Review: Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan

 Review: Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan I is an unapologetic adaptation of Kalki’s epic

Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan I has a star-studded cast that understands the weight of translating Kalki Krishnamurthy’s masterpiece on the silver screen and pulls it off successfully.

“The book is better,” says every reader, who has been subjected to a movie or a show based on something they have read, and worse, loved. Kalki Krishnamurthy’s books are better—the masterpiece, and engaging. Ponniyin Selvan, published in nearly the 1950s, is undoubtedly the best novel in Tamil literature. 

As Twitter users predicted, people across generations rushed to the theatres to see a star-studded cast—made up of Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Trisha, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Sobhita Dhulipala, Prabhu, R. Sarathkumar, Prakash Raj, Rahman, and others—bring this epic to life. 

Ponniyin Selvan is a five-part historical fiction series based on the life of Arulmozhi Varman, who later became the great Chola emperor Rajaraja Chola I. Throughout the 2,220-odd pages, Kalki has woven a tale of the power struggle among the three popular Southern kingdoms—Cholar, Cheran, and Pandiyans—peppered with his own wit, story, and narrative.

Mani Ratnam’s goal, as he has said in several interviews during the run-up to the release of the movie, is to bring a layered story made more impactful with little imperfections, a much more realistic portrayal of characters than perfect epics with happy endings. To be sure, several filmmakers have attempted to adapt this novel into a film but failed, mostly due to a lack of budget. 

Even Ratnam himself had tried to make this film twice before—in 1994 and 2011—but was unable to do so. That is, until 2019. Finally, production started in mid-December and was completed by last September despite disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. And now, we are finally here. 

Even before you get a chance to soak in the complex world-building of Kalki’s epic story or appreciate the actors weaving through the story, Ravi Varman’s cinematography grips you. 

Each shot is carefully thought of, beautifully placed, and executed, bringing the Chola kingdom from the pages to life.  In fact, it is very hard to believe that both PSI and PSII were shot in just 150 days. However, it is evident that without VFX, a movie of this scale and grandeur would have been very difficult to execute for the sheer cost alone. The set pieces and visual effects lend an old-world charm to the sequences without overshadowing the actual story.  And it isn’t just the cinematography that impresses.

 

Not only is the movie’s wardrobe historically accurate but even the armors are made to perfection.  The background score is urgent and coaxing, setting the pace of the story, and the songs are contemporary but do not sound crass. 

The action choreography, which is vastly different from the grandeur of other epics, is designed to reel you into the plot even deeper. One such example is the chase sequence starring Karthi.  

So, the packaging is great but what about the actual plot? Does Mani Ratnam deliver? At the core, the movie remains true to the soul of Kalki’s books—a top-notch narrative, which is propelled forward by compelling performances. Of course, there are differences between the book and the movie but that was to be expected. For example, the characters have been aged up but the result is more than satisfactory.

Vikram as Aditha Karikalan is terrific. Karthi as Vallavaraiyan Vanthiyathevan is in top form. Both Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Trisha are exquisitely beautiful and play meaty characters who have skin in the game. It’s nice to see an Indian movie where the intrigue and smarts are actually executed by the female characters, who are more than just fillers meant to supplement male actors.

Ponniyin Selvan is a must-watch movie for the plot and the music alone.