It was on the stroke of the tea break of the India vs
Australia Adelaide test match today that I left home to watch Lingaa. The match
was nicely setup and I thought there was no way India was going to lose this
match. I was too excited about Lingaa and didn’t think too much about not being
able to watch an exciting final session of the test match.
The first shock came when I entered auditorium of the
multiplex. It was just half full (you can also say half empty, but being an
eternal optimist, I prefer to call it half full)! Second day of a Rajnikanth
film and a half full auditorium was too much to digest. Since Lingaa had 17
shows/day this weekend here in Gurgaon, I convinced myself assuming that the
crowd must have been split between the shows. After all, 17 shows/day for a
place like Gurgaon is way too much!
The next shock came when the name “Super Star” started to
appear on the screen. Except for a couple of folks whistling and screaming on
the top of their voice, there wasn’t much to say that I was watching a
Rajnikanth film! With just around a hundred people in the auditorium, how can
you expect a Chennai-like reception for the Super Star, I again convinced
myself!
The movie started minus a brisk pace and the Rajnikanth-esque
energy. I just couldn’t believe what I was watching. Suddenly I remembered
Adelaide! I checked my phone. There was a text message from a schoolmate
informing me that the match was interestingly poised. A colleague sent a
message on WhatsApp asking me if I was watching the match! I rued missing the
match!! But thanks to technology, I kept myself abreast of the happenings at
Adelaide through my smartphone.
Meanwhile, after an agonizing 45-odd minutes, the movie
started to become a bit interesting. Though there weren’t any unexpected twists
and turns, the flashback was just beginning to make life a bit better. But then,
I remembered John Pennycuick, the man who built Mullaperiyar dam! The flashback
story was almost like watching a biopic of this great man, except that the protagonist
here was an Indian. On the stroke of intermission, a message in one of my
WhatsApp groups read, “India loses by 48 runs”. Was this movie also all but “lost”,
I wondered!
After a longish flashback, the contemporary Rajnikanth comes
back into the story for the climax part, does an unbelievable action sequence
and walks away with the heroine. Nobody, I repeat, nobody has anything to do in
this movie except Rajnikanth. But credit to him for carrying this movie on his
shoulders, just like Virat Kohli played out of his skin at Adelaide! The
comparison doesn’t end there. Just as Virat Kohli had nobody supporting him
except Murali Vijay, Rajnikanth too doesn’t find support from anybody else
except the art direction team and cameraman Rathnavelu! But all said and done,
Rajnikanth still rocks with this style!!
As I started my car from the parking lot after watching the
movie, the audio system started playing the song, “Nenje Ezhu” (wake up my
heart) from “Maryan”. The theme of this song is captured by the words “Kaadhal
Azhiyaadhe” (love is indestructible) that repeats many times. I thought,
whatever it is, the love for Rajnikanth is definitely indestructible! Watch
Lingaa for Rajnikanth and nothing else!!
No comments:
Post a Comment