Thankar
Bhachan,
the
ace
filmmaker
known
for
his
strong
criticism
over
Tamil
films
and
creators,
has
come
out
with
a
new
off
beat
film.
The
film
makes
him
a
worthy
person
to
attack
the
so
called
modern
half
backed
films
and
its
makers.
His
Onbathu
Roopai
Nottu
(Nine
Rupees
Note)
gives
a
new
dimension
to
Tamil
cinema
and
makes
every
Tamilian
(with
a
back
ground
of
Village)
feel
proud
of
their
flawless
down
to
earth
life
style.
His
superb
screenplay,
lively
dialogues
with
the
northern
districts
slang,
which
was
ever
handled
by
any
director
before
in
Tamil
cinema,
melt
every
one's
heart
and
bring
a
world
of
reality
to
the
viewers.
The
style
of
story
telling
and
making
techniques
of
Thankar
are
even
toppled
the
son
of
the
soil
Bharathiraaja
through
this
film.
First
of
all,
we
should
thank
the
producer
of
the
film
Dr
AS
Ganesan
for
supporting
this
director
to
create
an
village
epic
on
the
celluloid.
Thankar
has
used
his
own
familiar
novel
in
the
same
title
to
make
this
film
with
the
outstanding
stars
like
Sathyaraj,
Nasser
and
Urvasi
Archana.
The
film
is
none
other
than
a
biography
of
a
real
life
gold
hearted
man
named
Madhava
Padayachi
(Sathyaraj),
narrated
mostly
through
flashbacks
as
he
makes
his
way
back
to
his
village
in
a
bus
from
Chennai.
Madhavar
is
a
noble
and
dignified
man
in
the
village
Pathirakkottai
near
Panrutti.
He
is
survived
by
his
wife
Velayi
(Archana)
and
5
children,
who
look
after
agriculture
for
their
livelihood.
His
close
friend
is
Haja
Bai
(Nasser),
who
is
suffering
a
lot
to
come
up
in
life.
Madhavar
and
Velayi
helped
Haja
Bai
a
lot
and
at
a
stage
they
give
huge
amount
to
Haja
to
set
up
a
business
for
him.
After
a
few
years,
Madhavar's
sons
turns
against
him
and
demands
partition
in
the
property
with
the
inducement
of
their
relative
Thandapani
(Dance
Master
Sivasankar).
The
revolt
by
the
sons
comes
as
a
humiliating
shock
to
the
aging
couple.
Finally,
they
decide
to
go
away
from
the
family.
Suddenly,
he
reminds
his
friend
Haja
Bai
and
getting
a
train
to
his
place
Ambur,
where
Haja
is
settled
well
as
an
Industrialist.
Haja
and
his
wife
Kameela
(Rohini)
welcome
Madhavar
and
Velayi
warmly
and
ask
them
to
stay
there
as
long
as
they
wish.
But
Madhavar
requested
Haja
to
help
to
get
a
work
to
run
the
life
without
any
embarrassing.
Understanding
the
feeling
of
Madhavar,
Haja
gives
6
acres
land
owned
by
him
in
the
outskirts
of
Ambur
and
also
financed
to
buy
some
goats.
One
day,
Madhavar
sees
his
younger
son,
who
is
brought
up
by
Madhavar
in
wealth
and
love
as
a
servant
of
his
village
neighbor.
He
briefs
everything
to
his
wife
with
pain.
Finally,
both
decide
to
return
their
Village.
But
unexpectedly,
Velayi
dies
on
the
same
night.
Now,
Madhavar
comes
back
to
his
native
with
the
help
of
his
relative
boy,
where
he
comes
to
know
that
his
sons
and
blood
relatives
are
suffering
without
their
daily
food.
The
sleepless
Madhavar
searches
his
younger
son's
hut
amidst
cashew
bushes,
where
the
entire
family
is
sleeping
with
hunger.
One
of
Madhavar's
grand
sons,
a
2
years
old
child
crying
in
hunger,
but
without
the
sense
his
father
is
in
deep
sleep.
The
broken
hearted
Madhavar,
nearing
the
child,
hugs
him
with
tearful
eyes.
On
the
next
day
morning,
people
find
Madhavar's
body
beneath
a
jack
fruit
tree!
The
painful
life
of
a
man
comes
to
an
end
in
his
own
soil.
The
small
anticlimax
-
the
loud
wailing
by
villagers,
male,
female
and
children-
leave
a
sad
feeling
in
the
mind
of
the
viewer
and
they
come
out
with
a
wet
kerchief.
Sathyaraj
simply
excels
in
the
lead
role
as
Madhava
Padayatchi
with
his
flawless
performance.
He
makes
more
dignity
to
the
role
he
plays.
His
gigantic
appearance
with
realistic
costumes
made
the
character
more
authentic.
Particularly
in
the
climax
scene,
where
he
take
bath
under
the
public
tap
and
wearing
his
wet
dhoti
over
his
head,
brings
a
real
village
character
in
front
of
the
viewer's
eyes.
Archana
is
a
revelation.
The
veteran
actress,
who
had
received
National
Award
for
acting,
has
done
wonders.
One
could
wonders
why
Tamil
cinema
is
not
utilizing
her
talent
properly.
Her
outbursts
as
well
as
the
expressions
of
subdued
and
suppressed
emotions
are
amazing.
Her
powerful
eyes
convey
a
lot.
Nasser
and
Rohini
play
a
Muslim
couple
lending
a
helping
hand
to
Madhavar,
and
the
two
have
done
their
roles
with
aplomb.
Lenin,
as
usual,
is
excellent
with
his
editing.
The
frames
of
rural
Panrutti
are
joined
into
one
beautifully
seamless
visual.
The
flashbacks
are
brought
in
at
appropriate
moments
to
help
the
tale
move
forward
and
backward
without
resorting
to
use
of
different
colours
or
their
absence.
The
lone
fight
scene
in
the
movie
(no
signs
of
choreography
on
this
count)
has
been
sensibly
put
together
without
the
audience
being
hassled
with
unnecessary
pyrotechnics.
The
director
makes
this
film
without
any
cinematic
compromises
at
any
stage,
which
lends
more
credibility
to
the
proceedings.
Lyricist
Vairamuthu
and
music
composer
Bharadwaj
have
created
three
memorable
and
meaningful
lilting
numbers,
Velayi...,
Yaar
Yaaro…
and
Maargazhiyil...,
to
etch
poignant
moments
in
Onbathu....
In
a
very
subtle
way,
Bachan
has
brought
out
the
element
of
communal
harmony
-
a
certainly
welcome
sign
in
these
troubled
times.
He
gets
full
marks
for
his
efforts
in
this
one.
The
Hindu
funeral
music
in
the
background,
when
the
Muslim
couple
takes
leave
of
a
distraught
Madhavar,
shows
a
deft
directorial
touch.
And
the
way
the
director
shows
the
age
of
Velayi
is
another
remarkable
scene.
The
feel
of
Humanity
and
passion
is
the
base
of
the
story,
which
exposed
well
by
the
director
through
out
the
film.
All
in
all,
we
can
say
with
proud
that
Thankar's
Onbathu
Roopai
Nottu
is
a
valuable
currency,
not
only
in
India,
but
all
over
the
globe!!
Verdict:
Hats
off
Thankar
Cast:
Sathyaraj,
Archana,
Nasser,
Rohini
Music:
Bharathwaj
Lyrics:
Kaviperarasu
Vairamuthu
Photography,
Script
and
Direction:
Thankar
Bachan
Producer:
Dr
AS
Ganesan