Vaisali (film)

Last updated

Vaishali
Vaisali film poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Bharathan
Written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair
Produced by Atlas Ramachandran
Starring Suparna Anand
Sanjay Mitra
V. K. Sreeraman
Ashokan
Geetha
Babu Antony
Nedumudi Venu
Cinematography Madhu Ambat
Edited byBharathan
Music by Ravi
Production
company
Chandrakanth Films
Distributed byChandrakanth Films
Release date
  • 25 December 1989 (1989-12-25)
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam
Box office ₹ 1 crore (US$130,000) [1]

Vaisali is a 1989 Indian Malayalam-language mythological drama film directed and edited by Bharathan. [2] [3] Produced by M. M. Ramachandran and scripted by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, it was an adaptation of a sub-story told by Vedavyasa to Yudhishthira in the epic Mahabharatha . It is the story of Vaisali, a devadasi girl who was assigned the mission of seducing Rishyasringa, the son of Vibhandaka and bringing him to Champapuri to perform a Yajna to bring rain.

Contents

Plot

Years ago, a certain Brahmin had visited the kingdom of Anga. Lomapadan, the king of Anga, failed to pay respect to the Brahmin. In retaliation, the Brahmin cursed the king that his kingdom would not experience any rains in the coming years and that the kingdom would suffer a severe drought. Thus, Anga suffered for almost twelve years.

Lomapadan, having had enough, decides to visit his rajguru to seek for a solution. The rajguru was now living at the outskirts of the kingdom's capital Champapuri to desuade his own son, Chitrangadan, from unwanted activities. Chitrangadan was a rebel who did not follow his father's footsteps and was bent on breaking the social norms laid down by the society at that time. However, Chitrangadan's heart was set on Vaishali, a girl who hailed from the kingdom's community of dancing girls. Vaishali, on the other hand, did not reciprocate Chitrangadan's feelings.

Meanwhile, the rajguru visits the kingdom on Lomapadan's request and decides to perform rituals to propitiate the rain god Indra, while also knowing that by performing such rituals nothing will bear fruit. However, one night, the rajguru gets a vision from his own guru that to bring rains to the kingdom, the rituals were to be performed by Rishyashringa, the young son of the great sage Vibhandakan. For this, Rishyashringa had to be brought to the kingdom by any means. When Lomapadan enquired, the rajguru stated that Rishyashringa could be brought to the kingdom by enticing him with the women of the kingdom since the young sage had never seen a woman or a girl throughout his life. For this, the king decides to appoint the young Vaishali to embark on the dangerous mission, by order of the rajguru. Accompanied by her mother, Malini, and her companions, Vaishali sets off for the forests where Rishyashringa lived via the Kaushiki river.

When the dancing girls reach the forests, Vaishali introduces herself to the young sage as a hermit herself. By seductive means, she manages to lure Rishyashringa into her fold, despite warnings from his father Vibhandakan. Thus the young couple have many a lovely moments for each other. However, Vibhandakan again senses something fishy and rebukes his son for not following the routine rituals and instead frolicking around like an aimless man even after innumerable warnings. Rishyashringa realises his mistakes and decides to focus on his yogic path as before while trying to avoid his lady love. Vaishali is pained at seeing him in his present condition, while at this moment she also comes in terms that she is truly in love with Rishyashringa. Her mother also reveals that Vaishali was the illegitimate child of the king Lomapadan and that if they were successful in their mission, the king would whole heartedly accept her as his daughter and also have her married to Rishyashringa. Thus, Vaishali decides to attempt one last time into luring him by seductively dancing in front of him during his penance. Unable to control his feelings, Rishyashringa gives in and accompanies Vaishali to her home.

However, he senses something dreadful and realises that whatever happened to him till that point was a mere illusion and was bent on placing a curse on Vaishali by accusing her of being a demon in disguise. When she pleads him to not curse her, she reveals her true identity and that she was just a mere human woman. She further explains the reason of her mission and her feelings for him. Rishyashringa is convinced and the couple decide to set off for Angarajyam.

