Vaazhkai (1984 film)

Vaazhkai
Vaazhkai
	Poster
Directed by	C. V. Rajendran
Screenplay by	Panchu Arunachalam
Story by	Mohan Kumar
Produced by	Chitra Raamu; Chitra Lakshmanan
Starring	Sivaji Ganesan; Ambika; Pandiyan
Cinematography	T. S. Vinayagam
Edited by	Chandran–Muthu
Music by	Ilaiyaraaja
Production; company	Gayathri Films
Distributed by	P. A. Art Productions
Release date	14 April 1984;
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Vaazhkai (pronounced [ʋaːɻkaɪ] transl. Life) is a 1984 Indian Tamil-language drama film, directed by C. V. Rajendran and produced by Chitra Raamu and Chitra Lakshmanan. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, Ambika and Pandiyan, with Jaishankar, M. N. Nambiar and Raveendran in supporting roles. It is a remake of the Hindi film Avtaar.^[1] The film was released on 14 April 1984 and ran for over 100 days in theatres.^[2]^[3]

Plot

Rajasekar is a hard-working mechanic whose family consists of wife Radha, oldest son Bhaskar, daughter-in-law Sumathi, youngest son Ramesh and adopted son Kannan. Rajasekar loses the use of one arm in an accident at work and, for the first time in his life, finds himself out of work. He wants to use his insurance payout from the accident to buy the family home and pay for Ramesh's education. Bhaskar buys the house but registers it in Sumathi's name rather than his mother's name. Ramesh falls in love with Swapna. Her father, rich businessman Seetharaman, is supportive of the couple but wants Ramesh to live in his home and take charge of his businesses. Rajasekar is sceptical of this arrangement as he is worried about Ramesh being dependent on Seetharaman. Ramesh, however, abandons his parents to live with Swapna. Bhaskar's duplicity also comes to light after a family argument. Utter disappointed in his children, Rajasekar leaves the home with Radha and Kannan. With hard work and determination, Rajasekar becomes a very wealthy man. His sons' fortunes, on the other hand, fall and family is set against each other.

Cast

Sivaji Ganesan as Rajasekar
Ambika as Radha
Pandiyan as Kannan
Jaishankar as David
M. N. Nambiar as Seetharaman
Nizhalgal Ravi as Bhaskar
Raveendran as Ramesh
Deepa as Sumathi
Silk Smitha as Swapna
V. K. Ramasamy as Baai
Y. Vijaya as Ayesha
Manorama as Kannaatha
Y. G. Mahendran as Anwar
Thengai Srinivasan

Soundtrack

The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja.^[4]^[5] The song "Kaalam Maaralam" is set in Hamsadhvani raga.^[6] The song "Mella Mella" is adapted from the background music which Ilaiyaraaja composed for Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983), Mani Ratnam's directional debut film.^[7]

Song	Singers	Lyrics	Length
"Ennarumai Selvangal"	S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, S. P. Sailaja, Deepan Chakravarthy	Pulamaipithan	04:21
"Kaalam Maaralaam"	S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Vani Jairam	Vairamuthu	04:22
"Kattikollava"	P. Jayachandran, Malaysia Vasudevan, S. P. Sailaja	Vairamuthu	04:17
"Manamey Nee"	Ilaiyaraaja	Muthulingam	04:14
"Mella Mella"	P. Susheela, Raj Seetharaman	M. G. Vallabhan	04:02
"Yaavum Neeyappaa"	Malaysia Vasudevan	Panchu Arunachalam	04:22

Reception

Jayamanmadhan of Kalki praised the acting of Sivaji Ganesan and other actors but panned Ilaiyaraaja's music and concluded even though it is a film similar to the old films of Ganesan, the film is said to be for the motherland who takes joy in crying.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ஜெயமன்மதன் (22 April 1984). "வாழ்க்கை". Kalki (in Tamil). p. 49. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023 – via Internet Archive.
^ "241-250". nadigarthilagam.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2021. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
^ "வாழ்க்கை". Dina Thanthi (in Tamil). 22 July 1984.
^ "Vaazhkai (1984)". Raaga.com. Archived from the original on 14 August 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
^ "Vaazhkai (1984) Tamil Super Hit Film LP Vinyl Record by Ilaiyaraaja". Disco Music Center. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
^ Mani, Charulatha (March 2013). "A bright start". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 3 March 2013. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
^ "Mani Ratnam And Ilaiyaraaja: A Shared Birthday And A Lifetime Of Musical Memories". Silverscreen. 2 June 2018. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2024.