Ponniyin Selvan - the book and the movie

Allow me to get a few things out of the way:

The book and the movie are two different beasts. 

• They are not be compared . The movie is just a director's interpretation of the book and he is under no obligation to do a faithful retelling. That is what our brain and imagination are for. 
• I enjoyed the movie and ate humble pie (turned out a great watch, squashing my muted expectations) 
• My images of characters are now completely replaced with the actors in the movie.  (Alwarkadiyaan is now irrevocably Jayaram. Ditto for the rest of the cast) . This is a loss to me as a fan of the books - one I was prepared to take.  ArulMozhi Varman in my head when I read the book,  had the radiance and the magnetism of the sun. Now he is Jayam Ravi. Excellent as he is in the movie, the mental images  I had created  of beloved ArulMozhi Varman are lost forever. 

I was very sceptical about the movie , having read Kalki's work a couple of times. Ponniyin Selvan ranks among top 3 in my limited universe of reading. Irrespective of language, genre - Ponniyin Selvan is by far the most " un-put-downable " book I have read. Naturally,  the promos did nothing to me. The first couple of songs were lacklustre in comparison to my expectations. 

ARR's first period movie in Tamil and I had sky high hopes on hearing new sounds and techniques. His prior period film outings were spectacular - Jodha Akbar's Azeem o shan Shahenshah  ,  Lagaan's O Rey Chori ,  Mohenjodaro's Sarsariya .....   One might call the movie a dud, but I can listen to Sarsariya on loop all day.  May be not authentic Indus Valley Civilisation music , but ARR creates interesting new sounds.   I went in expecting the same in PS's songs. 

Ponni Nadhi was meh, Chola Chola was better, but Devaralan Aatam got me kicked. ARR and Mani landed up in Bali and found the " monkey chant" and  ARR put it to good use in the track . I also loved " Sol" - which sadly did not feature the movie, though the Lyric video clearly indicates the song was filmed. Special mention to the surreal " Alaikadal " - it is certainly what Mani Ratnam's Poonguzhali would sound like - deep and meloncholic and mystical . 

When I watched the movie though - man, ARR killed it in the background score. I am waiting for ARR fan channels  to release the Original Sound Track with the full movie score.   Those who have not seen the movie - don't read the next five  lines.   Here is a theatre grab of the beautiful " Aga naga" background that plays when Vandhiyathevan meets Kundavai .  Special mention to the dialogues - subtle, in keeping with the general style of the movie . 

" Ungal uyiruku aayiram pon vilai, Uyir bathiram".   " Uyir Ungaludayadhu Devi"   

Cha!  Can't wait for the background scores. Just for the music, i will go back to the theatre again.  Watch for the background that plays when Nandini and Kundavai meet each other on the steps of the Tanjore palace. 

The performances - staying with the ones I liked best.  There could not have been a better fit than Karthi for Vandhiyathevan . He nails the charm, quick wit, youthful exuberance and harmless flirtation inherent to the character.   Jayam Ravi was the surprise package for me . He pulled off ArulMozhi with grace , totally believable as the multi faceted prince who would later be one of the most celebrated Chozha kings .

My favourite character in the books is Poonguzhali. Aishwarya Lekshmi is a great fit , I only wish she had more screen time. In the books, Poonguzhali is a maverick - she sees life differently and does not confirm to groupthink. She is physically strong as a boatwoman , unafraid to live in harmony with the ocean . She is " SamuthiraKumari" .  Her introduction in the books is legendary. We see none of this in the movie . One of my favourite arcs in the books is ArulMozhi Varman and Poonguzhali's mutual attraction with each other. He is a prince , she a boatwoman. He is attracted to her honesty, simplicity, unabashed love of the simple life, sharp witted nature and spirit of adventure. Poonguzhali would give her life to save him and dreams of travelling the world with him.  Their mutual natural restraint  and the circumstances they are put in, make them drift apart and swallow their feelings for each other, move on with other partners. The arc plays out beautifully, the reader wishes dearly they would end up with each other, though they realise it cannot happen. The movie has no space for fleshing out characters -  there is limited time after all and understandably, this is not a 7 Season web series - it is a two part movie that has umpteen important characters. Same with the super spy Alwarkadiyaan played by Jayaram.  Aishwarya Rai as Nandini has more to do with her eyes and she puts her stunning face to superb use , doing what Nandini does best - turning her beauty into a weapon to manipulate the minds of men. No one else would have pulled off Nandini as well as her. 

Each frame looks like a postcard. DOP Ravivarman creates an immersive experience with layered shots and beautiful lighting. The sets and costumes are elaborate . However, the live locations do give a " This is not ancient Tamil architecture" feel, though they are shot well.  Everyone cribs about poor VFX. -but it was not an eyesore to me. This is two movies shot over 182 days under a 250 cr budget with half the film industry acting in it. This is enough VFX. 

The standout of PS-1 the movie, is the subtlety in treatment. The dialogues are simple , conversational. Not over the top. The fight sequences are not choreographed liked rehearsed dance sequences. They are natural. PS-1 has 100% Maniratnam stamped all over , yet pleases the avid book reader and the eager new audience alike.  Not an easy feat to pull off. 

Not all historic stories have to be told in Bahubali style. This is a different style  and approach . As the audience, we get to enjoy both Rajamouli's Amar Chitra Katha style and Maniratnam's  underplayed, closer to real life approach to Ponniyin Selvan. What's not to love?  Why the comparisons? There is enough room in the world for ideas and approaches to co-exist and be accepted, enjoyed for what they are.