Rishyashringa is welcomed to the kingdom with due respect and performs the rituals for the rains. After a while, there is a heavy shower of rains and the whole kingdom rejoices, including the royal family as well. At this point, the king announces his daughter's hand in marriage to the young sage, declaring that the child born out of this marriage would rule Anga after Lomapadan. As Vaishali and her mother try to step into the ritual podium to claim their rights, the rajguru and the soldiers block them to prevent their entry. Instead of keeping his word, Lomapadan offers his daughter Shanta's hand in marriage to Rishyashringa. As the crowds follow the newly weds' chariot, Vaishali and her mother are trampled in the stampede where her mother dies eventually. Vaishali is left alone, heartbroken and devastated at what had happened, for nobody bothered about her anymore. What lies ahead of her remains unknown, as she is left to fend for herself. [4]

Cast

Production

Development

Development on the film began roughly a decade before it was released. Bharathan had entertained the story in his mind for eight to ten years. Bharathan had approached several producers with the script. However, they were hesitant due to the parallel cinema tone to the subject matter, but finally Atlas Ramachandran agreed to produce the film. Bharathan had been planning to film Vaisali since 1982. But several factors made him wait till 1988. Bharathan announced the film in the mid-1980s under the title Rishishringa. Vaishali also marks the debut production venture of Ramachandran's Chandrakanth Films. This also was the first script by M. T. Vasudevan Nair for Bharathan. The editing and also the adverts (assisted by Sasi Menon) of the film were done by Bharathan himself. [3]

Casting

Auditions were conducted by Bharathan and Ramachandran for the lead roles. Actress Suparna Anand had done an album at that time and was brought via an agency team. While the roles of Rishyashrungan and Vaishali were set. Bharathan then, met Babu Antony in Bombay (now Mumbai). As Bharathan was then working on Chilambu (1986), he decided to launch Babu Antony as the main antagonist in it. After which Bharathan asked Antony to join the cast of Vaishali with the role of King Lomapadan. Antony was in his early career and felt that historical roles were not meant for him and turned down the offer. A month later, Bharathan called Antony and asked him to come to Mysore. When he reached the location, he realized that Bharathan was conducting the audition for the role of King Lomapadan. Despite hesitating, Bharathan asked Antony to wear the costume after which he took a few snaps. After the stills were developed, Bharathan told Antony that he was doing the role. [6] Sreeja Ravi has given voice for Suparna Anand and Krishnachandran for Sanjay Mitra. Anandavally and Narendra Prasad lent voice for Geetha and Babu Antony respectively. [3]

Soundtrack

All lyrics are written by O. N. V. Kurup; all music is composed by Bombay Ravi

Track listing [7]
No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Dum Dum Dum Dundubhinaadam"Dinesh, Lathika, Choir  
2."Indraneelimayolum" K. S. Chithra  
3."Indupushpam"K. S. Chithra 
4."Poomullakkaattil"K. S. Chithra 
5."Theduvathethoru"K. S. Chithra 

Reception

The film was commercial success, completing a 145-day run in theatres. [8] In a trade analysis by written by Sreedhar Pillai and published in India Today on December 31, 1988, he wrote that Vaishali had "broken several box office records". He also expressed his concern over employing actors from Bombay, writing, "Even here the lead actors - Sanjay and Swoparnika - were brought in from Bombay, showing the dearth of talent in the state." He wrote that the film collected over ₹1 crore from the Kerala box office.

