Vidhi (transl. Fate) is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language legal drama film directed by K. Vijayan. A remake of the Telugu film Nyayam Kavali (1981), it stars Sujatha, Mohan, Poornima, and Jaishankar. The film revolves around a court case that Radha (Poornima) files against Raja (Mohan), concerning the legitimacy of her child conceived out of wedlock.
| Vidhi | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | K. Vijayan |
| Written by | Aaroor Dass (dialogue) |
| Story by | D. Kameswari |
| Produced by | Anandavalli Balaji |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Tiwari[1] |
| Edited by | V. Chakrapani[1] |
| Music by | Shankar–Ganesh |
Production company | Sujatha Cine Arts |
Release date |
|
Running time | 137 minutes[2] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Principal photography began in December 1983 and was completed within two months. Vidhi was released on 26 January 1984. The film received positive reviews from critics, particularly for the dialogues in its courtroom scenes and was a commercial success, running for over 500 days in theatres.
Plot
editRaja, the son of lawyer "Tiger" Dayanidhi, is a playboy and womaniser. Whenever he sets his eyes on a girl, he convinces her that he is madly in love with her, then abandons her after having a relationship with her. This becomes a routine for him. Radha is a girl from a middle-class family. Raja meets her, tries his techniques to impress her, and succeeds. Radha loves him and yields to his advances for a physical relationship.
When Radha realises she has become pregnant, she requests Raja to marry her, but he writes off their relationship. Much against her parents' suggestion to get an abortion, Radha decides to have the child and tells them that she wants to take Raja to court and prove he has fathered her child. She leaves home and meets Sakunthala, a leading lawyer who works for women's rights.
Sakunthala's story is similar to that of Radha: she had been Dayanidhi's lover. When she had become pregnant, he had deserted her, and she had given birth to an illegitimate daughter. Sakunthala does not want history to repeat itself and drags Raja to the court on Radha's behalf. Dayanidhi fights for his son, but Sakunthala wins the case. The court declares that Raja is the father of Radha's child but leaves the decision marriage to them.
While meeting the media after winning the case, Radha states that her intention was to get legitimacy for her child. She declares that she is satisfied with the court's verdict and has decided to be on her own. Meanwhile, Sakunthala gets a heart attack, and before dying, she hands over her daughter in Radha's care.
Years later, Raja and his wife, married for some years and childless, run into Radha. It turns out that she has been raising her son named Suresh all by herself, and he has turned out to be a talented and well-adjusted smart boy.
Cast
edit- Sujatha as Sakunthala[3]
- Mohan as Raja[4]
- Poornima as Radha[5]
- Jaishankar as "Tiger" Dayanidhi[4]
- K. Bhagyaraj as himself (guest appearance)[6]
- K. Balaji as the judge[6]
- Manorama as Pattama[7]
- Livingston as K. Bhagyaraj's assistant[8]
- Sathyakala as Raja's wife[8]
- Poornam Viswanathan as Radha's father[8]
Production
editVidhi, a remake of the Telugu film Nyayam Kavali (1981) was produced by Sujatha Cine Arts.[9] Although A. Kodandarami Reddy, director of the original, was offered to direct the remake, he declined owing to his lack of fluency in Tamil. Hence, K. Vijayan was chosen.[6] Aaroor Dass was chosen to write the dialogues after being asked to by K. Balaji. This marked his return to film after a near 17-year sabbatical; he last wrote for Thangai (1967).[10][11] Principal photography began on 1 December 1983 and was completed within two months.[12]
Soundtrack
editThe soundtrack was composed by the duo Shankar–Ganesh, while the lyrics were written by Vaali.[13][14] The songs "L O V E – Lovethaan" and "Vaadi Macchi" attained popularity.[9]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Devadasum Naanum" | Malaysia Vasudevan | 4:30 |
| 2. | "Vaadi Macchi" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | 4:35 |
| 3. | "L O V E – Lovethaan" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, S. P. Sailaja | 4:21 |
| 4. | "Vidhi Varaindha" | Kalyani Menon | 3:49 |
| Total length: | 17:15 | ||
Release and reception
editVidhi was released on 26 January 1984.[15] The film received positive reviews from critics, who compared it favourably to Velaikari (1949) and Parasakthi (1952) for featuring courtroom scenes with powerful dialogues.[16] The Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan, in a review dated 19 February 1984, said that though the film was a remake, it was a healthy remake, and rated it 51 out of 100.[17] Kalki praised the film for the cast performances, its theme of women boldly seeking justice instead of bowing down to male authority, and felt the film was a must watch for those craving societal change.[18] The film became a major commercial success, running for over 500 days in theatres;[9][19] Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu stated that Vidhi "soared high because of its well-etched women characters, commendably enacted by Sujatha and Poornima Jayaram".[20]
References
edit- ^ a b Vidhi (motion picture) (in Tamil). Sujatha Cine Arts. 1984. Opening credits, from 0:00 to 3:23.
