Aegan
| Aegan | |
|---|---|
| File:Aegan Poster.jpg Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Raju Sundaram |
| Written by | S. Ramakrishnan Raju Sundaram (Dialogue) |
| Screenplay by | Raju Sundaram (Adepted Screenplay) Farah Khan Abbas Tyrewala Rajesh Saathi (Original Screenplay) |
| Story by | Farah Khan (Original Story) Raju Sundaram (Additional Story) |
| Produced by | K. Karunamoorthy C. Arunpandian |
| Starring | Ajith Kumar Nayanthara Navdeep Piaa Bajpai Suman |
| Cinematography | Arjun Jena |
| Edited by | V. T. Vijayan |
| Music by | Yuvan Shankar Raja |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Ayngaran International |
Release date | 25 October 2008[1] |
Running time | 140 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Aegan (Template:Lang-ta) is a 2008 Tamil action comedy film directed and co-written by Raju Sundaram and produced by Ayngaran International based on the 2004 Shahrukh Khan starrer Main Hoon Na. It stars Ajith Kumar and Nayanthara in the lead roles, with Suman, Jayaram, Navdeep and Piaa Bajpai in supporting roles.
The film revolves around a daredevil cop who, on behalf of his ailing father and the ambition of a lieutenant general, returns to college in Ooty. Whilst protecting the general's daughter, he attempts to reconcile with his stepbrother from his father's marriage. Furthermore, he has to ward off the international criminal John Chinnappa, who is trying to kill the general, an ex-aide of his who has turned police approver. How the cop manages to solve all three problems forms the crux of the story.
The film opened to Indian audiences on 25 October 2008, coinciding with the Diwali season. The film, upon release received mixed reviews at the South Indian box office.
The film was later dubbed into Hindi as Jaanbaaz Commando in 2012.
Plot
Aegan's story is based around Shiva (Ajith Kumar), a CB-CID officer, and his efforts to foil the terrorist John Chinnappa (Suman). Shiva is simultaneously attempting to mend relations with his father's estranged first wife and his half-brother Narain (Navdeep). Complications ensue.
John is a scientist who had created tablets by operating on human guinea pigs. His ploys have always been controversial but inconclusive due to lack of witnesses. However, an ex-gang member General Ram Prasad (Devan) became a police approver and is on the verge of revealing John's ploys to the police. However, he is on the run to avoid charges. The case falls to Commissioner Karthikeyan (Nassar), Shiva's father, who assigns his son to go and help solve the mission.
Karthik tells Shiva to attend college in Tamil Nadu – St. John's College, Ooty – to protect Ram's daughter Pooja (Piaa Bajpai) from meeting with her father. Shiva pleads that he has never undertaken this type of a mission before and doesn't know much about the current generation. Ram points out that by a strange coincidence, Pooja attends school in the same town where Ram is hiding. Shiva can protect Pooja and look for Ram at the same time. Shiva goes undercover as a student returning to college after many years away taking care of the family business. He is much older than the other students, who at first make fun of him because of his lack of new-generation styles. He also has to deal with the many goofy teachers as well the idiotic forgetful principal of the college, Albert (Jayaram).
Shiva finds Narain, who is later revealed to be his brother. Pooja is Narain's best friend, and he is secretly jealous that other girls can get his attention, but she can't. Shiva saves Pooja from John's men who kidnap her, while Narain and others think it's a prank. He later becomes a sensation among the students and teachers. He befriends Narain and Pooja and falls in love with the chemistry teacher Mallika (Nayanthara), after being attracted by her beauty and in a bid to convince other students that he is one of them. During his regular jogging sessions, Shiva spots Ram and chases him until he escapes with the help of a helmet-clad bike rider who is later revealed to be Narain. Pooja comes to know that Narain has been helping her father and feels cheated by him.
