Vijay - A chronology

The latest news that reads in the Tamil Film industry is about a personality called Mr.Vijay. distributors seem to be really upset over this guy plainly cause his movies for the past 4 years, with the exception of Pokkiri seem to have sunken without a trace at the BO.Simple.


Let us trace the growth of this man,which to this day remains a mystery in my mind.


Vijay was left quite embarassingly unnoticed in his first few movies. Unnoticed for anything including looks, physique,performance,impression...all except one thing. The guy was a gifted dancer. 'Gifted' here is a relative term. It just means there was something to salvage.


With a lot of effort from his dad, known for his horrible,non-sense movies of the 80s,this guy 'sustained' himself in a film industry where there were two Titans who would go on to become legends in the South film industry. One man was one of a kind. The other man re-defined method acting. Enough said.


With many other middle aged actors in their prime during the early 90s, this young man with limited talent could find no place to stand.


Then, things changed. The tastes of audiences changed and the ratings of one of the Masters went crashing over the roof and the other became quite un-dependable at the box office. The middle aged actors started getting older and boring. The young brigade had to march in. They did. And disappointed.


When Rajnikant and Kamal Hasan starred in movies together and solo during the late 70s,people knew they were getting the best of cinema they could. Little did they know that they were seeing on screen,the last of the talented actors tamil cinema had to offer for 3 decades!


When this gap formed, There were very few actors in question. Ajith,Prashanth and Vijay. The release of Mani Ratnam's 'alaipayuthey' added just one more to the competition. It was just a mere inclusion. R.Madhavan.


With such huge space to evolve and greater tendencies to sustain, our heroes meandered and ended up where they are now.


Prashanth's limited acting skills were widely known and he soon gave way to a horrifying list of flops. His life and his status as the most eligible bachelor left him in tatters by the end of the next decade.


R.Madhavan was widely touted as the next big thing, and he ended up uniquely spoiling his career with probably the worst film selection. its hard to beleive that a guy of his calibre could manage only 6 blockbusters in a decade - Alaipayuthey,Minnale,Run,Ayutha ezuthu,Guru,3 Idiots - of which only 3 were lead roles. At some point I began to wonder if he wants his audiences to hate him.... well how else would you explain world class movies like 'Arya','ennavale','guru en aalu' , 'thambi' ,'priyasakhi','piriyamana thozhi'?.. to say a few that is...


Truth is he never wanted to stay in Tamil industry all through his life.


I think I spoke too soon. I ll take back my words. there are ways to select movies with much less care. Ajith is living proof. The man with such captivating looks,actings skills and style was touted to the next superstar,if I remember it right, on the release of Rajeev menon's 'Kandukondein Kandukondein'. No one could have guessed where he would be for the next 5 years,and by the end of the next decade. He did do a lot of hard work at the bar.. his paunch and sagging eye bags are present day proof to that.. but thats not what he was there for. 'Red' is still a bench mark for a 'career-spoiling' movie. It is yet to broken.


Then we have our 'star' who suddenly became one. Yes. I still remember the day I looked with astonishment on the paper news that read Vijay's 'Badri' movie cut-outs were being showered with litres n litres of milk. Something only Rajni and the other gods enjoy in Tamil Nadu. Coca-Cola got Vijay to do an AD claiming that Vijay was more popular than madhavan and Ajith in rural areas. hmmm.


A mild fact would clear our minds here. The Collections of a un-famed movie with no big stars except Ramya Krishnan called 'Paalaiyathu Amman',released at the same time, turned out double the BO collections of 'Badri'. Veppilai for thought.


Suddenly, a guy who was just hanging on the minds of people only through movies like 'Poove unakaaha', 'Kadhalukku mariyadhai','Priyamanavale' and 'Kushi' became a 'little superstar' ,oops!!! pardon me that name too was taken later by an idiot. His legacy would require another blog.



And so started the career of a so-called 'superstar' of the Tamil industry. the guy continued to churn out flops and yet people celebrated him as an actor, when he was not even able to do justice to any of his roles. People had forgotten he was there by chance and luck. His memorable movies were all director-oriented and none were hits JUST because he starred in them.


By this time even Rajni movies did not have that guarantee. Expecting that from our 'Star' would be an absurdity.


The distributors saw this irrational hype as a chance to mint money through his new-found status as a 'Star'.Suddenly Vijay movies were being bought with high prices and his salary shot up due to no apparent reason. His movies were quite mediocre and none really stood as a cut above the rest. Maybe only hard workers need to face terrible appraisals.


Many movies were seen as pure attempts to murder movie goers - Youth,Bagavathi,Pudhiya geethai and more recently Sukran,Aadhi,Villu and SURA.


I would have expected him to select sensible movies like Kushi that requires less hype n hoopla,not to mention less acting.

Wait. That was not it. This man really did wanna become the next big thing in the industry. Paaaren??!! So he saw himself as a replacement to Rajni. Bad move. The image change drastically reduced his fan base and continues to do so.



Now for the last 6 years, If I remember it right he has just 4 hits - Gilli,Pokkiri,Thiruppachi and Sivakaasi. too less for a super star don't you think?

Apart from copying from Rajni, his lack of originality made him copy or rather 'rip-off' performances,styles,motifs,expressions,costumes..if there is anything else left, from stars in the telugu Industry. HO!!! .. humm!!

Now.. these distributor fellas, who milked his profits in blockbusters like 'gilli' as trying to wash him off during his rough times. I wouldn't blame him.


Everyone know his limited ability and un-reliablity. It was their fault in the first place to make this guy a 'Min-guarantee' fella. He continues doing his job. Don't blame him now. It is unfair to penalize Vijay now. you let him grow, you banked on him when he gave 3 flops a year. you minted money when he commanded the BO. You guys must suffer for the state of the industry now.


