''Thilagar'' is a 2015 Indian

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

-language

action-drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

written and directed by Perumal Pillai. The film stars Kishore and Dhruvva in the lead roles while Mrudhula Bhaskar,

Anumol Anumol is an Indian actress, predominantly acting in Malayalam and Tamil films. She appeared in Malayalam movies such as '' Chayilyam'' (2014), ''Ivan Megharoopan'' (2012), '' Akam'' (2011), '' Vedivazhipadu'' (2013) and '' Jamna Pyari'' (2015 ...

and 'Poo' Ram among others form an ensemble cast. Music for the film was composed by

Kannan Kannan ( ta, கண்ணன்) is a Tamil male given name. Due to a Tamil tradition of using patronymic surnames, it may also be a surname for males and females. The name is derived from the Hindu god Krishna, who is offered the epithet of Kann ...

, and the film opened to mixed reviews in March 2015.

Plot synopsis

Due to ideological differences, Ukkirapandi brutally murders Bose Pandian, the head of the village. Bose Pandian's brother Thilagar, a kind and peace-loving person, vows to seek revenge against Ukkirapandi and his sons.

Cast

* Kishore as Bose Pandian * Dhruvva as Thilagar * Mrudhula Bhaskar *

* Poo Ram as Ukkirapandi * Rajesh K. Narayanan * Sujatha Master *

Neetu Chandra Nitu Chandra is an Indian actress, film producer and theatre artist. She is also a classical dancer and a sportsperson, involved in the promotion of basketball in the country through her close association with the NBA and Taekwondo, being a fou ...

item number In Indian cinema, an item number or item song is a musical number inserted into a film that may or may not have any relevance to the plot. The term is commonly used within Indian films (Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Punjabi, and ...

"Bim Bam Bim"

Production

Perumal Pillai revealed that the film was based on a real-life incident from the 1990s, which revolved around two opposition clans in South Tamil Nadu. The film was predominantly shot around

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tam ...

, while the team also managed to feature a Dussehra festival live in

Thiruchendur Tiruchendur is a municipality located in Thoothukudi District, Tamil Nadu, India. It is home to the Arulmigu Subramaniya Swamy Temple, which is one of the Six Abodes of Murugan. Etymology Tiruchendur, a temple town like many towns in the st ...

, as a part of the script. Dhruvva, a debutant actor from the USA, was cast in the title role of the film, while Mrudhula Bhaskar was signed on as the female lead. In preparation for her role, she researched her character by looking up similar roles played by actress

Sripriya Sripriya is an Indian actress, film director and politician from Tamil Nadu. She has acted in over 300 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi languages. She has also directed films in Tamil, Kannada and Telugu languages, includi ...

. An

featuring

was shot at

Binny Mills Binny and Co is a shipping, textile, banking and insurance firm based in the city of Chennai, India. It is one of the oldest business firms in Chennai city. History Binny and Co was founded in Madras by John Binny as a general, clearing and ...

to increase the film's commercial viability. The film held a press meet for the launch of its trailer and soundtrack in September 2014. During the launch, director Ameer criticised the makers of the film for adopting the title ''Thilagar'' for an action film, stating it instead should have been used for a biopic of

Bal Gangadhar Tilak Bal Gangadhar Tilak (; born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak (pronunciation: eʃəʋ ɡəŋɡaːd̪ʱəɾ ʈiɭək; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya ( IAST: ''Lokmānya''), was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence ...

. In return, Perumal Pillai expressed his disappointment at Ameer's remark and retorted that Ameer's '' Raam'' (2005) had no link to the

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages e ...

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by

Release

The film opened in March 2015 to mixed reviews, with a critic from

Sify Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology company providing end-to-end ICT solutions including telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation in ...

.com stating "what prevent ''Thilagar'' from being a classic is the unwanted romantic track, loud melodrama and abrupt ending", giving it an "average" verdict. Behindwoods.com also gave the film a middling review, adding "overall, ''Thilagar'' is a seen before, heard before story, supported by good performances from Kishore and Dhruwa". Likewise, The Hindu noted that the film had a "lot of gun powder, but no explosion". Despite garnering average reviews, the film went relatively unnoticed and performed poorly at the box office.

References

{{reflist, 2 2015 films 2010s Tamil-language films Films about social issues in India 2015 directorial debut films