Mandela (2021 film)

Mandela
Genre	Political satire Comedy drama
Written by	Madonne Ashwin
Directed by	Madonne Ashwin
Starring	Yogi Babu Sheela Rajkumar
Music by	Bharath Sankar
Country of origin	India
Original language	Tamil
Production
Producers	S. Sashikanth Chakravarthy Ramachandra Balaji Mohan
Cinematography	Vidhu Ayyanna
Editor	Philomin Raj
Running time	140 minutes
Production companies	YNOT Studios Reliance Entertainment Open Window Productions Wishberry Films
Original release
Network	Star Vijay
Release	April 4, 2021 (2021-04-04)

Mandela is a 2021 Indian Tamil-language political satire television film written and directed by Madonne Ashwin on his directorial debut and produced by S. Sashikanth and Ramachandra of YNOT Studios while director Balaji Mohan, co-produced the film under his banner Open Window Productions. The film being titled after the late South African President Nelson Mandela, stars Yogi Babu in the titular lead role while Sheela Rajkumar, Kanna Ravi, Sangili Murugan and G. M. Sundar play supportive roles. ^[1] The music for the film is composed by Bharath Sankar, whereas cinematography and editing were handled by Vidhu Ayyanna and Philomin Raj respectively.

The film is set on the backdrop of a village panchayat election scenario between two political parties where a local barber's vote will determine the fate of the election. ^[1] The film was directly released via Star Vijay on 4 April 2021 and internationally through Netflix, the following day. ^[2] The film received universal acclaim praising the script, performances and technical aspects of the film. It was shortlisted as one among the 14 Indian films to be nominated for Best Foreign Film at the 94th Academy Awards scheduled to be held in mid-2022. ^{[3] [4] [5]} At the 68th National Film Awards, it won 2 awards for Best Debut Film of a Director and Best Screenplay (Dialogues), both for Madonne Ashwin. The film was remade in Telugu as Martin Luther King (2023). ^[6]

Plot

In a small village named Soorangudi in Tamil Nadu, the population is around 840 people, and it is split into two caste-based factions, Northerners and Southerners. The long-unopposed village president, a follower of caste indiscrimination, has two wives, a Northerner and a Southerner. His elder son's mother is a Northerner, and the mother of the younger son is a Southerner. Both sides are led by their respective son. Both side have been at odds with each other, hampering any development of the village.

During an opening of a public toilet in the village, a feud breaks out between the Northerners and Southerners, and the neglected president becomes paralysed. Since village election is months away, and taking into account of the president's health, MLA suggests he appoint one of his sons, Rathinam or Mathi, as his successor. The MLA needs the president for a work contract of 3 crore. Unable to reach a conclusion, the two brothers decide to contest the election against each other. The election is divided along caste lines. Based on pre-polling, it turns out the vote is evenly split.

Smile is a homeless lower-caste local barber living in Soorangudi. He lives with his assistant Side Burn in a banyan tree. One day he visits a post office for a money deposit. Since he doesn't have an identification card yet, the postmaster helps him apply for a new identification card. The postmaster suggests he don a new name, 'Nelson Mandela', citing Nelson Mandela as an metaphor for the fact that Smile is not on any side in the election.

When Mandela's voter ID and list arrives, both of the brothers try to win his vote by continuously giving him gifts, fulfilling Mandela's wants. However, after many days when Mandela is still undecided, the MLA suggests that they auction off Mandela's vote. During the auction, Mandela's assistant reveals that the losing side plan to maim him. His assistant tricks the brothers into abandon the auction by falsely claiming that the president has died. When the brothers find out they have been lied to, they brutally thrash them and disallow them from leaving the village.

Both brothers give up hope on gaining Mandela's vote. However, when the MLA reveal the full amount of work contract is worth 30 crore, both the brothers have a renewed enthusiasm to win Mandela's vote and the election. They again try to win the favour of Mandela. However, this time Mandela demands the money they declare during auction be used for various development of the village, and that he will vote for the one who contributed most to the development of the village. Both of the brothers reluctantly yield to his demand, but are annoyed by all the trouble they have to go through for Mandela's vote. Both sides agree that the losing side will kill him.