- ^ Dhananjayan 2011, p. 84.
- ^ Rangarajan, Malathi (9 April 2011). "We will miss you, Sujatha". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 21 March 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ a b Balabharathi 2012, p. 277.
- ^ "என் விதியை மாற்றி அமைத்த 'விதி' - ஆரூர் தாஸ்". Dina Thanthi (in Tamil). 11 August 2014. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
- ^ a b c "Nyayam Kavali (1981) – Retro". Telugucinema.com. 14 May 2016. Archived from the original on 14 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
- ^ Balabharathi 2012, p. 278.
- ^ a b c கண்ணன், சுரேஷ் (19 January 2023). "விதி: தமிழ் சினிமாவின் விபரீதமான மரபை உடைத்த படம்; சுஜாதாவின் நடிப்பு, கே.பாக்யராஜின் அந்த கேமியோ!". Ananda Vikatan (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ a b c "சாதனை புரிந்த தமிழ் படங்கள் – 261 – எஸ்.கணேஷ்". Dinamalar (in Tamil). Nellai. 7 September 2016. Archived from the original on 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ Balabharathi 2012, p. 275.
- ^ Krishnamachari, Suganthy (23 February 2012). "'Star' Wordsmith". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
- ^ Dhananjayan 2011, p. 85.
- ^ "Vidhi Tamil Film Super 7 EP Vinyl Record by Shankar Ganesh". Mossymart. Archived from the original on 24 January 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "Vidhi — Film Story Dialogues And Songs". JioSaavn. 1 July 2003. Archived from the original on 11 March 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
- ^ ராம்ஜி, வி. (26 January 2019). "கே.பாலாஜிக்குப் பிடித்த ஜனவரி 26ம் தேதி!" [K. Balaji liked the date 26 January!]. Kamadenu (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 23 February 2019. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
- ^ Balabharathi 2012, pp. 274–275.
- ^ Vikatan Review Board (19 February 1984). "விதி". Ananda Vikatan (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 11 March 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
- ^ "விதி". Kalki (in Tamil). 18 March 1984. pp. 56–57. Archived from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2024 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "நடிகர் மோகனின் 60வது பிறந்தநாள் புகைப்பட தொகுப்பு". Samayam (in Tamil). 23 August 2016. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
- ^ Rangarajan, Malathi (7 March 2014). "Women of Steel". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 April 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
Bibliography
edit- Balabharathi (2012). தமிழ் சினிமா 80 பாகம்-2 [Tamil Cinema 80 Part-2] (in Tamil). Chennai: Nakkheeran Publications. ISBN 978-93-81828-41-0.
- Dhananjayan, G. (2011). The Best of Tamil Cinema, 1931 to 2010: 1977–2010. Galatta Media. OCLC 733724281.
External links
edit- Vidhi at IMDb
- Vidhi at Rotten Tomatoes
