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Encyclopedia

On This Day

18 Dec, 1979

Cinemaazi remembers M R Acharekar on his death anniversary.

18 Dec, 1979

Cinemaazi remembers M R Acharekar on his death anniversary.

18 Dec, 1967

Cinemaazi remembers Rasheed Attre on his death anniversary

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films

Subramaniapuram (2008)

M Sasikumar

Release Date2008
GenreAction, Drama
FormatColour
LanguageTamil
Run Time135 min
Length3961.86 meters
Number of Reels15
Gauge35 mm
Censor RatingUA
Censor Certificate NumberCIL/2/16/2008-CHEN
Certificate Date27/06/2008

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Subramaniapuram, set in the 1980s in Madurai city is about five young men used by a crooked politician. One of them Azhagar, is fond of Thulasi, the niece of the local politician which complicates matters. The opening scene sets the mood for the film. A convict who walks out of the prison at the end of his sentence is stabbed and killed. The establishing shots of Madurai at night — the silhouette of the temple towers, the bus stand, and the fish market — create the ambiance of Madurai as the filmmaker begins his taut narrative. The film has a series of murders in the background of deceit and betrayal. The violence in Subramaniapuram is not the choreographed variety of earlier Tamil films; there are murders but revenge is not valorized. The flavour of the period is captured meticulously through props like cars, dial telephone, Lambretta scooters, and film posters. The four songs are pictured in such a way that there is a fine balance between the visual and the aural, achieved by sprinkling the songs with visual gags. For the music director, this was his first film. The debutant director, Sasikumar, himself plays the second main character, Pamaran. The secondary characters are all etched minutely. The scenes showing the police station, the courtroom and the prison are realistic and grim. The film marked the beginning of a trend in Tamil cinema in which violent scenes were featured in great detail. Some critics named these films "Cruel Cinema". The film was a hit at the box office.

[from the book The Eye of the Serpent by Theodore S Baskaran]