Vallavan


Vallavan is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language romance film written and directed by Silambarasan, starring himself as the titular character along with Nayanthara, Reema Sen and Sandhya whilst Santhanam, Premji, and Sathyan play supporting roles. The dialogues are written by Balakumaran. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja. The film was later dubbed into Telugu and released as Vallabha.The film was a commercially successful.

Plot

Vallavan is a happy-go-lucky college student who is friends with Bala, Subbu, and Suchitra. While they are at temple, Vallavan sees Swapna and immediately falls in love with her. Vallavan encounters Swapna again in college and she is revealed to be a teacher who is three years older than Vallavan. He decides to woo her by turning into Pallan, an ugly duckling with buck teeth and glasses. Pallan makes Swapna fall in love with him for his heart, even though he is ugly. When Swapna comes to know that Pallan is younger than her and also a student, she dumps him and decides to marry another man. Meanwhile, a sequence of events take place, much to the chagrin of Vallavan, who is highly insulted by them. As Vallavan walks in the streets wondering how things got so messy, he recalls his school life. When he was in higher secondary school, Vallavan met Geetha. A hysteric Geetha ensures that Vallavan is mad about her. Coming to know of her true nature, he ends the affair with her, but she is not ready to let him go so easily, so he resolves to teach her a lesson. Geetha returns for payback. She tells him that she was the spoilt sport for the current mess in his life. In an effort to win his love, Vallavan once again as Pallan, goes to convince Swapna one last time, and tells her that even though he may be younger than her, his love for her is much bigger and that age does not matter. Swapna realizes her mistake and they reconcile, infuriating Geetha. In a climax displaying her disorder, she kidnaps Suchitra, and Vallavan arrives and frees her. The film fast-forwards to three years later. Geetha is released from a mental asylum. The moment she steps out, she exhibits her fiery psychotic expression, showing that she never actually recovered. Vallavan is waiting for her, and they communicate telepathetically, with Vallavan saying that she cannot do anything to him.

Cast

The music was scored by noted musician and Silambarasan's friend, Yuvan Shankar Raja, coming together again after churning out the successful album of Manmadhan. The soundtrack was released on 1 June 2006 and features 9 tracks, including 7 songs and two Instrumental pieces. As it was the case in Manmadhan, a second Soundtrack was released afterwards with bit songs that feature in the film but not on the first soundtrack along with pieces from the film score. The lyrics were penned by 'Kavignar' Vaali, Thamarai, film director Perarasu and Silambarasan himself. Karunakaran wrote the lyrics of the bit song "Kadhal Vandhale", released in the second edition.
Yuvan Shankar Raja won accolades for his soundtrack, whereas especially the songs "Loosu Penne" and "Yammaadi Aathaadi" were huge hits, topping the charts for the following weeks, with the latter even becoming the anthem of the season. His film score, too, was lauded, called as the film's highlight and "backbone of the film", while he himself was hailed as the film's "real hero".
No.TitleSingerLengthLyricistNotes
1"Vallava Ennai"Sunidhi Chauhan6:29Thamarai
2"Hooray Hooray Hip"Sunitha Sarathy, Nakul, Ranjith & Karthik5:44'Kavignar' Vaali
3"Kadhal Vanthirichu"Silambarasan & Premji Amaren4:25VaaliRemixed from the film Kalyana Raman, composed by Ilaiyaraaja
4"Loosu Penne"Silambarasan & Blaaze6:52Silambarasan
5"Yammaadi Aathaadi"T. Rajendar, Suchitra, Silambarasan & Malathy Lakshman5:30Perarasu
6"Podu Attam Podu"Vijay Yesudas5:38Vaali
7"He Knows What To Do "Tanvi Shah 2:00-
8"Success of Love"Instrumental1:05-
9"Loosu Penne "Silambarasan & Premji Amaren4:02Silambarasan

)
Tanvi Shah ||

Release

Critical reception

Vallavan received mixed to positive reviews from critics at the time of release. Critics praised the performance of the actors, particularly the chemistry between the lead actors Silambarasan and Nayanthara while Reemma Sen's portrayal as a psychopathic woman garnered critical acclaim. The Hindu wrote: "Vallavan's basic sketch is simpler than Manmadhan, though the maker has lent it his trademark frills". Sify gave 2.5/5 stars to Vallavan and said:
"If you are looking for some wholesome entertainment, then Vallavan is worth your time and money". Behindwoods.com commented: "On a positive note, the glamorous quotient of two heroines along with music and the youth element can play to Vallavan’s advantage". Oneindia wrote: "Yuvan's music and Santhanam's comedy provide the much-needed relief as the film's dark and tension filled screenplay roils throughout with murky games of passion and revenge."

Box office

Vallavan was hit at the box office. The film also featured, prior to release, in "most awaited" lists from entertainment sites. The film got a grand release during Diwali 2006 along with other films like Ajith's Varalaru, Jiiva's E, Arya's Vattaram and Sarath Kumar's Thalaimagan. Due to the pre-release hype it created, Vallavan received a grand opening.

Controversies

While filming for Vallavan, Nayantara was romantically linked with the film's director and co-actor Silambarasan. She initially denied the reports. In November 2006, however, she confirmed that she and Silambarasan had broken up, going on to add that she would not work with him again. However, they later went on to appear in Idhu Namma Aalu. During the making, actress Reema Sen threatened legal action against Silambarasan after he made changes to the scope of her role in the film. She later stated she regretted her claim and was proud to have won critical acclaim for the character.