On election day, the postmaster suggests that Mandela escape the village after casting his vote, but Mandela insists that he must carry on his father's legacy of running the barber shop. Mandela returns to his banyan tree after casting his vote, while thugs sent by the brothers wait for election results, ready to kill Mandela. The president, postmaster, and many villagers come to Mandela's aid on the pretext of getting a haircut. The ending scene shows a standoff between the two brothers, and Mandela with the villagers, all the while election result is being declared.

Cast

• Yogi Babu as Nelson Mandela (Smile)
• Sheela Rajkumar as Thenmozhi
• Sangili Murugan as Periya Ayya
• Mukesh as Kirudha
• G. M. Sundar as Rathinam
• Kanna Ravi as Mathi
• Shankar Thas as Kaalai
• Douglas Kumaramoorthy as Bala
• Kalki as Isakki
• A. Gunaseelan as Marudhu
• Aaru Bala as Murugesan
• Prasanna Balachandran as Sudalai
• Pandiyammal as Devi
• Senthi Kumari as Valli
• Deepa Shankar as Rathinam's wife
• George Maryan as BDO Officer
• Saranya Ravichandran as Vairamuthu
• Subadhini Subramanian as Isakki's wife
• Semmalar Annam as Murugesan's wife
• Master Lingesh as Murugesan's son
• ARK as MLA
• V. Gopiraam as MLA's PA
• V. Vignesh as Pragatheesh
• Yazar as Mookayi's grandson
• Sai Shankar as Thenmozhi's father
• Allwin Ramaiah as Bus Conductor
• Sonaimuthu as Pichamuthu
• J. S. Manikuzhalan as Pichamuthu's son
• Panjavarnam as Bakkiyam
• Kasthuri as Kaalai's wife
• Balaji Ayya as Siruttu Thatha
• Oru Kodi Muthamma as Muthupatti
• Kumki Meenakshi as Mookayi
• Prakash as MLA's Driver

Production

The film was announced by debutant director Madonne Ashwin in July 2019, and principal photography began the very same day. ^[7] Yogi Babu was chosen to play the lead role as a barber. ^[8] Director Balaji Mohan came on board as co-producer of the film which also marked his maiden feature film production venture for his Open Window Productions banner. Madonne who was a participant in the reality show Naalaya Iyakunar came up with the script to Balaji who expressed his interest in setting a production venture, but to have a wide reach, he approached S. Sashikanth to jointly produce the film. Talking about the script, Balaji stated, "It is a social satire, set against a rural backdrop. It talks about quite a few things that are relevant in today’s scenario. Though it will have humour, it will be more sensible and meaningful." ^[9] Principal photography wrapped in November 2019 with just a single schedule. ^[10]

Soundtrack

Mandela
Soundtrack album by Bharath Sankar
Released	28 March 2021 (2021-03-28)
Recorded	2020
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	23:20
Language	Tamil
Label	Sony Music
Producer	Bharath Sankar
Bharath Sankar chronology
Dharala Prabhu (2020) Mandela (2021) Ammu (2022)
Singles from Mandela
"Oru Needhi Onbadhu Saadhi" Released: 19 March 2021

The music is composed by Bharath Sankar of the Oorka band. The soundtrack album featured six tracks with lyrics written by Yugabharathi, Arivu, Mamiliva Randriamihajasoa, Pradeep Kumar and Bharath Sankar. One song "Oru Needhi Onbadhu Saadhi" was released as a single on 19 March 2021, ^[11] and the remaining tracks were released on 28 March 2021, through Sony Music label. ^[12]

Track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Singer(s)	Length
1.	"Oru Needhi Onbadhu Saadhi"	Yugabharathi	Anthakudi Ilayaraja	4:42
2.	"Yela Yelo"	Arivu	Arivu	2:50
3.	"Mic Testing"	Arivu	Mano Eswaran, Dhanush	4:24
4.	"Ela Mandela"	Arivu	Anthony Daasan, Musa Mashiane	4:32
5.	"Mandela Tribute"	Bharath Sankar	Bharath Sankar	3:26
6.	"Iaino – To Live"	Mamiliva Randriamihajasoa, Pradeep Kumar	Bharath Sankar, Tsanta Randri, Vololona Randriamihajasoa	3:26