Let Vijay act. There are still people who defend Vijay. People who expect good movies from him. Maybe this is what the Buddha meant when he said 'Hope'.

But I know. He will have an intro song,a heroine to blame if the movie flops, 4 stunt scenes,punch dialogues(even after utter mockeries that have been made of it),sentiments with an eye on politics,an action block in the climax. And people will watch them. That s the in-explicable part of it.

Things seem to be changing after the release of your recent Sura. Even Vijay fans don't wanna admit they like you now.

But!! Vijay sir,I have never had any hope on you. I might never will. It is only a matter of time before you start your foray into politics. You are never gonna win. I know it, the world knows it. The world won't forgive you for bringing guys like Perarasu and Ramana into the film industry. It was because of people like you that I stopped watching Tamil movies.

In all my life,I ve never seen a movie that received as much Flak as Sura. I am hopin I never will.

Prejudice,sense,honour ..the height of all of it and yes!!... a little gore!!

"If Kasab is given life, the common man would lose his faith in the court"

Words of wisdom and sensibility. Better late than NEVER.

Kasab has been sentenced to death. The news was made public today afternoon as India awaited
the judgement on a rare case of a Live terrorist who was caught and lived to tell us all the tale of Pakistan's Shame.

The judge's decision should be lauded if not worshipped. I hope every Judge on earth takes a leaf from M L Tahaliyani's book and treats crime the way it should be.

"What??!! He has been charged with war,murder and planned massacre.. what else did you expect?" I am sure this runs through your mind as you go through this. But no. In India it is never that easy. It was a pleasant surprise..at least for me




Crime is a plague. It should be treated with the right medicine before it eats you up. India has for long tried to maintain its image as 'cultured','tolerant','non-aligned','merciful'... oh crap.. add as much as you want to this bullshit heap of words.



TO me all that it means is 'LAME'.

As a lover of stories, I can only see this through fiction.

In Tamil mythology and Hinduism 'Nayannar' is a term given to selected Devotees of Lord Shiva who are remembered for their limitless trust and devotion in lord Shiva, apart from being special in many other ways.

There was once a Ruler who called himself "Meiporul Naayanar". His name by itself in tamil means 'the essence' or 'the true meaning'. Being a brave and fearless warrior he remained undefeated and was famous for his just ways.

A rival King who was unable to defeat him dressed himself up as devotee of Shiva and succeeded in Stabbing the Nayannar to death. Even before his last breath, the ruler asked his furious bodyguard not to kill him and take good care of him,

WHY??? - Just because he was trying to imitate a devotee of Shiva. This man... the ruler who gave his life for his faith in Shiva is kept right among his biggest devotees and still spoken about in awe.


The Second one is about Angulima. Best known as a disciple of The Buddha. He was previously a murderer and thief, who was enlightened by Buddha and even gave his life for his faith in Buddhism and hence non-violence. The horrible part was that he was beaten to death by a few villagers who bore a grudge against him right from his robber days.

A man who single-handedly defeated an entire battalion of the King's Army was beaten to death by a few common men, and was left to die as he was begging them for water. His very name comes from the idea that he cut the fingers of the people he killed and put it around his neck as a garland. A man so ferocious and psychotic, gave his life for a faith he believed in.

Am I talking about India?? Nah! Not even close. I am more worried about my people than my country. 'Country' could mean anything.. government,politics,land,culture,religion,language..

But 'people' can't mean anything except one thing.... My people. The people in my God-Forsaken country.

Every time I look at the news,I can't help thinking of the civilians who died in the attack. But even then....theirs was just unfortunate end.

The NSG commandos who stormed the targets. They are the people who made me think. They are people who make me wonder. THEY are the living examples of people I quoted above. Human life is above all and priceless. They were willing to give their life for a faith they believed in. Patriotism.


Crime is an evil and MUST be dealt with an iron hand. After Kasab, a female has been caught leaking confidential state secrets to Pakistan. I am hopin she dies a horrible death a lot sooner than Kasab.

Death by radioactive exposure...a bomb blast...carnivores mauling her remains...scavengers feeding on her bones....a ring/finger found at the banks of a crocodile lake...any remains of her attire found on a branch at the edge of a cliff. Sinister..ain't it?

Let the world watch it. Let the world know our dark side. Let criminals know what happens to people who feed on our blood. there is nothing called culture when there is gloom. It is far better to punish those who don't deserve to live than to watch an innocent,patriotic,poor family weep over a dead Indian.



In this aspect, Rorschach from Watchmen is my pick. Picking out criminals and wiping them out like one of them. Let them meet a horrible end... a gruesome death - that they have, in the past, meted out to others.


Why do I sound so harsh and preposterous? ok...Lemme think.... What gave this woman the courage to leak out details from a country to another? Answer: The fearlessness given to her after she saw what a joyous life criminals enjoy in India. What would have gone through her mind when she did all this?

Even if she gets caught.. she gets media attention, a lawyer to defend her and a year full of police custody or even better... she could become a politician.Already having earned in millions, she could go on to earn billions!!! Such a lucrative deal. Who wouldn't think of it?

She wouldn't even think of treason if she is fed the fear that she may die an unthinkable death with no one to help her if she leaked secrets that could KILL Indians.

KILL.

Death of a life that belongs to the soil. My country.

Prejudice is an unreasoned dislike for something. The phenomenon that pushes terrorists and keeps them going. Something I truly hate. I wouldn't call my hatred 'prejudice'. I do have a reason to hate criminals.

But yes. I would take sheer pleasure in hating them even if I don't find a proper enough reason. They are one of a kind. The kind that doesn't deserve forgiveness,compassion,thought or LIFE.

As Sir Michael Caine says in 'The Dark Knight'..

"some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn."