Ennavale

Plot

Madhavan and his three friends, Charlie, Vyapuri and Venu, have a music troupe that sing at weddings. They are tenants of Manivannan whose daughter Sneha shares a good rapport with the youth, helping them in their time of need. Her encouragement puts a new zeal in Madhavan, who soon gains recognition as a singer. Not that this brings any change in the life style of the group, for the director still shows them as strugglers. Madhavan finally proposes to Sneha who rejects him, as she has her past to reckon with. She is a divorcee, her husband having abandoned her soon after marriage for his girlfriend. When friend and neighbour Ashwini puts some sense into Sneha, she decides to make amends. Incidentally, Ashwini had been hovering in the background doing almost nothing until she gets this scene to justify her presence in the film. But misunderstandings pile up between the lovers - the situations are all forced here - till the director leads the story to a desired happy ending.

Production

The director J. Suresh initially approached Mani Ratnam to produce the film, but Mani Ratnam refused the script. He however introduced Suresh to Madhavan, who was signed on to play the lead role. The film was initially titled as Sugham, whilst actress Sneha made her debut with the film after calling off schedules for her film, Virumbugiren. Telugu comedian Venu Madhav also made his debut in Tamil films with the project. The film was shot across locations in Chennai, Ooty, Hyderabad and Gopichettipalayam and all scenes were shot within 18 days.

Release

The film opened to predominantly negative reviews, with most critics agreeing that Madhavan had taken a wrong career move after the success of Alaipayuthey. The Hindu critic revealed that the "reeks of melodrama bogs down even a natural performer like Madhavan". In regard to performances it claimed that "for Madhavan, it is merely a prosaic exercise in melodrama" while the "new heroine Sneha could have shown more emotions and reactions in certain scene". Another reviewer drew particular criticism for the role of Thalaivasal Vijay, claiming it was "arguably the smallest role in his career". The film subsequently did not perform well at the box office.