Release

In March 2021, YNOT Studios decided to release the film as a direct television premiere on Star Vijay on 4 April 2021 and the film would be globally streamed via Netflix from 9 April 2021. ^{[13] [14]} However, the Netflix release was brought forward to 5 April 2021, as they wanted to release the film before the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Elections. ^{[15] [2]} The film's theatrical premiere was held at PVR Cinemas, Chennai on 31 March 2021. ^[16]

Reception

The film received critical acclaim.^{[ citation needed ]}

Thinkal Menon from The Times of India praised the performances of the cast and technical aspects, and wrote that the film is "outright hilarious from the word go, though it deals with umpteen relevant, sensitive topics". Menon further gave three-and-a-half out of five stars for the film. ^[17] Ranjani Krishnakumar of Firstpost gave 4 stars (out of 5) for the film, further stating it as "Mandela is a film that will remind us of our priorities. It will encourage us to think about our rights as people and our power when we're together, and will also stand as a thoughtful and optimistic view of democracy, for one and all." ^[18] Giving three out of five stars, Behindwoods further added "A stellar Yogi Babu and some honest, nuanced writing makes Mandela entertaining." ^[19]

The Indian Express chief critic Manoj Kumar R, wrote "This political satire is direct and obvious in its messaging. And that adds to the movie's strengths and makes the narration more effective", and rated the film three out of five. ^[20] Srivatsan S of The Hindu wrote "‘Mandela’ is a first-rate political satire that shows how deep-seated caste is, by taking an unflinching yet unsentimental look." ^[21] Haricharan Pudipeddi of Hindustan Times wrote "The film allows Yogi Babu to truly showcase his potential and he plays the titular character with so much sincerity." ^[22] Navien Darshan of Cinema Express gave 3.5 stars (out of 5) stating it as "A hilarious and yet, hard hitting entertainer backed by strong writing and performances". ^[23]

Accolades

Award Ceremony	Date of Ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Edison Awards	12 March 2022	Best Screenplay	Madonne Ashwin	Won
68th National Film Awards	22 July 2022	Best Debut Film of a Director	Madonne Ashwin	Won	[24]
		Best Screenplay (Dialogue)		Won
10th South Indian International Movie Awards	10–11 September 2022	Best Film	YNOT Studios	Nominated	[25] [26]
		Best Debut Director	Madonne Ashwin	Won
		Outstanding Performance of the Year	Yogi Babu	Won
67th Filmfare Awards South	9 October 2022	Best Film	S. Sashikanth Chakravarthy Ramachandra Balaji Mohan	Nominated	[27]
		Best Director	Madonne Ashwin	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress	Sheela Rajkumar	Nominated
		Best Playback Singer – Male	Bharath Sankar	Nominated
Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards	December 2022	Best Debut Director	Madonne Ashwin	Won	[28] [29]
		Best Child Artist	Mukesh	Won
		Best Story	Madonne Ashwin	Nominated
		Best Screenplay	Madonne Ashwin	Nominated
		Best Film	YNOT Studios	Nominated
		Best Actor	Yogi Babu	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actress	Sheela Rajkumar	Nominated
		Best Playback Singer – Male	Anthakudi Ilaiyaraja	Nominated

Controversy

People from Maruthuvar community and the barber's profession have condemned the film for poor portrayal of their profession and community. SK Raja, the president of Tamil Nadu Barbers Welfare Association, accused the filmmakers of denigrating their community and profession, propagating prejudice and social injustice. ^[30] A petition was filed by R. Munusamy, the president of the Tamil Nadu Hair Dressers Union, on 21 April, alleging that the film contains several objectionable scenes that speak ill of the barber community. ^[31]

References

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9. CR, Sharanya (27 July 2019). "Yogi Babu's next is a social satire". The Times of India . Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
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11. "Video: கலக்கப்போவது யாரு பிரபலம் பாடியுள்ள யோகிபாபுவின் மண்டேலா பட FirstSingle வெளியீடு!". Behindwoods (in Tamil). 19 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
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External links

• Mandela at IMDb