Experiments in Tamil cinema
India’s regional cinema has been largely advanced in terms of experiments with content, medium, music or visuals. There have been major breakthroughs in technical aspect of filmmaking, more substance and richness in content and higher path-breaking innovations in terms of feel and texture of films.
For a long time, films in Tamil cinema were associated with politics. Films have been used to propagate political ideology or scathing criticism of the establishment. Besides this, historical films with elaborate sets and theatrical performances also formed a substantial part of Tamil cinema. There were however directors who dissociated from these themes and produced films that could be termed as ‘experimental’ in their own right. These were K Balachander, J Mahendran, Balu Mahendra, Bharathiraja and Mani Ratnam. As we look back at hundred years of Indian cinema’s existence, here is a list of regional films that have been experimental in the aspects mentioned above:
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This film noir was directed by Veena player and accomplished director Sundaram Balachander. It is considered to be the first Tamil noir. Interestingly, it was the first Tamil film without a song and it was released way before Hindi cinema’s first talkie film without song Kanoon (1960). It was also inspired by Japanese director Akira Kurosawa’s film Rashomon.
Navarathri (1964)
Directed by A P Nagarajan, this Tamil drama is first time in Indian cinema an actor, here Sivaji Ganesan, essayed nine roles. It was extremely experimental film as one actor portrayed nine emotions in the Navarasa theory proposed by sage Bharat Muni.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This melodrama has achieved cult status among viewers. It is the story of the plight of a woman who is the sole breadwinner of her family, which is slightly Ghatak’s Meghe Dhaka Tara, but things change when the woman marries her boss only when she realizes that her brother can take charge of the family. It is known for its sensitive portrayal of a woman who weathers all challenges—emotional, financial and filial, to serve her family.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This K Balachander film was innovative for the way it brought out the O Henry sort of twist in the plot. It marked the debut of Rajnikanth. It was experimental in bringing out complexities involved in relationships and how certain relationships, no matter what, do not leave you and emerge abruptly to create new equations. It is the story of a mature woman who falls in love with a young man and how her daughter, unknown to her due to peculiar circumstances, marries the young man’s father.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This film is K Balachander’s best experimentation in terms of exploring complexities in relationships. It is a story of a woman who is found at a critical juncture where she has come face to face to three realities of her life: first, it is her former lover, second, her ‘changed-for-the-good husband’ and third, her office colleague who is considerate towards her and secretly loves her.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
Directed by Bharathiraja, it is the first Tamil film to be shot outside the studios and in real locations in a rural setting. It is reported to have started the trend of outdoor shooting in Tamil cinema. It is the story of the emotional journey of a woman who becomes vulnerable to society when her love is not reciprocated.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This is the only Tamil film of Malayalee experimental filmmaker John Abraham. Made in the mould of French experimental filmmaker Robert Bresson’s 1966 film Au Hasard Balthazar, the film exposes the futility of ritualistic and parochial thinking and deep rooted hypocrisy of the Brahmin community. Just like the concept of grace prevalent in Bresson’s works, here also the donkey earns the grace and becomes immortal.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
This J Mahendran film has provided template for future Tamil filmmakers in using ‘visuals’ as a powerful cinematic device. It shows the journey of a sadistic man who takes undue advantage of a family that owes him money and his retribution at the hands of the villagers. The rural setting is depicted in such captivating details that Mani Ratnam is reported to have said in an interview, "If I get anywhere near what Mahendran did in Udhiri Pookkal, I’ll be a happy man."
Experiments in Tamil cinema
In Tamil cinema, K Balachander is an auteur in the true sense. He chose the middle of the road path in Tamil cinema and brought rich and meaningful content in Tamil cinema. Being a playwright, his stories and films had the same literary element, which compared with Gulzar’s film repertoire in Hindi cinema. This K Balachander film depicts the plight of people due to drought in a village in Southern Tamil Nadu. It also exposes political corruption and issues such as water scarcity.
Experiments in Tamil cinema
Directed by Sasikumar, this film is one of the realistic films that attempts in recreating the 1980’s milieu of Madurai. It is reported to have started a new wave in Tamil cinema where films with rural setting and violence are woven in a strong engaging drama. Such has been the detailing of director Sasikumar that he researched to find what kind of shirts men wore in the 1980s in Madurai.
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