Michael Madana Kama Rajan (1990)

This is one 90s comedy that's ageing brilliantly, that's for sure. Kamal Uncle is fabulous as 4 wildly different characters- the identical quadruplets who tragically get separated at birth- however, I do wish more screen time was given to Raju, who was by far my favourite of the 4. Or even to Kameswaran, and his interactions with Thiripurasundari (Urvashi) and her grandmother (S.N. Lakshmi). Nassar too, was under-utilised as the "villain". Sad.

But the thing about this movie is that each character is memorable in their own way, and the casting is superb. I am still laughing thinking about Manorama's antics during the 'Siva Rathri' song. Just that commitment to deliver a brilliant comedy is so rewarding to witness- apparently, the scene where Shalini (Kushboo) points a gun at all of them, and they all start moving away in a similar fashion was improvised! And of course, the iconic climax scene in that house tilting dangerously on a cliff. Delicious. 

Ilaiyaraaja's music is the best, as always. The highlight of the album is 'Sundari Neeyum'- that song gets more gorgeous with every listen. Can't believe Kamal Haasan is an accomplished singer on top of everything. 

A must-watch for everyone who's fond of vintage Indian slapstick comedy. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go zone out to 'Sundari Neeyum'. 

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