Sreedhar Pillai of India Today called the film "refreshing." [1] Nikhat Kazmi published review of Vaishali in The Times of India writing, "Creativity of high order and excellent teamwork make Vaishali in Malayalam a rare film with an engrossing story and a universal appeal. [9] A critic from Chandrika wrote, "As far as films based on the Mahabharata are concerned, Vaishali is a breath of fresh air." They singled out Madhu Ambrat for praise writing that his "beautiful" cinematography "deserves an applause". [10]

Writing for Screen India, a critic wrote, "M. T. Vasudevan Nair's narration of the episode brings it startlingly into focus as a topical event complete with the intrigues, manipulations and trickery one associates with statecraft Nair's dialogue is full of present-day punches and relevant connotations, the telling social comments, the offers through many of the characters in the film reveal the masterly touches of Malayalam cinema's most highly priced scriptwriter." They also praise the technical aspects of the film, writing, "The technical qualities of the film are equally of a high caliber to bring to the screen this universal theme producer Ramachandran and the director Bharathan assembled what they claim is a 'national' cast." [11]

On 24 August 2018, Litty Simon of Onmanorama termed the film "a cult classic" and wrote, "Envy, revenge, love, seduction, a curse and its alleviation -- what more can you ask of a story? Indeed, a piece of craft!" [3] In 30 July 2008, on the event of Bharathan's tenth death anniversary, P. K. Ajithkumar of The Hindu called Vaishali one of Malayalam cinema's "prettiest." and called it one of Bharathan's best works. [2] On 11 December 2022, Vaishali was screened at the International Film Festival of Kerala to a packed theatre. The film was screened in the Homage category of the festival in memory of M. M. Ramachandran. [12] In December 2020, Neelima Menon from The News Minute called Vaishali "a timeless work of art" and wrote, "Bharathan is a proven wizard in outlining the man-woman relationship in all its sensuality." [13]

Awards

National Film Award – 1988

CategoryRecipientNotes
Best Female Playback Singer K. S. Chithra For Indhupushpam
Best Lyricist O. N. V. Kurup

Kerala State Film Awards – 1988

CategoryRecipientNotes
Best Female Playback Singer K. S. Chithra For Indhupushpam
Best Lyricist O. N. V. Kurup
Best Art Director P. Krishnamoorthy

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bharathan</span> Indian filmmaker

Bharathan was an Indian film maker, artist, and art director. Bharathan is noted for being the founder of a new school of film making in Malayalam cinema, along with Padmarajan and K. G. George, in the 1980s, which created films that were widely received while also being critically acclaimed. A train of directors, and screenwriters followed this school onto the 1990s including Sibi Malayil, Kamal, Lohithadas and Jayaraj.

Vaishali may refer to:

<i>Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha</i> 1989 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical period drama film directed by Hariharan

Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha is a 1989 Indian Malayalam-language epic historical drama film directed by Hariharan, written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, and starring Mammootty, Suresh Gopi, Balan K. Nair, Captain Raju and Madhavi. The film won four National Film Awards (1989) including Best Actor (Mammootty), Best Screenplay, Best Production Design and Best Costume Design and eight Kerala State Film Awards.

<i>Parinayam</i> (1994 film) 1994 Indian film

Parinayam is a Malayalam language period drama film, directed by Hariharan and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. The key characters are played by Mohini, Manoj K. Jayan and Vineeth. The film also has a cast of character artists including Thilakan, Nedumudi Venu, Oduvil Unnikrishnan, Jagathy Sreekumar, Sukumari, Jagannatha Varma, Valsala Menon, Bindu Panicker, Bahadoor and Shanthi Krishna.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Babu Antony</span> Indian actor

Babu Antony is an Indian-American actor and martial artist, who works primarily in Malayalam cinema. He has also acted in several Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Sinhalese, Hindi and English films. He started his career doing antagonistic roles and progressed to supporting and leading roles as well. Babu owns a mixed martial art academy in Houston.

Suparna Anand is an Indian actress from New Delhi. She has appeared in Malayalam and Hindi films. She is known for her portrayal of the titular Vaisali in the movie Vaisali, directed by Bharathan and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, as well as for her performance as Bhama in Njan Gandharvan, written and directed by P. Padmarajan.