Narain tries to apologize to Pooja many times, but she refuses to talk to him. Irked by this, Narain drinks and explains his actions when John's men come again to kidnap Pooja. They beat up Narain, but Shiva comes to their rescue. Narain and Pooja patch up after the fight sequences. Shiva takes Narain to his home where he learns that Narain is his brother and meets his mother (Suhasini). The flashback sequences describe Shiva's childhood (he is an orphan) and explain why his mother and father live separately.
The next day when Pooja introduces Ram to Shiva, Shiva arrests him, much to Pooja and Narain's disappointment. Then, everyone in the college, including Mallika, learns that Shiva is a policeman. Shiva then drives Ram straight to John's hiding place, avoiding the traps that he had set. A fight ensues between Shiva and John's men in which John is finally killed.
In the final scenes, Mallika is shown with Shiva's parents and brother, while Shiva has gone to Afghanistan as part of another mission.
Cast
- Ajith Kumar as Shiva
- Nayanthara as Mallika
- Nassar as Karthikeyan
- Jayaram as Albert Aadiyapatham
- Suman as John Chinnappa
- Navdeep as Narain
- Piaa Bajpai as Pooja
- Devan as Ram Prasad
- Suhasini as Shiva's mother
- Cochin Hanifa as Hanifa
- Livingston as Kamalakannan
- Sathyan as Mani
- Sriman as John's bodyguard
Production
Development
In September 2007, early indications suggested that Ayngaran International were set to make a film starring Ajith Kumar directed by Venkat Prabhu,[3] however the chance went to first-time director Raju Sundaram, in a project titled Akbar.[4] Despite denying the title, Ajith confirmed the project and stating that he had put on weight and grew a beard for his participation in the project. Following the success of Billa, "Thala" Ajith Kumar waited till the birth of his first child, in January 2008, before commencing his shoot for the film.
The 40-member unit consisting of "Thala" Ajith, director Raju Sundaram, cinematographer Arjun Jena, action choreographer Stun Siva and a few stunt men from Chennai flew to Hong Kong on 14 January 2008 and began their first schedule for a 10-day stint.[5]
The portions in Hong Kong were shot showing "Thala" Ajith's introduction stunt scene set against the skyscrapers, Hong Kong airport, and the sea with the help of Chinese action choreographers. The crew shot schedules in Theni and Ooty and other locations in South India during the filming. The film finished its talkie portion in early September 2008, and the songs were canned in India as well as parts of Switzerland.[6][7][8] The film, initially described as a "musical action comedy,". The film previously referred to as Akbar, Ramakrishnan and Anthony Gonsalves[8] was christened as Aegan, a name of Lord Shiva.
Casting
Following the announcement of the project, tentatively titled as Akbar, Shriya Saran was rumoured to be the heroine, following her successful role in Sivaji: The Boss. However, due to differences, Saran was ousted from the project due to her limited callsheets, as she had to fly to and from America where she was then shooting for her Hollywood film, The Other End of the Line. However other indications claimed that Saran was ousted from the project due to her involvement in Indiralohathil Na Azhagappan, in which she appeared in an item number, which Ajith Kumar was unhappy with due to previous feuds with the lead, Vadivelu of that film.[9] Reports indicated that Parvati Melton had replaced Saran but later denied it signalling that she was not approached.[4]
Suhani Kalita was announced as the second heroine of the project but was later removed for unknown reasons.[10] Several Bollywood heroines including Deepika Padukone,[11] Bipasha Basu,[12] Katrina Kaif, Ayesha Takia,[1] Ileana D'Cruz,[13] Tanushree Dutta[14] and Sneha Ullal[1] were linked to the role, as well as reports that Shriya Saran would reprise the role after making up with Ajith.[1] The role eventually was given to Katrina Kaif, who was set to make her debut in Tamil films with Aegan,[15] however she later opted out due to callsheet clashes.[16] It was announced that Nayantara would play the role of the heroine in the film, following her role opposite Ajith in Billa.[17] In February 2008, it was confirmed that Navdeep would play a role in the film as well as Suman, who will appear in a villainous role. Malayalam actor, Jayaram will also play a role in the film, which will be co-produced by actor, Arun Pandian.[7]
