Alaipayuthey

Infobox_Film
name = Alaipayuthey


director = Mani Ratnam
writer = Mani Ratnam
R. Selvaraj
starring = R. Madhavan
Shalini
Jayasudha
Arvind Swamy
Swarnamalya
Kushboo
Vivek
Lalitha K.P.A.C.
V. Natarajan
Sukumari
producer = Mani Ratnam
G. Srinivasan
distributor = Madras Talkies
music = A. R. Rahman
cinematography = P. C. Sriram
editing = A. Sreekar Prasad
released = April 14, 2000
runtime = 156 mins
language = Tamil
imdb_id = 0242256

"Alaipayuthey" (2000) ( _ta. அலைபாயுதே) ("Jumping Waves" / compared to tempting or fickle mind in Tamil) is a Tamil film directed by Mani Ratnam. Starring R. Madhavan and Shalini, the film explores the tensions of married life and the maturing of love. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by acclaimed film composer A. R. Rahman."Alaipayuthey's" story is mostly recollected in flashback by the character Karthik. Karthik and Shakthi fall in love against the backdrop of Madras and its suburban trains, against the wishes of their parents. Most of the second half of the film deals with the tensions and discontent of married life as contrasted with the exuberance of romantic love. The movie was well received by critics and did well at the Tamil box-office.

The film made its European premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2001. It was shown at various film festivals nationally and internationally. It also carried a very popular soundtrack, composed by A. R. Rahman.

"Alaipayuthey" was remade in Hindi as "Saathiya", directed by Shaad Ali in 2002.

Plot

employee, for his consent to a marriage proposal between the two young lovers. However, upon meeting, the two parents clash, and the wedding is called off. Shakti decides she will not get married without her parents' consent, and the relationship between herself and Karthik is called off altogether.

Unable to stay separated for very long, coupled with chance meetings, Karthik and Shakti find themselves resuming their relationship, albeit secretly, without the knowledge of their respective families. They decide to get married, without telling anyone, but carry on living with their parents, hoping that a time will come when both families will see eye to eye and can be told of the development. With the help of their friends, and Shakti's elder sister Poorni, their marriage is completed legally, and all the while, they continue to meet each other without their parents' knowledge.

Shakti's elder sister Poorni is approached with an engagement proposal soon after. Poorni is willing to accept the offer to marry the suitor - Raghu. The prospective groom's father offers his second son's hand in marriage to Shakti. Shakti's mother Saroja urges her to accept the marriage proposal, unaware of the fact that Karthik and Shakti are already together. Shakti eventually tells the truth, and Poorni's engagement is called off. Karthik and Shakthi are kicked out of their homes.

With the help of friends, Shakti and Karthik move into an apartment, in development. They cope for a while, however it's not too long before the couple start arguing over various issues that the two seemed so much more tolerant of before they got married. Marriage tension escalates. Shakti comes to learn that her father is seriously ill back home. She and Karthik decide it would be best to visit him. Upon arrival they learn that her father has passed away. Wracked with guilt, the two return home, their relationship taking a turn for the worse. The two stop talking to each other. Meanwhile, Karthik takes it upon himself to sort out Poorni's adjourned marriage proposal to Raghu. He arranges a blind date between the two, which initially fails, backfiring on Karthik, however, with more meetings, Poorni and Raghu become closer. This development takes place without Shakti knowing. She and her husband have not spoken to each other for a long time. Karthik wishes to wait until Poorni and Raghu's marriage is confirmed before telling Shakti. Poorni is desperate to tell her sister the news herself. Whilst hugging Karthik, thanking him for his efforts, Shakti witnesses their close contact and mistakes it for something else, leading to an even bigger argument, and a trade of insults.

Shakti eventually learns of her husband's efforts in getting her sister married, and wants to thank him. Karthik sets off to the railway station to collect his wife, she has left the hospital where she works, but isn't on the train she usually takes. Karthik sits down on a nearby bench and waits for his wife.

Meanwhile, in a bid to rush home, Shakti meets with a car accident, which leaves her fighting for her life. She is hit by a car driven by a lady (Kushboo in a special appearance). The woman's husband (special appearance by Arvind Swamy) ensures that Karthik is informed about the accident. Finally Karthik meets his wife in the hospital,where she is fighting for life. In these turn of events Karthik understands the true meaning of love. Movie ends with Shakti opening her eyes coming out from coma.

Cast

* Madhavan as Karthik: Madhavan plays Karthik, an engineering graduate falling in love with Shakti. Madhavan made his debut in Tamil cinema with this film.
* Shalini as Shakti: Shalini plays Shakti, a medical student who falls in love with Karthik. The two get married. Shalini has worked in South Indian film industries since she was a child.
* Arvind Swamy as an IAS officer: Arvind Swamy plays an IAS office who is Kushboo's husband. This is the fourth time Arvind Swamy has worked with Mani Ratnam, after starring in the films "Thalapathi", "Roja" and "Bombay".
* Kushboo as the Arvind Swamy's Wife - Kushboo plays the role of the Wife of an IAS Officer - kushboo who runs down shalini while she is driving.
* Lalitha K.P.A.C. as Karthik's mother: Lalitha plays Karthik's mother in the film.
* Vivek as Shakti's cousin.

Trivia

* While the original album did not carry the title song "Endendrum Punnagai", it was added later on due to the immense popularity of the hit song.
* This was Madavan's first Tamil movie with Mani Ratnam and appeared in 4 of Mani Ratnam's movies in all. Sharing with Aravind Swamy (Thalapathi, Roja, Bombay, Alaipayuthey).
* During one of his interviews, Madhavan indicated that as he was told about the script, he realized that the character he was going to play in the movie was actually himself, in real life. He had the same to say about Shalini, who was also in a relationship with another actor Ajit, during the period Alaipayuthey was being shot, and got married to him after the movie. cite web|author=Priya Ganapati|year=2000|title=People remember scenes, not episodes
publisher=Rediff.com|accessdate=2000-03-08|url=http://www.rediff.com/entertai/2000/mar/08madh.htm]
* During Poorni's engagement proposal, the one who courts Shakti claims that he's getting his M.D. at Princeton while in reality Princeton doesn't have a Med School

Music

Album infobox
Name = Alaipayuthey:
The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Type = Soundtrack
Artist = A. R. Rahman


Background = Gainsboro
Released = March 27, 2000
Genre = Soundtrack
Length = 42:52
Label = SaReGaMa
Producer = A. R. Rahman
Reviews =
Last album = Mudhalvan 1999
This album = "Alaipayuthey" 2000
Next album = Fiza 2000

"Alaipayuthey: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack"

The music score that accompanies the film was composed by A. R. Rahman. The soundtrack features 9 songs composed by Rahman, with lyrics by Vairamuthu, except for the title song 'Alai Payuthey' (which was created by the 18th century Carnatic music composer Oothukkadu Venkatasubramanya Iyer, who also set it to the raagam Kaanada).

References

External links

* [http://www.centralmusiq.com/Alaipayuthey-tamil-mp3-download.php Alaipayuthey Film Songs Listen and Download]
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