Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey (transl. Entranced by dusk) is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by Narayan Nagendra Rao. It stars Aari Arujunan and Shubha Phutela, with Subbu Panchu, R. S. Shivaji, and Balaji Venugopal in other pivotal roles. The soundtrack and background score was composed by Achu, while the film was produced by Mayuri Sekar.
| Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Narayan Nagendra Rao |
| Written by | Narayan Nagendra Rao |
| Produced by | Mayuri Sekar |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Gopi Amarnath |
| Edited by | M. Thiyagarajan |
| Music by | Achu |
Production company | Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Creations |
Release date |
|
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Cast
edit- Aari Arujunan as Ajay
- Shubha Phutela as Jiya
- Subbu Panchu as Manager
- R. S. Shivaji as Writer
- Balaji Venugopal as Satish
- Sathish as Tarun
- Karunakaran as Sampath
- Tejasvini as Ramya
- Vishal as Vishnu
- Hari as Hari
- Radha Manallan as Paarthi
- Ashwathy Warrier (guest appearance in a song 'Oh Baby Girl')
- Nandha (guest appearance in a song 'Oh Baby Girl')
Production
editIn February 2010, the makers of Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey (MPM) announced that they were going to host auditions to select a heroine and a road show was subsequently held for two days around colleges and popular hangouts in Chennai.[1] In March 2010, details about the project became more clear and it was announced that a team of five assistant directors were to come together to produce a film, setting a company up named 'Team AD'. It was revealed that the story is about the happenings that take place in just 2.5 hours, mentioning that the story starts at 6.30 pm, exactly when the show starts at a theatre, and ends at 9 pm, when the show ends. The five-member team — Narayanan, Arun, Sakthi, Manoj and Subash — decided that Narayanan would be the director. It was announced that Adith Arun, who played the lead role in Katha (2009) and Inidhu Inidhu (2010), would be paired opposite Regina Cassandra, who played the sister of Laila in Kanda Naal Mudhal. The film was expected to be shot and released by May 2010 but eventually failed to proceed so swiftly.[2][3]
The film re-emerged in October 2011 where it was announced that the lead roles were being played by Aari Arujunan of Rettaisuzhi fame and winner of Miss South India 2010, Shubha Phutela; while production was taken over by Mayuri Sekar. The actress had to learn Tamil, and it took her over two months of practice to get the pronunciation right. The director wanted to opt for live-sound recording, making it more difficult for the non-Tamil speaking actress.[4] Shubha Phutela had to opt out of the Kannada film in February 2012, Jai Bhajarong Bali, choosing to give her priority dates to completing Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey. However, she died in October 2012 due to kidney problems.[5] Aari mentioned that it was "really challenging to play an ordinary guy", as he had to consciously keep his emotions to a minimum at all times.[6]
Soundtrack
editThe soundtrack features nine songs composed by Achu, with lyrics by Rohini, Narayan Nagendra Rao and Achu himself. A single track for the film was expected to be launched in September 2011, it but did not happen.[7] The soundtrack was launched on 15 February 2012, by Ameer, who used the platform to make controversial statements about the FEFSI strike of 2012.[8] The event included other film personalities like Mysskin, Cheran, Balaji, Thamarai, and Prabhu Solomon.[9]
| # | Song | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Oh Baby Girl" | Hemachandra, Achu | 3:48 |
| 2 | "Yaaro Ivalo" | Haricharan | 3:30 |
| 3 | "Yen Uyirey" Mass Song | Karthik | 4:38 |
| 4 | "Yaen Indha Dhideer Thirupam" | Achu | 4:33 |
| 5 | "Nerathin Neram Yellam" | Narayan Nagendra Rao, Chinmayi, Achu | 1:42 |
| 6 | "Yen Uyirey (Reprise)" | K. S. Chithra | 4:38 |
| 7 | "Kadal Karayiley" | Sriram Parthasarathy | 2:47 |
| 8 | "Mpm Anthem" | Achu | 2:43 |
| 9 | "Yen Uyirey (Unplugged)" | Bombay Jayashree | 3:57 |
Reception
editA reviewer from Sify.com wrote that Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey was "back breakingly long and turns out to be a boring affair", continuing to quote that the director had "tried out an experimental film which is preachy, monotonous and moves at snail pace".[10] The Times of India critic M. Suganth called it a "largely uninteresting — and also a little pretentious — film that fails in execution, the chief culprit being the pacing".[11] Behindwoods.com rated it 1.5/5, noting that it was "the weak script and slow pace of the movie that hampers the progress". The reviewer further criticized the "documentary feel throughout the film", the characterization as well as the "philosophical lines and preachy dialogues".[12] Indiaglitz.com, too, found fault at the film's pace, although the background score by Achu and the cinematography by Gopi Amarnath were applauded.[13] Rohit Ramachandran of Nowrunning.com rated it 1.5/5 concluding: "An eventful day in a coffee shop that turns into an uninteresting love-life seminar".[14]
References
edit- ^ "Next Kollywood's Dream Girl". IndiaGlitz. 14 February 2010. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Assistant Directors launch Production". IndiaGlitz. 5 February 2010. Archived from the original on 26 January 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Raghavan, Nikhil (1 October 2011). "Itsy-bitsy". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Vaibhav Shastry (19 February 2012). "Had tough time learning the Tamil language: Shubha". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ CR, Sharanya (23 February 2012). "Shubha Phutela sets her priorities right". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Vaibhav Shastry (26 February 2012). "Playing a simple person the toughest job: Aari". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Single track release in the next month|Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathile Film|Movies". Movies.sulekha.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Ameer fires a cracker". IndiaGlitz. 16 February 2012. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Subramanian, Anupama (16 February 2012). "Ameer blames producers". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Movie Review:Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathile". Sify. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakkathilaey movie review". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey Review — Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey Movie Review". Behindwoods. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ "Maalai Pozhuthin Mayakathile Tamil Movie Review". IndiaGlitz. 27 July 2012. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.
- ^ Rohit Ramachandran (28 July 2012). "Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey Review". Nowrunning.com. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2012.