Nassar and Suhasini were selected to play the roles of the parents of Ajith,[18] whilst Raju Sundaram's younger Brother, Prabhu Deva was given a chance to make a cameo appearance in the film as a dancer but politely refused.[19] Supporting actors Livingston, Sathyan and Sriman also play roles in Aegan, as does model Piaa Bajpai, who appears as the ladylove to Navdeep.[20][21] Sivakarthikeyan and Arunraja Kamaraj shot for the film for one day as comedians portraying spies, but following changes to the script, their roles were removed.[22] Yuvan Shankar Raja was signed on as the music composer whilst Arjun Jena was the cinematographer for the project[18] and Milan, who did the art direction for Billa, renews his association with Ajith in the film.[23]
Soundtrack
| Aegan | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 9 October 2008 | |||
| Recorded | 2008 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 29:08 | |||
| Label | Ayngaran Music An Ak Audio Think Music | |||
| Producer | Yuvan Shankar Raja | |||
| Yuvan Shankar Raja chronology | ||||
| ||||
The soundtrack of Aegan was composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja as was the film score. It was noticeably, the third time Yuvan Shankar was scoring music for an Ajith Kumar film, after Dheena (2001) and Billa (2007), the songs of which had been very popular and went on to become chartbusters.[24]
The soundtrack released on 9 October 2008[25] at a private ceremony at the HelloFM Studios by composer Yuvan Shankar Raja as the lead cast and the director were away shooting the video for the song in Switzerland.[26] The album features 6 tracks overall, including one of the songs ("Hey Salaa") repeated at the end.
| Track | Song | Singer(s) | Duration (min:sec) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Hey Salaa" | Blaaze, Naresh Iyer, Mohammed Aslam | 5:09 | Snehan |
| 2 | "Yahoo Yahoo" | Suvi Suresh, Ujayinee, Sathyan, Ranjith & Naveen | 4:36 | Pa. Vijay |
| 3 | "Hey Baby" | Shankar Mahadevan | 4:39 | Pa. Vijay |
| 4 | "Odum Varayil" | Kay Kay, Bela Shende | 4:31 | Snehan |
| 5 | "Kichu Kichu" | Vasundhara Das, Yuvan Shankar Raja | 5:11 | Pa. Vijay |
| 6 | "Hey Salaa 2" | Blaaze, Naresh Iyer, Mohammed Aslam | 5:02 | Provided as background music. |
Release
The satellite rights of the film were sold to Kalaignar. The film was give a "U" certificate by the Indian Censor Board. The film was later dubbed in Telugu as Mallika I Love You.[27]
Reception
Sify.com claimed that "the trouble with the film is that it looks like an amateurish attempt by debutant director Raju Sundaram" dismissing the climax as "a colossal embarrassment", but adding that "no film is perfect". Ajith Kumar was praised for being "at his best but look[ed] plump and stiff in some scenes where he need to be relaxed and natural", drawing comparisons with a similar feedback from his previous venture, Billa.[28] Nayanthara was said to "look perfect as Mallika, a role that fits her like a glove" with her make-up and costumes "rocking". The reviewer added that "Piaa Bajpai is promising, Jayaram as Principal and Haneefa have been wasted and do little in the way of bringing smiles to the audiences faces". The review also singles out the performance of rookie cinematographer, Arjun Jena, whose work is labelled as "eye-catching".[28]
Similarly Rediff.com labelled the film as "watchable in parts", giving it negative feedback in comparison with Main Hoon Na.[29] It like Sify, claims that "Aegan loses its spontaneity and meanders between humour and seriousness" in the second half. The reviewer praises Ajith claiming he looks as though he "really did enjoy himself on screen, after a really long time". The reviewer adds that "Nayantara's outfits get smaller and smaller, while the actress herself has nothing more to do than dance in transparent saris and high-heels.[29] Sometimes she looks amused, at others, irritated and bored", comparing her unchallenging roles to previous roles in Sathyam and Kuselan. It criticizes Piaa Bajpai claiming she "hams it to glory", and "makes you want to watch Amrita Rao's naivety in the original", however, it praises Navdeep citing he is "far more natural, but you pity the fact that his role is so small". Rediff also criticized Suman and Sriman labelling their portrayals as "pathetic". In reference to minor characters, Cochin Hanifa is praised while Suhasini Mani Ratnam's role is said to be "terribly dealt with, robbing her part of any sympathy".[29]
