff gave a 3.5/5 rating and said "Put together, you definitely feel that Harris Jayaraj has set out to provide quality music with a difference."Release
Box office
Varanam Aayiram emerged as the biggest blockbuster for Suriya since Ghajini, grossing 5.66 crore in Chennai alone. In overseas market, the film grossed $921,007 from both United Kingdom and Malaysia.Critical reception
Sify stated that it is a "film straight from the heart". Indiaglitz reviewed that it "proves to be a tame affair" but stated that "Suriya the actor rocks throughout". Behindwoods rated it 2.5/5 stating that "what could have been a subtly told story turns into a sloppy fare" and "there are touching and heart-warming moments in the movie but, they are few and far between". Rediff gave the film 3/5 and called it a "moving story", further mentioning that "It might be just a feather in Gautam's hat. As for Surya, it's an ostrich plume, a justified triumph." The Hindu said, "The same combo came together for Kaakha Kaakha and signed off with a flourish not so long ago! Of course Vaaranam... does have some great moments, but it’s a lengthy film, and you feel it!"Accolades
In addition to the following list of awards and nominations, prominent Indian film websites named Vaaranam Aayiram one of the 10 best Tamil films of 2008. Before its release, the film's title had appeared on film websites' "most awaited" lists.| Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
| 2008 National Film Awards | Best Feature Film in Tamil | Venu Ravichandran Gautham Menon | rowspan="3" |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Actor | Surya Sivakumar | - |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Supporting Actress | Simran | - |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Director | Gautham Menon | rowspan="2" |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Film | Venu Ravichandran | - |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Lyricist | Thamarai | rowspan="2" |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Male Playback | Naresh Iyer | - |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Male Playback | Hariharan | |
| 2008 Filmfare Awards South | Best Music Director | Harris Jayaraj | rowspan="7" |
| 2008 Tamil Nadu State Film Awards | Special Award for Best Actor | Surya Sivakumar | - |
| 2008 Tamil Nadu State Film Awards | Best Art Director | Rajeevan | - |
| 2008 Tamil Nadu State Film Awards | Best Audiographer | Ravi | - |
| 2008 International Tamil Film Awards | Best Music Director | Harris Jayaraj | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Actor | Surya Sivakumar | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Simran | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Art Director | Rajeevan | rowspan="5" |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Cinematographer | R. Rathnavelu | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Choreographer | Brindha Ava Enna | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Debut Actress | Sameera Reddy | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Director | Gautham Menon | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Favourite Director | Gautham Menon | |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Editor | Anthony | rowspan="5" |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Entertainer | Surya Sivakumar | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Favourite Hero | Surya Sivakumar | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Female Playback Singer | Sudha Raghunathan | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Film | Venu Ravichandran | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Favourite Film | Venu Ravichandran | rowspan="14" |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Lyricist | Thamarai | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Make-Up | Yogesh & Banu | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Male Playback | Hariharan | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Best Music Director | Harris Jayaraj | - |
| 2008 Vijay Awards | Favourite Song | Harris Jayaraj | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Rising Star Singer – Female | Shruti Haasan | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Picturisation Award | R. Rathnavelu | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Art Direction | Rajeevan | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Lyricist Award | Thamarai Nenjukkul Peithidum | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Album of the Year | Harris Jayaraj | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Playback Singer – Male | Hariharan Nenjukkul Peithidum | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Best Music Director | Harris Jayaraj | - |
| 2008 Meera Isaiaruvi Tamil Music Awards | Voice of the Year | Karthik Ava Enna | - |
| 2009 South Scope Awards | Most Stylish Actor – Tamil | Surya Sivakumar | |
| 2009 South Scope Awards | Most Stylish Music Director – Tamil | Harris Jayaraj | rowspan="2" |
| 2009 South Scope Awards | Style Youth Icon of the Year | Surya Sivakumar | - |
Legacy
The song "Mundhinam Paarthene" inspired a romantic film of the same name.In the film Idharkuthane Aasaipattai Balakumara, Baby has the song "Mundhinam Paarthene" as her ringtone.