On watching Rasu Madhuravan’s Maayandi Kudumbathar, all we can say is that the directors as actors have proved once again that if the story and screenplay are good, the movie will be well received by audiences worldwide. In a time when the star-actors are mouthing punch dialogues, romancing with the actresses in foreign locations and defying gravity with matrix-style stunts, Maayandi Kundumbathar is thoroughly a emotional and sentimental family drama which is tear jerking at times. This makes the movie a worthy cinema following the pattern of Vikraman’s movies but with more emotions. Can there be so much love and affection in a family? The answer is yes and they exist even in this tech-savvy world. Rasu Madhuravan portrays one such family on the silver screen and makes us believe they exist.

Who’s In It?

Maayandi Kudumbathar boasts of having ten directors playing lead roles in a movie and this is for the first time in world cinema history. Commendable effort indeed! Manivannan (Maayandi), G.M. Kumar (Virumaandi), Ponvannan (Thavasi), Seeman (Virumaandi), Tharun Gopi (Paraman), Singam Puli (Maayandi), Ravi Mariya (Chokkan), Nandha Periyasamy (Seenu), Jegannath (Seenichamy) and Rajkapoor (Sonakaruppu) are the directors who are part of the cast along with Ilavarasu, Mayilsamy, Poongodi, Thamizharasi, S. Priya, Deepa, Hema, Poovitha and Kaniya.

What’s It About?

Maayandi (Manivannan) lives with his sons in a village near Dindugal. Virumaandi (G.M. Kumar), the elder brother of Maayandi hates him for having given a share of their father’s property to their sister (who was born out of wedlock) and this gives way to the hatred between both the families. The brothers don’t speak with each other. The sons of Maayaandi - Thavasi (Ponvannan), Virumaandi (Seeman), Seenichamy (Jegannath) and Paraman (Tharun Gopi) are raised by him and he makes it a point that they are affectionate and care about the welfare of the family at all times. Maayandi even considers the sons of Virumaandi – Maayandi (Singam Puli), Chokkan (Ravi Mariya), Seenu (Nandha Periyasamy), Pandi (Kumar) and Mokka (Suresh) as his own.

But, Virumaandi and his sons hate the family of Maayandi and pick fights with them every now and then waiting for a chance to take their revenge due to the property issue. Maayandi’s daughter-in-laws Thavamani (Poovitha) and Pavunu (Kaniya) dislike their husbands for showing affection to their younger brother Paraman and for supporting their sister Mayakka (Deepa) financially. Maayandi wants Paraman to become an engineer and make him proud by being the first degree holder in their family. He pledges Paraman’s share of his property for the education. Maayandi also supports his widowed sister Azhagamma (S. Priya) and her daughter.

Paraman meanwhile is in love with Poongodi (Poongudi), his school-mate. They both share an expressed love for each other. Paraman’s life takes a turn when Maayandi meets death due to a mishap. He gets separated from his brother by his sister-in-laws. His brother-in-law Sonakaruppu (Raj Kapoor) disrespects him. Poongudi gets married to her maternal uncle’s son and this shatters Paraman. The rest of the story of this emotional drama revolves around whether his family accepts him for the love and affection he has for them. He also tries to make Virumaandi and his sons understand that they are all part of the family.

The Performance

Maayandi Kudumbathar doesn’t have lots of twists in the screenplay or an entirely different storyline. It reminds us of movies of Visu and Vikraman. But what makes the movie stand out is the performance by all the members of the cast. Tharun Gopi making his debut as an actor with Maayandi Kudumbathar impresses as the brother, the lover and the son. Ponvannan and Seeman prove that they can play the any roles at ease. Manivannan and G.M Kumar have a strong screen presence. Jegannath entertains with his sad love story with the Parotta stall lady! Singam Puli has fit his role as the innocent brother to a ‘T’. Ravi Mariya and Nandha Periyasamy are the perfect angry brothers who are waiting to take revenge.

Ilavarasu as the maternal uncle of the Maayandi brothers carries a few parts of the movie on his shoulders. One of the best performances in the movie comes from Mayilsamy. Maayandi Kudumbathar has him play a challenging role as a character artist at the same time not missing out his comedy. Deepa as Mayakka makes you shed a tear in the scene where she comes running to meet Tharun Gopi. Poongodi and Tharun Gopi share a good on-screen chemistry. Hema as Thanam also gives a commendable performance. Overall, the performance from the cast is the main plus of Maayandi Kudumbathar.

For the Techie Lovers

Sabesh and Murali never fail to give us some superb melodies in regular intervals. Remembering their Kandupidi from Samuthiram, Unnai Saranadainthen from Thavamai Thavamirunthu, Maayandi Kudumbathar features Kalavaniyae, Mudhal Mazhaiye and Poongodi with excellent lyrics and tunes. Paesama Paesama is motivating. They are sure to become hits with the music lovers. Cinematography and direction go hand-in-hand with the editing by Suresh Urs maintaining the tempo of the movie. Rasu Madhuravan’s dialogues are equally good and sometimes in the face.

Final Verdict

If you are a fan of emotional drama and sentiments, then Maayandi Kudumbathar could be your movie for this weekend. The movie is sure to move you with its melodrama. Rasu Mathuravan and the producer deserve a huge applause for having the ten directors act in the same movie and at the same time balancing their roles giving them ample scope to perform.

Cheers!  :  The performance of the cast and the music of Sabesh Murali.

Review by Shailesh