Muni 2: Kanchana

Kanchana
Kanchana Theatrical Poster
Directed by	Raghava Lawrence
Produced by	Raghava Lawrence
Written by	Raghava Lawrence
Starring	Raghava Lawrence Sarathkumar Lakshmi Rai Kovai Sarala Devadarshini Sriman
Music by	Thaman
Cinematography	Vetri
Editing by	Kishore. te
Studio	Raghavendra Productions
Distributed by	Sri Thenandal Films
Release date(s)	22 July 2011 (2011-07-22)
Country	India
Language	Tamil
Budget	8.5 crores[1]

Kanchana is a 2011 Tamil comedy horror film directed, written and produced by Raghava Lawrence as a sequel to his previous venture, Muni (2007). The film features himself in the lead role with Sarathkumar and Lakshmi Rai in other roles. The film released on 22 July 2011,^[2] while a dubbed same-titled Telugu version was released a week earlier in Andhra Pradesh. In spite of mixed reviews from critics, the film became a commercial success in both languages.^[3][4][5]

Plot

Raghava (Raghava Lawrence) is a typical jobless youth who spends his day playing cricket with his friends and beating up antisocial elements. However, he suffers from an irrational fear of ghosts, and retreats to the safety of his home after sunset. So great is his fear, that he prefers to sleep with his mother (Kovai Sarala) and have her accompany him to the bathroom at night. This creates major annoyance in the household, which is also populated by Raghava's brother (Sriman), sister-in-law (Devadarshini) and their children.

One day, Raghava and his friends are forced to abandon their usual cricket ground and find a new one; they unwittingly select an abandoned ground which is rumored to be haunted. When they attempt to set up their game kit, a bizarre weather change scares them away. Raghava brings home his cricket stumps, which have been stained with blood from a buried corpse in the ground. Raghava forgets the incident and focuses on wooing Priya (Lakshmi Rai), the sister of his sister-in-law, who has come by on a visit. In the following days, his mother and sister-in-law are witness to sevearl paranormal phenomena at night; prominently a ghostly apparition walking the hallways. On consulting a temple priest, they perform three rituals to ascertain if the house is haunted. At the end of their rituals, their fears are confirmed, and a ghost of a woman appears before them.

Scared senseless, Raghava's mother and sister-in-law hire two priests (Mayilsamy and Manobala) to rid their home of the ghost. The priests, however, are conmen who assure them that they've banished the ghost, and escape with their lives after being thrashed by the ghost. That night, the ghost enters Raghava's body and possesses him. Soon Raghava begins acting increasingly effeminate, alienating himself from Priya before she leaves and wearing women's clothes and jewelry. His family angrily confronts him about his behaviour, when it is revealed that there are actually three ghosts who have possessed him: a violent woman, a Hindi-speaking Muslim, and a mentally retarded boy. After they cause havoc in the house, Raghava's family hires an exorcist, who successfully drives the spirit away from Raghava's body. The ghost of the woman, trapped, reveals her story: The story of thr ultimate transgender

Kanchana (Sarathkumar) is a transgender who was disowned by her parents due to her effeminate behaviour. She is offered shelter by a kind Muslim (Babu Antony), who has a mentally retarded son. Regretting that she couldn't become a doctor as she intended, she adopts another young transgender, Geetha, and works hard to support her financially. When Geetha leaves to study medicine abroad, Kanchana buys a plot of land where Geetha intended to construct a hospital for the poor. That ground is unlawfully taken by crooked MLA Shankar (Devan). Kanchana angrily confronts the MLA, who cunningly kills her. He also kills Babu Antony and his son when they try to help her. The bodies are then buried in Kanchana's own ground (from where the ghosts entered Raghava's household via the stumps).

The exorcist sympathizes with her, but remains duty-bound and traps her. After hearing her story, Raghava is touched; risking the danger he possessed danger himself and he willingly defies the exorcist's orders and allows Kanchana to possess him once again. Raghava/Kanchana confronts the MLA at a beach at midnight, and disposes of his henchmen gruesomely. The MLA seeks refuge in a Narasimha temple which Kanchana is forbidden from; but she asks the deity for justice and manages to chase him inside the temple. The three spirits combined kill the MLA by tearing him apart. The final scene takes place a few years later, where Raghava has constructed the hospital for Geetha as per Kanchana's wishes. It is revealed that Kanchana exists symbiotically in Raghava's body, to help him out when the need rises.

Cast

• Raghava Lawrence as Raghava
• Sarath Kumar as Kanchana
• Lakshmi Rai as Priya
• Sriman as Raghava's brother
• Devan as local MLA
• Manobala
• Babu Antony
• Kovai Sarala as Raghava´s mother
• Devadarshini as Raghava´s sister-in-law

Reception

Critical response

Behindwoods rated the film 2 out of 5, citing: "Spooks without offending the senses – engaging watch".^[6] Kanchana is good to watch and goes in a satirical way. IMDB has given 6.7/10. ^[7]

Box office

According to Sify, Kanchana emerged 2011's most successful Tamil film based on ROI (return on investment).^[8] It was made on a budget of 8.5 crores, including publicity cost of 1.5 crores, while its Telugu dubbing rights were sold to Bellamkonde Suresh for 4 crores. The film is expected to gross 15 to 20 Crores in Tamil Nadu only at the end of its run.^[9]

References

1. ^ http://www.sify.com/movies/lawrence-s-kanchana-strikes-gold-news-tamil-libkKThadff.html
2. ^ http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/tamil/article/68926.html
3. ^ http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/telugu/article/68950.html
4. ^ http://expressbuzz.com/entertainment/news/raghava-lawrence-scores-big-with-‘kanchana’/295875.html
5. ^ http://www.sify.com/movies/lawrence-s-kanchana-strikes-gold-news-tamil-libkKThadff.html
6. ^ http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-reviews/reviews-2/jul-11-04/kanchana-review.html
7. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2034026/
8. ^ http://www.sify.com/movies/lawrence-s-kanchana-strikes-gold-news-tamil-libkKThadff.html
9. ^ http://www.sify.com/movies/lawrence-s-kanchana-strikes-gold-news-tamil-libkKThadff.html