Nota bene : this essay was written some months ago, between december and january, and there could be some spoilers for those who haven’t watched the film. I’ve watched Moondram Pirai four times since my […]
Stolen kisses : the violence behind the icon
Three iconic images hiding a violent rape culture. Three women forcefully kissed by a man in front of a camera and an audience. Three sexual assaults that have been considered for years as passionate romantic […]
Behind Silk Smitha : caste, sexism and celluloid image.
I grew up with the idea that Silk Smitha was the incarnation of all the taboos my tamil family didn’t want to talk about : sexuality, sensuality, women’s bodies, gender inequalities. I guess she was the […]
The tree of life : Punnagai Mannan & Raavanan
When I saw Raavanan a few years ago, this image of Raagini (Aishwarya Rai), fallen on a tree, immediately reminded me of this iconic opening scene in Punnagai Mannan, where Sethu (Kamal Haasan) escapes death […]
Kamal Haasan, child of cinema
As far as I can remember, in a countless number of interviews and speeches, I have always heard Kamal Haasan talking about himself as a child of Tamil Cinema, narrating how, he, the little three […]
தென்பாண்டி சீமையிலே | Pulamaipithan’s words
« Thenpandi cheemayile » is the seed from which Nayagan’s story grows. When Ilaiyaaraja’s voice breaks the silence in the film’s opening credits, we understand that it’s an introduction song about Sakthivel. A child whose […]
No time for love in “Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum”
Kathir (Vijay Sethupathy) is a semi-looser rowdy who dreams about owning a bar. Yazhini (Madonna Sebastian) is a graduated engineer searching for a job. At first glance, they have nothing in common other than being […]
Remembering Sujatha’s words
I just learned that writer Sujatha would have turned 84 today. Millions words would be needed to explain the importance of this master of words, this Srirangam’s child in Tamil literature and cinema. He, the […]
The area as main character in Pa.Ranjith’s “Madras” & “Kaala”
In both “Madras” and “Kaala”, the heroes may be Kaali (Karthi) and Kaala (Rajinikanth) for the movies credits. But I tend to think that the main character is actually the area of the city that […]
Frame(s) 9 : K.Balachander and ladies eyes
Just a quick visual ode to the maestro KB and these remarkable actresses… Eyes are the windows of the soul in K.Balachander’s films. That’s why close-ups are very frequent in his cinematic language, especially for […]