<i>Thazhvaram</i> 1990 Indian film

Thazhvaram is a 1990 Indian Malayalam-language western thriller film directed by Bharathan and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. It stars Mohanlal, Salim Ghouse, Sumalatha, Anju and Sankaradi. It tells the story of Balan (Mohanlal), who's on the lookout for Raju for taking revenge for murdering his wife Raji (Anju). Bharathan also composed the only song featured in the film, the background score was provided by Johnson.

<i>Moonnam Mura</i> 1988 Indian film

Moonnam Mura is a 1988 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film directed by K. Madhu and written by S. N. Swamy. It stars Mohanlal, Suresh Gopi, Lalu Alex, Revathi, and Mukesh. The plot deals with a terrorist group kidnapping a group of political individuals who were vacationing, and the followed up rescue operation of the police led by Ali Imran.

<i>Thalappavu</i> 2008 Indian film

Thalappavu is a 2008 Malayalam language period thriller film based on the events related to Naxal Varghese and Police Constable P. Ramachandran Nair, directed by Madhupal and written by Babu Janardhanan. The film sympathetically portrays the social and political issues of the Naxalite era of the 1970s in Kerala. The film's cast includes Prithviraj Sukumaran, Lal and Atul Kulkarni. Produced by actor Mohan under the Civic Cinema banner and distributed by Lal's Lal Release, Thalappavu marks actor-cum-writer Madhupal’s directorial debut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramachandra Babu</span> Indian cinematographer (1947–2019)

K. Ramachandra Babu was an Indian cinematographer of over 125 films, out of which most are Malayalam films. He also worked for films in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Arabic and English languages. He served as the cinematographer for several documentaries and advertisement films as well. He was the founder of the Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC).

<i>Narasimham</i> (film) 2000 Indian film

Narasimham is a 2000 Indian Malayalam-language action drama film directed by Shaji Kailas and written by Ranjith. The film stars Mohanlal in the title role with Thilakan, Kanaka, N. F. Varghese, Aishwariyaa Bhaskaran and Jagathy Sreekumar in pivotal roles. Mammootty appears in a cameo role. The film was the first production of Aashirvad Cinemas, owned by Antony Perumbavoor, the former chauffeur of Mohanlal.

<i>Vartha</i> 1986 film directed by I. V. Sasi

Vartha (transl. News) is a 1986 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by I. V. Sasi and produced by P. V. Gangadharan. The film stars Mammootty, Mohanlal, Rahman, Seema, Venu Nagavally, K. P. A. C. Lalitha and Prathapachandran. The film has musical score by A. T. Ummer. The film was successful at the box office. The film was remade in Tamil as Palaivana Rojakkal (1986), and in Hindi as Jai Shiv Shankar, which never released.

<i>Nirmalyam</i> 1973 film by M. T. Vasudevan Nair

Nirmalyam is a 1973 Indian Malayalam-language film written and directed by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, and starring P. J. Antony, Sumithra and Ravi Menon. P. J. Antony won the National Film Award for Best Actor in 1974 for his performance as a velichappadu in this movie. The film received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film and Kerala State Film Award for Best Film in 1974. It is one of the classics in Malayalam cinema.

<i>Utharam</i> 1989 Indian film

Utharam is a 1989 Malayalam mystery-thriller film, starring Mammootty, Suparna, Sukumaran and Parvathy. It was written by Malayalam writer M. T. Vasudevan Nair based on the short story No Motive by Daphne du Maurier. Utharam is considered one of the best investigative thrillers in Malayalam cinema.

<i>Nagarangalil Chennu Raparkam</i> 1989 Indian film

Nagarangalil Chennu Raparkam is a 1989 Indian Malayalam-language black comedy film directed by Viji Thampi and written by Ranjith. The film stars Jayaram and Sreenivasan and is partially based on Ruthless People (1986).

