Vaagai Sooda Vaa

Plot

Veluthambi (Vimal), who is driven by the pride of having gained high education, wants nothing less than a government job. Due to compulsion, he finds himself in a village educating the children of people working in the brick kilns. As Velu reaches the village, he is greeted by innocent faces that fear that he would spoil children who are into work. As time passes by, Veluthambi manages to convince the families to send their children to school. He is revered by the villagers as a godsend to lift them out of their miserable lives. In between, in the same village a girl, Madhi (Iniya) falls in love with him, but he fails to recognize it. The local bigwig JP (Ponvannan) treats the whole village almost like his bonded labourers, and he is irked by the newfound freedom that the villagers and their children seem to enjoy. He tries to threaten them but fails. Fate comes in the form of a government job for Veluthambi. But he feels the pinch of conscience to leave the children and walk away to a comfortable life. He returns to confess his love for the children and Madhi.

Cast

Production

Shortly after the release of Kalavani, which emerged a sleeper hit, Sarkunam had informed that he had "a couple of scripts in mind" and was discussing with his team on which they should work next, while stating that it "most probably" will not be set in a village again. He started working on his next project in late 2010, which he had titled as Vaagai Sooda Vaa, roping in Vimal, who played the lead role in Kalavani, for the lead character again. The film was revealed to be a period piece, set in 1966, with Sarkunam describing it as a "romance drama sprinkled with humour", while also stating it would convey a "much-needed" message. Vaagai Sooda Vaa was Sarkunam's first script and his "dream project", which he had wanted to make his directorial debut with, but he had to drop the idea, since no producer was willing to produce a period film with a newcomer in the lead role. He dismissed reports that the film was based on a Hollywood film and clarified that it was based on a scheme introduced by the Government in the sixties.

Vimal was identified to play a young man named Veluthambi, who had finished his PUC and aspires to become a teacher. The lead female role was that of a "teatender" of the 1960s, a person working at a tea shop. Initially Amala Paul was signed up for the role, much before the release of her critically acclaimed Mynaa. However, Amala, who following the release became much sought-after, was soon ousted from the project, since she started adjusting her dates as per her wishes and refused to take rehearsals first, which Sarkunam did not agree with. She was replaced by a Malayali model-turned-actress Iniya, who had previously appeared in several Malayalam films and the 2011 Tamil film Yuddham Sei under her original name Shruthi. Iniya had been rejected at first, but was later approved by Sarkunam, when she visited his office during a Chennai trip and showed keen interest in the project and the role. Director-cum-actors K. Bhagyaraj and Thambi Ramaiah were signed to portray the fathers of the lead male and female characters, respectively, while Ponvannan would enact the antagonist's role and Elango Kumaravel would play a pivotal role as a "kuruvikaarar".

Contrary to what Sarkunam had initially planned, Vaagai Sooda Vaa, too, was a story set in a village. Seenu, an assistant Sabu Cyril, took care of the art direction and erected a set of a village of 1 crore worth, near Aruppukottai. The team had further conducted extensive historical research to create an authentic portrayal of the 1960s. Programmes that were aired on Radio Ceylon, which most people during that time were listening to, were imitated, with mimicry artists being roped in to reproduce the voices of the broadcasters of that time.

Reception

Vaagai Sooda Vaa released to mostly positive reviews from the critics. Sify's reviewer called it a "thought provoking film which is beautiful, complete and laced with social consciousness", further adding that it was a "bittersweet tale of human frailties, a small film with a very big heart and a subtle message". A critic from Times of India gave the film 3.5 out of 5, labelling it a "simple tale, beautifully narrated on screen", while citing that it was a "welcome trip back to the villages and to a time when success wasn't defined by wealth alone". Malathai Rangarajan from The Hindu wrote that the film was not a "run-of-the-mill entertainer, yet it entertains", summarizing it as "poignancy with an ample dose of healthy fun". Anupama Subramanian from Deccan Chronicle gave it 3 out of 5, citing that "though the pace suffers and in many places it gives you a docu-drama feel, Sargunam's intention of making a movie different from the run-of-the mill kind should be lauded". The critic from Behindwoods wrote that the film worked "big time due to the brilliant detailing of Sarkunam and team, art director Seenu, cinematographer Om Prakash and music director Ghibran" and that it "emerges triumphant bringing out the period feel with a simple love story and a noble message", giving it 3 out of 5. Indiaglitz' reviewer described the film as "strikingly different" and an "interesting watch", while noting it was "more a docu drama touching up the economic struggles of the oppressed". Chennai Online's reviewer wrote that the film was a "must-watch for those looking for a clean movie sans bloodshed, gory violence and obscene dialogues. The script, cinematography, art work and appreciable performances by the lead actors make it a compelling viewing".

Awards

Tamil Nadu State Film Awards

Soundtrack

The film's score and soundtrack are scored by debutant M. Ghibran, a friend of Sarkunam. Vaagai Sooda Vaa marks the film debut for Ghibran, who had been composing jingles before. The soundtrack, which was released on 1 July 2011, features 6 songs, with lyrics penned by Vairamuthu, Karthik Netha and Ve. Ramasamy. Ghibran had collaborated with the Lisbon International Symphony Orchestra for one of the songs.

Critical reception

Times of India gave 4/5 for the music and stated "M Ghibran joins the list of debut composers who have impressed with their work in recent times. The music score complements the movie, and marks him out as a musician to watch out for." Karthik Srinivasan from milliblog gave "A 200 for a debutant composer after a long time in Tamil!" and commented that "Vaagai Sooda Vaa’s soundtrack is a brilliant achievement – the music is refined and layered, something that is rarely expected out of a debut! Hats off, Ghibran!" Malathai Rangarajan from The Hindu wrote that "Music is another highlight. M. Gibran's numbers keep ringing in your ears long after you leave the cinema" Rajagopalan Badrinarayanan from musicperk.com wrote "‘Vaagai Sooda Vaa’ is a wholesome package with wonderful songs. Being his first movie Gibran has done a great job with the musical score. This movie has given him a great scope to prove his potential. The album will surely reshuffle the current chart"