References
- ^ a b c d "Shriya-Back as Ajit's heroine?". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 15 January 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Highest grossing Tamil movies of all time – Biggest Hits in Tamil Cinema | The Cine Segye Archived 6 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Venkat Prabhu directs Ajith". IndiaGlitz. 2008. Archived from the original on 3 March 2008. Retrieved 29 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Ajith's Akbar eyes Parvathi". Behindwoods. 2007. Archived from the original on 20 October 2007. Retrieved 18 October 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ajith to fly to Hong Kong". IndiaGlitz. 2008. Archived from the original on 15 January 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Aegan in Chennai Central". Behindwoods. 2008. Archived from the original on 6 September 2008. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Ajit is Aegan!". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 2 March 2008. Retrieved 26 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Ajit next film- 'Mein Hoon Naa'?". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 6 February 2008. Retrieved 1 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Shriya lost the chance but Cool". Dailomo.com. 2007. Archived from the original on 12 December 2007. Retrieved 7 December 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Billa now eyes Katrina". Behindwoods. 2007. Archived from the original on 29 December 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ajith pairs with Deepika Padukone?". IndiaGlitz. 2007. Archived from the original on 18 November 2007. Retrieved 17 November 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Bips to team up with Ajith!". Behindwoods. 2008. Archived from the original on 15 January 2008. Retrieved 11 January 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Is it Ileana?". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 25 February 2008. Retrieved 22 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ajith's Aegan (Tamil)". Eyakkam.com. 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2008.
- ^ "Welcome Katrina". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 1 February 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Katrina opts out!". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 19 February 2008. Retrieved 16 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Nayan races ahead!". Sify. 2008. Archived from the original on 26 February 2008. Retrieved 24 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Ajith's unnamed project touches French shores". Behindwoods. 2008. Archived from the original on 12 February 2008. Retrieved 9 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Prabhu Deva dances with Ajith". IndiaGlitz. 2007. Archived from the original on 7 December 2007. Retrieved 6 December 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Billa stars in new flick". Rediff.com. 2008. Archived from the original on 1 March 2008. Retrieved 27 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ajith Changes". Behindwoods. 2008. Archived from the original on 7 April 2008. Retrieved 4 April 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies-cinema-news-10/siva-karthikeyan-values-his-20-minutes-with-ajith-ajith-siva-karthikeyan-18-02-13.html
- ^ "Ajith's Aegan takes a cue from Billa!". Behindwoods. 2008. Archived from the original on 21 February 2008. Retrieved 16 February 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Aegan – A Perfect Hat-Trick". IndiaGlitz. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
- ^ "Aegan – Official Audio Promo". Ayngaran International. 2008. Retrieved 9 October 2008.
- ^ "Yuvan releases Aegan audio in FM station!". Oneindia. Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2009.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ http://www.ayngaran.com/frame.php?iframepath=newsdetails.php?newsid=1684
- ^ a b "Aegan". Sify.com. 2008. Archived from the original on 26 October 2008. Retrieved 25 October 2008.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c Srinivasan, Pavithra (2008). "Aegan is watchable in parts". Rediff.com. Retrieved 25 October 2008.