<i>Panchagni</i> 1986 Indian film

Panchagni is a 1986 Indian Malayalam-language crime drama film directed by Hariharan and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair. The story is loosely inspired from the life of naxalite K. Ajitha who was part of the naxalite movement in Kerala in the 1960s. The film tells the story of Indira, a naxalite who comes out from prison on parole, while she serves a life sentence for killing a landlord. It stars Mohanlal, Geetha, Nadia Moidu, and Thilakan. The film features songs composed by Bombay Ravi and a score by Pukazhenthi. Cinematography was done by Shaji N. Karun. Geetha's performance was considered noteworthy and it established a bright career for her in the Malayalam film industry. She was even nominated for National Award category for Best Actress.

<i>Iruttinte Athmavu</i> 1967 Indian film

Iruttinte Athmavu is a 1967 Indian Malayalam-language film directed by P. Bhaskaran and written by M. T. Vasudevan Nair based on his own short story of the same name. It stars Prem Nazir and Sharada in lead roles with Thikkurissy Sukumaran Nair, P. J. Antony, Ushakumari, Kozhikode Shantha Devi and Baby Rajani in supporting roles. The film is about a mentally unstable youth born into a matriarchal family who is forced to live as a mad man in chains and who is misunderstood and ill-treated by everyone except his uncle's daughter. The film features music by M. S. Baburaj, cinematography by E. N. Balakrishnan and editing by G. Venkitaraman and Das.

<i>Chilambu</i> 1986 film by Bharathan

Chilampu is a 1986 Indian Malayalam-language film. Directed by Bharathan, this film is about the revenge by a young man against his uncle who grabbed his family properties by expelling his mother and grandfather from the house. Rahman, Thilakan, Shobhana, Nedumudi Venu, Ashokan, Santhakumari and Babu Antony appeared in leading roles. The script was written by Bharathan himself, based on a novel by N. T. Balachandran by the same title.

Madhuram Thirumadhuram is a 1976 Indian Malayalam film, directed by Dr. Balakrishnan and produced by Ammini Madhavan. The film stars KPAC Lalitha, Sankaradi, Raghavan, Rani Chandra, Soman, Vincent, Jayan and Unnimary in the lead roles. The film has musical score by A. T. Ummer.

<i>Bairavaa</i> 2017 Indian film

Bairavaa is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Bharathan, and produced by B. Venkatarama Reddy. The film stars Vijay in the titular role alongside Keerthy Suresh, Jagapathi Babu, Daniel Balaji, Sathish, Thambi Ramaiah, Mime Gopi, Sija Rose, Harish Uthaman and Aparna Vinod.

References

  1. 1 2 Sreedhar Pillai (31 December 1988). "Mammootty and Mohan Lal emerge as unprecedented superstars of Malayalam films". India Today . Retrieved 2 January 2016.
  2. 1 2 Ajith Kumar, P. K. (31 July 2008). "Remembering Bharathan". The Hindu . Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 18 March 2009.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "30 years of Vaishali: a look back at the cult classic". OnManorama.
  4. ↑ "Why Bharathan's 1988 film 'Vaisali' is a timeless work of art". The News Minute. 26 December 2020.
  5. ↑ "കുയിലല്ല, ബലാകയുമല്ല, ചാതകത്തിന് ഇത്ര മാധുര്യമുണ്ടാവില്ല; 32 വർഷങ്ങൾക്കിപ്പുറം ഋഷ്യശൃംഗൻ". Mathrubhumi.
  6. ↑ "Atlas Ramachandran to direct "Holidays"". Metromatinee. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
  7. ↑ "വൈശാലി (1988)". malayalasangeetham.info. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  8. ↑ "21 - 145" (JPG).
  9. ↑ Kazmi, Nikhat (October 1988). "Review of Vaishali". The Times of India .
  10. ↑ (27 October 1988). "വൈശാലി". Chandrika (in Malayalam). Kozhikode, India.
  11. ↑ M. T. Vasudevan Nair and Bharathan's Vaishali Screen , October 1988
  12. ↑ "IFFK screens Vaishali: Watching Bharathan's classic as a woman in 2022". The News Minute. 15 December 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  13. ↑ "Why Bharathan's 1988 film 'Vaisali' is a timeless work of art". The News Minute. 26 December 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.