Moondru Mugam

Plot

Arun (Rajinikanth), son of a rich businessman Ramanathan (Thengai Srinivasan), returns to India after 10 years in America, but as a saint. His shocked father enlists a charming press reporter, Rekha (Radhika Sarathkumar) to change him back to normal.

She first sets up an interview, which he thwarts. Later, on the pretense of taking him to a temple, she plans another set up. On the way to the temple, she pretends that the car has broken down and he leaves to roam around a bit when sees a crying child and offers a chocolate. Suddenly he is swarmed by more children and other villagers who confront him of being a child-kidnapper. Using the event, Rekha cuts Arun's beard off, a symbol of piety. After a few more set up events, he renounces his sainthood.

Later, Arun goes to work and is puzzled about why his father has been sending money to a lady named Sagaya Mary for over twenty years.

The scene shifts to a parallel scenario, wherein a man informs Sagaya Mary (Kamala Kamesh) that someone has proposed to her nephew John (again Rajinikanth). When asked about John's parents, she opens up about her brother and John's father, Alex Pandian (also portrayed by Rajinikanth).

A flashback ensues that explains Alex Pandian's story. Alex Pandian is a scrupulous police officer. He is ruthless on criminals and brings upon him the wrath of their mob boss, Egambaram (Senthamarai). After repeated confrontations, Egambaram kills him and as he exhales his last breadth, Alex Pandian vows that he will be born again to take revenge.

When Alex Pandian dies so does his wife after giving birth to twins. Ramanathan's wife gives birth in the same hospital but the child dies, just like the other two times she had been pregnant. Sagaya Mary hands over one of Alex Pandian's twin children to them and he is christened Arun, while she raises the other child, John.

On Arun's 25th birthday party he gets a divine epiphany that makes him realize he is the reincarnation of Alex Pandian. He is asked to meet a woman named Smitha at a hotel but it proves to be a set up. In the ensuing battle for survival, he kills the attacker and goes to jail. He comes to court to reveal the truth when suddenly a man claiming to be Alex Pandian shows up and says that he is not in fact dead but had been in Sri Lanka all this time. The man posing to be Alex Pandian is in fact Arun's twin, John. Unbeknownst to John, he is working with Egambaram, the man who murdered his father.

Later, Arun says he concocted the fact that he was an incarnation of Alex Pandian because he wanted to know who his enemies were when they try to kill him. Soon, John finds the truth about Alex Pandian and Arun and fights to save his brother. However, John is fatally wounded by Egambaram who he eventually kills and throws into the sea, the same way his father was killed. Arun and Rekha get married in the end and everything is back to normal.

Cast

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack and background score were composed by Sankar Ganesh with lyrics written by Vaali, Muthulingam and Vairamuthu.

Awards

This film received the Best actor award (for Rajinikanth) in 1982 from the Tamil Nadu Government. The film also received Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for Best Film.

Legacy

The character "Alex Pandian" became one of the memorable characters in the career of Rajinikanth. The character's name inspired a 2013 film of same name starring Karthi. The title of the film inspired two series on Polimer TV and Zee Tamil. Cinemalead wrote "Rajini immortalized Alex Pandian with a hunchback, pouty aura stuttered gait and evil looks, the character is even now much talked about. Rajini confrontations with the villain are gripping even now if you watch. Rajini showed variations in three roles and it was his most stylish role ever. The screenplay and Rajini's acting enhanced the movie's value."