LOVE AND HATE: TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN

Scientists have discovered that love and hate, the most basal and polar opposites of emotions, are intimately and intricately linked within in the human brain. Some of the neural circuits physically triggered by love are also responsible for hate. A fascinating fact to explore on the silver screen!

The 1975 award-winning, critically-acclaimed and chart-busting Kannada film, "ಶುಭಮಂಗಳ" (“śubhamaṅgaḷa” meaning, “good fortune”) is a “romantic comedy” that puts you on cloud nine! It is based on the simple and splendid story penned by the renowned novelist, Vani.

Hema (Aarathi), a pampered, daddy's girl, has a small-town innocence and vivacity about her. Timma and Mooga are domestic helps and sidekicks, who keep Hema good-humored all the time. Prabhakara (Srinath) returns to the town after many years and bumps into Hema. Prabhakara's affection and attraction for Hema begin to take the undertones of a fairy-tale romance. Hema's father though nips in the bud the blossoming relationship because of a past feud with Prabhakara's family.

High on self-esteem, Hema gets onto a “love-hate” association with Prabhakara. Cool, iced-tea like on the outside, she is soft, hot-chocolate like on the inside with the latter. Despite Hema's on and off “tranquil-tempestuous” demeanor, Prabhakara is tender and caring towards her. Nevertheless, if hell hath no fury like a woman scorned; then, heaven hath no fairy like a woman loved, right?

Puttanna Kanagal is masterful, as always, in his direction; his brilliance radiates onscreen and presents an enchanting visual experience. The screenplay could have been a touch easier on the melodrama. The chemistry of the lead pair of Aarthi and Srinath is palpably sizzling. Humorist BeeChi (pen name of Rayasam Bheemasena Rao)– popularly known as Karnataka's George Bernard Shaw– and Yoganarasimha are outstanding with the script and dialogues. Veteran NG Rao's cinematography is impeccable; so too, Vijay Bhaskar's intoxicating music.

On the whole. the movie though is about 15-20 minutes too long. Better editing and tighter screenplay would surely have enhanced the euphoric effect of this evergreen classic.

My rating: a well-deserved 8.0 on 10!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

COMEDY OF THE SURREAL WITH THE REAL

Image
Salman Rushdie in his book ‘The Satanic Verses’ equated a ghost, perhaps flippantly, to ‘ unfinished business ’. The novelty in the esoteric comparison is surely undeniable.      “ಸು ಫ್ರಮ್ ಸೊ ” ( Su From So ) is a 2025 Kannada comedy film that uses a horror theme to throw light on an evil that plagues every misogynistic, male dominated society.   The movie touches upon the exploitation of women, who have to also endure often the trivialisation and normalisation of such occurrences. Set in the village of Marluru in Coastal Karnataka, the flick features Ravi Anna  (Shaneel Gautham) as a Good Samaritan and the big, alpha male of the local community. Sycophantic sidekicks— Chandra (Prakash Thuminad), Satisha (Deepak Panaje) and others— surround Ravi Anna , the go-to guy for local affairs of the village. Enter Ashoka (JP Thuminad), a young man, who all and sundry believe is possessed by the ghost of a deceased lady called Sulochana from Somes...
Read more

THE POWER OF A POET’S PEN

Image
Bhagat Singh, the Indian martyr, a famous revolutionary and freedom fighter, said eloquently and insightfully: “ Bombs and pistols do not make revolution. The sword of revolution is sharpened on the whetting-stone of ideas. ” No doubt, those ideas take birth in the minds of writers and are nurtured with the pen. “ ಮೈಸೂರು ಮಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ” ( ‘Mysooru Mallige’ , which translates to ‘Jasmine of Mysooru’) is a 1992 Kannada film, which won countless state and national awards. Based on reputed poet KS Narasimhaswamy’s soulful, splendid poetry― a first of its kind― the movie was critically acclaimed. Set in Colonial India, the period drama was a runaway success commercially. The female protagonist, Padma (Sudharani) is a coy, carefree girl, who loses her heart to Manjunatha alias Manju (Anand), a school teacher. A fervent patriot, Manju’s pastime is poetry, which is rich in literary elegance and aesthetic appeal. A village accountant and instrument of British India’s feudal system, Padma’...
Read more

CLAUSTROPHOBIC CONFINES OF THE COVID PANDEMIC AND COMEDIC DRAMA

Image
It is oft said that ‘variety is the spice of life’! Surely true, that…except when the variety pertains to marital affairs and matrimonial matters! “ ಇಕ್ಕಟ್ ” (‘ Ikkat , which translates to: ‘ Crisis’ and also ‘Dilemma’ ), is a 2021 Kannada language film, written, directed and edited by Haseen and Esham Khan. The sweet, situation comedy, rib-tickling if I may add, features the lives of a young, middle-class couple during the COVID-lockdown. Vasu (Nagabhushana) and his wife, Janvi (Bhoomi Shetty) constantly squabbles over trivialities. One such spat gets the couple to even contemplate divorce. Dude Maga (RJ Vikki), Janvi’s TikTok buddy lands up unannounced and suggests elopement. Janvi flatly rejects the proposition; however, she allows Dude Maga to stay on surreptitiously without Vasu’s knowledge. In the meantime, Vasu’s relative, Karna Uncle (Sundar Veena) too shows up uninvited. That prepares the perfect recipe for some hilarious moments entailing exorcism of imaginary ghost...
Read more