Iyarkai

Iyarkai
Directed by	S.P.Jananathan
Starring	Shaam Arun Vijay Seema Biswas Kutti Radhika Senthil Pasupathy Karunas Chinni Jayanth
Music by	Vidyasagar
Cinematography	N.K.Ekambaram
Release date(s)	2003
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Iyarkai (2003) is an award-winning debut film in Tamil directed by S. P. Jananathan. N. K. Ekambaram, also a relatively newcomer in the field of cinematography, served as the film's cinematographer. The film stars Shaam, Arun Vijay, Kutti Radhika and Seema Biswas. This film was a low-budget production and the soundtrack was composed by Vidyasagar. The director of this movie claimed the plot of Bollywood flick Saawariya to be lifted from Iyarkai

This love story is set against the backdrop of a lost ship on an island. It enjoyed relative success in the Kollywood box office. The soundtrack was a great hit but most importantly, the film won the National Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil for 2003, competing with Virumaandi and Pithamagan as that year's submissions. This movie is based on Dostoyevsky's "White Nights".

Plot

Iyarkai is a familiar love triangle that plays out in unfamiliar surroundings. It revolves around a girl and the two men who love her but by placing the happenings in a port town of Rameswaram, the director manages to give the proceedings a fresh feeling.

Marudhu (Shaam), an orphan and sailor, lands in Rameswaram and decides to give up his sailing life and settle down there. He develops a liking for Nancy (Radhika), who sells fruits and other items to sailors on ships that have arrived at the port. But Nancy still holds a candle for the captain of a ship that docked there three years ago. The captain (Arun Vijay) had promised her that he would return in a year but three years later, Nancy has still not given up hope.

There is little going on in the movie but the freshness of the location and the characters populating it keeps us from noticing it. The day-to-day lives of the people living in a port town are brought before our eyes and the frequent trips inside the ships docking there are very interesting. Several details point to a lot of research going into the movie and the desire to be realistic is very evident. The effort has paid off since we feel like we are part of the happenings and feel close to the characters.

Shaam is impressive in the role of the sailor who wishes to have a place to call home. Radhika shares equal credit for the success of her role. Arunkumar is dignified as the ship captain. Seema Biswas (the original Bandit Queen) looks the part but is wasted in the rather undemanding role.

She is in a dilemma whether to choose Arunkumar or Shaam and finally selects the former leaving mixed feelings of joy and sorrow.

Director: S.P.Jananathan

• Story/ Dialogue / Screenplay: S.P.Jananathan
• Cinematography: N.K. Ekambaram
• Music: Vidyasagar
• Producer:A.E.Gunasekaran

Soundtrack

Music : Vidyasagar

Song Title	Singers
"Pazhaya Kural"	Sujatha Mohan
"Iyarkai Thaaye"	Karthik, Srivarthini
"Kaadhal Vandhaal"	Tippu, Manikka Vinayagam
"Alaiye Alaiye"	Shankar Mahadevan
"Seetu Kattu"	Karthik, Manikka Vinayagam