Chalanggai

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Chalanggai
Chalanggai.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDeepak Kumaran Menon
Screenplay by Vimala Perumal
Deepak Kumaran Menon
Sooria Kumari
Produced byVimala Perumal
StarringDhaarshini Sankran
Ramesh Kumar
Kalpana Sundraju
Shangkara
CinematographyAlbert Hue
Edited byDeepak Kumaran Menon
Music byHardesh Singh
Production
companies
One Hundred Eye
MyFoto Studio
Release dates
  • July 2007 (2007-07)(Theatrical)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryMalaysia
LanguagesTamil
Malay
Mandarin
English

Chalanggai ( Dancing Bells ) is a 2007 Malaysian Tamil-language family drama film directed by Deepak Kumar Menon, who co-wrote the film alongside producer Vimala Perumal and Sooria Kumari. The film stars Dhaarshini Sankran, Ramesh Kumar, Kalpana Sundraju and Shangkara.

Contents

The film had a limited release in Malaysia and was screened in various film festivals worldwide.

Plot

Set in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, the film follows an Indian family after father Raja leaves his family leaving mother Muniammah to support her two kids with her flower stall. Her 11-year-old daughter Uma has aspirations to become a dancer despite her mother's inhibitions. She also has a son Siva who washes car as a living and has materialistic aspirations. [1] [2]

Cast

Production

Deepak Kumar Menon based the film on real life happenings in his life such as losing friends due to accidents, alcohol, suicides or murders. The film was partly funded through the National Geographic through their Seed Grant. [1] [3]

Reception

Reviewing the film at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, Jay Weissburg of Variety wrote, "Current pic[ture] uses the aspirations of a young girl from a broken home to comment on minorities coping with urban marginalization, but Menon’s approach is far from polemical, and his narrative skills often too piecemeal to create a lasting impression. “Dancing Bells” sounds a pleasant but weak note for Malaysian cinema, likely to capture local attention but only intermittent fest play". [2] [4] GjZ, reviewing the film at the same film festival wrote, "Menon draws a beautifully realistic and detailed portrait of a family that has to survive and above all has to maintain its dignity. [...] This makes Dancing Bells not only authentic, but also emotional. These are real feelings of real people portrayed in a realistic way". [5]

Netherlands-based film curator Gertjan Zuilhof wrote that the film is a "[b]eautiful artistic portrait of a family that has to survive and above all maintain its dignity". [3] Hong Kong-based film curator Jacob Wong wrote that the film is a "[n]aturalistic feature [that] reveals a minority under stress in the shadows of a developing Malaysia". [3]

Accolades and selections

Accolades

Selections

The film was screened at various film festivals in Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas. [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 Hamad, Jalil (13 December 2007). "Filmmaker wants "good guy" Malaysia Indians on screen". Reuters . Kuala Lumpur. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  2. 1 2 Weissberg, Jay (March 9, 2007). "Dancing Bells". Variety . Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "CHALANGGAI (Dancing Bells) Cinema Trailer". May 25, 2007. Retrieved 21 January 2025– via YouTube.
  4. ↑ "Deepak Kumaran Menon: Visionary filmmaker, cultural pioneer". Citizens Journal. January 14, 2024. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  5. ↑ GjZ (2007). "Dancing Bells". IFFR . Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  6. ↑ Raj, Sony Jalarajan; Sreekumar, Rohini (23 October 2013). Crossover Cinema. Taylor & Francis. p. 162. ISBN   978-1-136-22176-7 . Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Lee, Adrian Yuen Beng (2022). Malaysian Cinema in the New Millenium. Hong Kong University Press. p. 131. ISBN   978-988-8528-52-3 . Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  8. ↑ キネマ旬報 [Kinema Junpo] (in Japanese). Nippon Eiga Publishing Company. February 2008. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  9. ↑ Festival do Rio (in Portuguese). Rio de Janeiro City Hall. 2007. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
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